Sailor airlifted by RACQ CQ Rescue
RACQ CQ Rescue landed on the deck of a 229-metre long bulk carrier at Hay Point on 20 August to airlift an injured sailor
RACQ CQ Rescue landed on the deck of a 229-metre long bulk carrier at Hay Point on 20 August to airlift an injured sailor.
The Mackay-based rescue helicopter landed on the deck of the MV Maria GO, anchored 20km offshore from Hay Point, to airlift a 40-year-old Filipino crewman who had suffered a serious injury to his leg.
It is believed the man, who was six months into his maiden voyage, was struck in the knee by an object and required urgent hospitalisation.
The rescue helicopter landed on the heli deck of the ship with a rescue crewman and Critical Care Paramedic on board.
The helicopter wasn’t powered down so the blades continued to turn as the patient was stabilised for flight and loaded into the helicopter. RACQ CQ Rescue departed 20 minutes after arrival and delivered the patient, who was in a stable condition, to Mackay Base Hospital about 1pm.
About 8.30am today, RACQ CQ Rescue was also tasked to retrieve an elderly woman with a life-threatening neurological condition from a cattle property west of Eungella.
The helicopter landed in a dry and dusty paddock near the property’s homestead, about a one-hour drive from Collinsville, and was on the ground no longer than 30 minutes before departing for Mackay Base Hospital.