Incidents in Durban, Gqeberha and Knysna.

DURBAN

Jonathan Kellerman, NSRI Durban station commander, said:

A ship medical evacuation and a medical emergency on a beach.

At 08h00, Sunday 16 April, NSRI Durban duty crew gathered at NSRI Durban rescue station in response to an earlier request to casualty evacuate a Chinese crewman who had sustained a medical complaint onboard a 300 meter MV (motor vessel) crude oil tanker.

Telkom Maritime Radio Services, a WC Government Health EMS duty doctor, NSRI EOC (Emergency Operations Centre), TNPA (Transnet National Ports Authority), Police Sea Borderline Control, NSRI Durban duty controllers, Netcare 911 duty controllers assisted MRCC (Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre) in logistics and coordination of the medical evacuation.

The NSRI rescue craft Alec Rennie, accompanied by Netcare 911 rescue paramedics, rendezvoused with the vessel 4 nautical off-shore of the Port of Durban Breakwater.

The 49-year-old patient, in a stable condition, walking wounded, was transferred onto the rescue craft without incident, assisted by an NSRI rescue swimmer and a Netcare 911 rescue paramedic who had been put onto the motor vessel to assess the patient and aid in the transfer.

The patient was brought to our NSRI Durban rescue station and transported in a Netcare 911 ambulance to hospital for further care in stable condition.

At 10h54, Sunday, 16 April, NSRI Durban duty crew and Netcare 911 ambulance services were activated by NSRI EOC (Emergency Operations Centre) to respond to a medical emergency near to the Cuttings Beach, Bluff side, Durban.

Our NSRI Durban rescue vehicle, accompanied by a NSRI CROC (raft stretcher), in case the patient needed to be floated across the canal.

On arrival our NSRI rescue vehicle and Netcare 911 paramedics negotiated barely accessible terrain to reach the local adult male who had suffered a serious injury in a fall.

Tyre pressure on the NSRI rescue vehicle was dropped to 0.8 bars to assist the rescue vehicle to successfully negotiate the soft sea sand conditions encountered. The rescue vehicle reached nearby to the patient and then rescue crew hiked barely accessible steep and jagged rocky terrain to reach the patient who had sustained a serious injury in a fall during a hike.

Netcare 911 HEMS (Helicopter Emergency Medical Services) dispatched a Fidelity Helicopter who deployed 2 additional rescue paramedics onto the scene by air.

We were racing against time with a high tide fast approaching. NSRI crew and Netcare 911 paramedics are commended for their swift treatment that they delivered under trying circumstances to the seriously injured man.

Paramedics stabilized the patient before he was secured into a stretcher and transported aboard the NSRI rescue vehicle roof, secured to the roof racks, in the care of 2 Netcare 911 rescue paramedics who were also stationed on the roof, as this was the best and most plausible solution under the circumstances to beat the rising tide to successfully evacuate the patient off the beach.

At times negotiating the incoming wave sets our rescue vehicle, expertly driven along the beach, by NSRI Durban's Alex Rogers, rendezvoused with the Netcare 911 ambulance and the patient was transported to hospital by ambulance in a serious but stable condition.

GQEBERHA:

Fishing vessel beached.

Justin Erasmus, NSRI Gqeberha station commander, said:

At 06h22, Tuesday, 18 April, NSRI Gqeberha duty crew were activated to investigate reports from MRCC (Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre) and TNPA (Transnet National Ports Authority) Port Control, of a fishing trawler beached at Kings Beach.

On arrival on the scene, it was found that all 8 crewmen were accounted for and had disembarked safely and without injury or incident and no further assistance was required.

SAMSA (South African Maritime Safety Authority) will investigate the causes of the vessel coming aground.

The owners are investigating efforts to re-float their fishing vessel.

KNYSNA:

Injuries onboard a motor boat broadsided by a wave.

Jerome Simonis, NSRI Knysna station commander, said:

At 10h28, Tuesday, 18 April, NSRI Knysna duty crew were activated following an urgent request for assistance from 3 local crew, friends, onboard a 23 foot Catamaran motor vessel that was unsuspectingly broadsided by a wave while exiting the Knysna Heads to go to sea.

It appears that the men, age 72, 30 and 28, were flung across the boat deck causing injuries in the incident. They had recovered themselves and steered out the Knysna Heads to safer waters while raising the alarm.

One man, the skipper, was seriously injured, one crewman sustained slight injuries and one crewman was not injured.

NSRI Knysna crew launched the NSRI Knysna rescue craft Jay Tee IV and Eileen Meadway and rendezvoused with the casualty vessel.

All the casualty crew were transferred onto the rescue craft where medical attention was immediately rendered to the injured.

Family were alerted and the skippers family were briefed and cared for at the NSRI Knysna rescue station.

ER24 ambulance services were activated.

NSRI towed the casualty craft to a safe berth at Knysna Marina and the skipper, age 72, seriously injured was taken into the care of ER24 paramedics and transported to hospital in a serious but stable condition by ER24 ambulance.