Indian Coast Guard carries out medical evacuation

The Indian Coast Guard became a lifesaver for a 75-year-old by carrying out an urgent medical evacuation from Lakshadweep to Kochi, officials said on Sunday.

A statement by the Coast Guard said that the patient diagnosed with acute sabacute subdural hematoma on oxygen support was airlifted from Agatti in Lakshadweep and shifted to a private hospital in Kochi in an operation that started late Saturday night and was completed by Sunday early morning.

The urgent request, received post-closure of runaway operations at Agatti airfield, activated the ICG distress and HADR response mechanism, the Coast Guard said. “To facilitate the medical evacuation, ICG launched a Dornier aircraft from ICG Air Enclave at Kochi Airport at 10 pm.”

The aircraft landed at Agatti island at 11.20 pm, where the patient, along with the medical support team and spouse, was embarked swiftly considering the urgency of distress,” the statement said.

According to the Coast Guard, the aircraft took off within 25 minutes and landed safely at Kochi airport at about 1.10 am on Sunday.

Subsequently, the patient was shifted to Amrita Hospital and is receiving advanced medical care and support, it said.

“The entire operation was executed within three hours of receipt of the request from the Island administration and executed post closure of Agatti airfield in pitch dark conditions. The ICG pilots demonstrated exceptional skills while safely executing the operation under challenging conditions,” the statement said.

ICG’s night-landing SOPs for the Agatti runway during dark hours have provided immense support in the execution of such medical evacuations from the Lakshadweep islands, the Coast Guard said.

This operation was the seventh successful medical evacuation conducted by ICG using Dornier aircraft this year, it added.