Date: May 5, 2004

Contact:  Lt. j.g. Eric Willis
787.510.7923

AIR STATION BORINQUEN HOISTS MARINERS TO MEDICAL ATTENTION

ST THOMAS, U.S. Virgin Islands - In two separate cases last night, mariners were airlifted by Coast Guard helicopters from vessels in the north Atlantic and transported to St. Thomas International Airport where an awaiting ambulance completed the travel to the hospital.

The first case began when Sector San Juan Command Center received a call from the Regional Command Center in Rome Italy stating that a 51-year old male was complaining of chest pains and requested assistance with getting the Italian citizen to medical attention.

Mr. Vittorio Aliprandi, the 51-year old was aboard the 48 foot sailing vessel Perola Damar, currently 100 nautical miles north of St. Marrten.

Sector San Juan, briefed the flight surgeon, who recommended medical evacuation of the patient as soon as possible.  Sector then dispatched the Air Station Borinquen HH-65 Dolphin helicopter to the scene.

Once the Dolphin crew located the sailboat 74 miles north of St. Maarten, the Coast Guard Rescue Swimmer jumped from the hovering helicopter into the open ocean and swam to the stern of the vessel.  The Rescue Swimmer pulled with him a line attached to the helicopters hoist cable.  As the rescue basket was lowered, the line was used to guide the basket to the sailboats deck. 

"It was too risky to lower the swimmer between the two masts and associated rigging of the 48 foot sailboat.  So the crew figured out the safest way to accomplish the life saving mission." said Commander Art Snyder, Operations Boss at Air Station Borinquen.

Aliprandi, was safely hoisted past the rigging and later transferred to the awaiting ambulance at 6:15 p.m. last night and was reported to be in stable condition at Roy Lester Snyder Hospital at the time of this release.

The Air Station was called into action again just after 11:00 p.m. last night when the Cruise Ship Mellennium reported one of their crew members, 27-year old Austrian man, Rene Plank, was experiencing symptoms of appendicitis.

Originally on their way to Spain Mellennium, turned back inorder to rendezvous with the Coast Guard helicopter and was 90 nautical miles north east of St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands when the hoisting began.

Another successful deployment of the rescue swimmer (this time directly to the upper deck of the cruise ship) and the patient was safely hoisted aboard. Plank, was transferred to an ambulance in St Thomas shortly before 4:00 a.m. this morning.

There was no word of the condition of the Austrian seaman at the time of this release.

CDR Snyder added, "Last nights missions are a great example of how the Coast Guard regularly works across international border to save lives.  We landed for fuel in French Saint Maarten, then hoisted an Italian man from an Italian vessel, later it was an Austrian man from a Bahamian flagged cruise ship and both of them were brought safely into a U.S. hospital." 

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