The U.S. Coast Guard sprang into action to medically evacuate a 32-year-old crew member from the Allure of the Seas Thursday night, September 24, according to a press release by the Coast Guard.
The Coast Guard received an urgent medical evacuation request from the ship at approximately 8:00 p.m. The unidentified crew member was suffering from “severe, chronic abdominal pain” that the Allure of the Seas’ medical center was not able to treat.
An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew was deployed from Air Station Borinquen, located in the northwest corner of Puerto Rico. At the same time, the Allure of the Seas changed course and sailed south towards the aircrew.
The aircrew and ship met 50 nautical miles northwest of Puerto Rico, where the aircrew “executed a precision hoist operation to safely lift the patient from the cruise ship.”
The aircrew then transported the crew member to Air Station Borinquen, where he was subsequently transported by ambulance to the Hospital Buen Samaritano in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico.
Footage of the rescue can be seen below.
Cmdr. Zachery Geyer, Coast Guard Sector San Juan search and rescue mission coordinator for the case, made a statement in the press release that reads:
“This successful mission highlights the vital importance of our interagency partnerships and the close collaboration we maintain with commercial vessel medical teams.” He continued, “The rapid communication between our watchstanders, Air Station Miami’s flight surgeon, our tactical aircrew and the cruise ship’s officers and crew ensured we could meet a tight time-to-care window and safely deliver this patient to a hospital to receive the higher level of care he needed.”
No information has been released about the man’s condition since he was transported. Royal Caribbean has not issued a public statement on the matter.
Last week, multiple medical emergencies on the Oasis of the Seas led the ship to reverse course back to Nassau so the sick passengers could receive medical care in a shoreside hospital.