New Delhi. Indian Navy executed a Medical Evacuation (MEDEVAC) operation on the basis of inputs received at about 0600 hrs on January 21 regarding a medical emergency onboard a Singapore flag merchant vessel MV Eagle Tampa at Joint Operations Center of Headquarters Western Naval Command.

The ship, which was 18 nautical miles off the coast of Mumbai, reported a patient, Ms Geetha Selvaraja, a 34 year old Malaysian citizen, to be suffering from gastroesophageal reflux disease and was experiencing difficulty in breathing.

Attempts by ship’s agent M/s JM Baxi & Co to transfer the patient to a tug failed due to high swell in the area. The patient being unconscious, also added to the complexity of the transfer.

Following confirmation of two failed attempts to transfer the patient to the tug, an Indian Naval SeaKing helicopter from INS Shikra was scrambled for MEDEVAC. The helicopter picked up the patient from the ship and returned to INS Shikra at about 0950 hrs. The patient was then transferred to Saifee hospital by private ambulance.