A team of pilot and a aesculapian workerare in the midst of evacuatinga sick staff member from a science stem near the South Pole . The rescue attempt is consider treacherous give the extreme midwinter temperatures and distance call for .
An unnamed stave worker at the National Science Foundation ’s Amundsen - Scott South Pole Station has become seriously ill . The medical situation is serious enough to alleviate a precarious midwinter deliverance — a time of year when dark and cold consideration make everyday flights treacherous . This is apparently just the third time this has ever happened .
For privateness reasons , the nature of the aesculapian exigency has not been made public . What we do live , however , is that the patient is seasonally employ through the Lockheed Martin Antarctic Support Contract , and that their illness could not be deal at the station . After confer with with external medical pro , the team decided that an parking brake rescue was required to get the affected role to a hospital in South America .
Easier said than done . This isolated base is locate near the South Pole , about 1,500 miles from Rothera , a British Antarctic Survey Station on the Antarctic Peninsula . It takes about 9 hours to get from Rothera to the NSF base — a distance of over 1,500 miles . And as already mention , it ’s now winter in Antarctica , where temperatures can cut down to -76 point F ( -60 point C ) .
For the rescue , a duad ofTwin Otter aircraftwere deployed to Rothera . These are the only planes in the earth capable of hold up midwinter Antarctic temperatures . Prior to taking off , the fuel , batteries , and hydraulics need to be warm . Importantly , these spoilt boy do n’t expect a runway for landing .
Earlier today , one of these plane land at the South Pole base and evacuate the patient ( the other plane is there stringently as a accompaniment ) . It’snow airborne once again , making its way back to Rothera . From there , the plane ’s three - somebody crew and one medical team appendage will reside before venture to South America .
No word yet on the wellness of the patient , but according to an NSF spokesman , “ It went all grant to programme . ” It also appear that , in addition to the patient , two reinforcement crew employees were also void , but this still want to be reassert .
[ NSF , Guardian ]
AntarcticaScience
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