PORTSMOUTH, Va. — A Coast Guard helicopter crew medically evacuated two ailing passengers aboard a cruise ship approximately 9 miles east of Virginia Beach this morning.
The captain aboard the cruise ship Carnival Pride contacted watchstanders at the Sector Hampton Roads command center in Portsmouth at 2:30 a.m. to request medevacs for a 69-year-old woman who had suffered a heart attack and a 56-year-old man who had suffered a seizure.
An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrew from Air Station Elizabeth City, North Carolina, launched to assist.
The helicopter aircrew hoisted the two ailing passengers and one nurse aboard and transported them to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital in Norfolk.
“A complex medevac like this requires strong communications and coordination between the aircrew, command center staff and cruise ship personnel,” said Lt. j.g. Brad Milliken, command duty officer for the case. “Our priority was to deliver both passengers to higher medical care, and we are thankful we were able to do so quickly and smoothly.”
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