The RCIPS Air Operations Unit carried out two medical evacuations from Cayman Brac to Grand Cayman this weekend using the police helicopter, which is becoming an increasingly important tool in medical emergencies. The chopper and crew transported a woman suffering from possible heart failure early Saturday morning and a man who was involved in a serious motorbike crash later that day.
The woman had been transported from Little Cayman to Cayman Brac by boat and doctors had requested the airlift late Friday night, but weather prevented the helicopter from flying. Police said that her condition had stabilised overnight, but as she still required attention from cardiac specialists, the decision was made to conduct the evacuation, which was completed by 8:15am on Saturday.
That evening a motorcycle rider lost control of his bike and crashed into a light pole on Cayman Brac, sustaining serious but non-life-threatening injuries. A second helicopter crew was called in and deployed, and they completed the evacuation to Grand Cayman by 6:15pm. He remains in hospital in serious but stable condition.