First In Over 35 Years Displayed Teamwork, Precision, Expertise

For the first time in more than 35 years, a patient who sustained a cardiac arrest was successfully evacuated from McMurdo Station in Antarctica. The lifesaving operation was carried out by the Wyoming Air National Guard’s 187th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron.

The patient is a U.S. civilian contractor and a veteran of over 20 Operation Deep Freeze missions. McMurdo Station is a critical hub for the U.S. Antarctic Program and houses about 500 personnel during the winter months when flights in and out are particularly challenging if not impossible.

As it was, temps at the station were hovering around -31°F and blizzard conditions had prevented an earlier rescue attempt.

The patient, about age 60, had collapsed in the station’s galley. Medical personnel from the station’s fire department, the National Science Foundation, and U.S. Air Force responded immediately and discovered he had suffered a massive ‘widow maker’ heart attack, caused by complete blockage of the left anterior descending artery. It is the largest artery in the heart and supplies blood to 50% of the entire heart.

The first responders performed CPR and multiple defibrillator shocks on the way to the staion’s clinic. There, personnel continued performing intensive efforts including CPR, epinephrine injections, and defibrillator shocks to stabilize the patient. An immediate medevac operation was planned.

Maj. Nate Krueger, Wyoming Air National Guard flight nurse explained, “This was a truly remarkable case. From the moment of collapse to the successful evacuation, every step was executed with precision and urgency. The coordination between emergency responders, the clinic team and the flight crew made all the difference.”

The medevac was no routine mission by any means. Additional medical personnel arrived on a Royal New Zealand Air Force Orion, and after 90 minutes a USAF LC-130 flew the patient on a 7-hour, 2,500-mile flight to Christchurch across some of the planet’s most unforgiving terrain.

Upon arrival, the patient was rushed to a hospital where he was catheterized and had two stents placed to open his arteries. The total elapsed time from collapse to advanced cardiac care was about 12 hours and ended with the patient walking out of the hospital under his own power a few days later.

FMI:  www.af.mil/