'Rescued' yachtsman says thank you
by Eden Magnet/Sail-World Cruising on 17 Jun 2014
Yacht Gently amid emergency rescue SW
A sailor on a delivery trip to Sydney who was rescued after falling ill near Green Cape on Thursday morning has thanked local emergency services, saying they went above and beyond the call of duty to assist him.
Allan Furness, from Hastings in Victoria, took dramatically ill on board the 40ft yacht Gently around 5am on Thursday morning, with the vessel around five nautical miles east of Green Cape and heading slowly towards Eden.
Eden Water Police deployed police launch Falcon to assist Mr Furness, but with rough conditions and the poor health of the patient meaning it was not possible to transfer him to the police vessel, Marine Rescue Eden coordinated the transfer of two NSW Ambulance officers and their equipment to the yacht.
The paramedics remained on board to treat Mr Furness until the yacht reached calmer waters in Snug Cove, and he was able to be transferred to Falcon.
He was then conveyed back to the main wharf, before being taken to Pambula Hospital.
Mr Furness said he was discharged from hospital after a brief stay, and that he is extremely grateful to all those who assisted him.
'I’d just like to thank everyone,' he told local news outlet the Eden Magnet, 'Even though what they did was in the line of their work, they really went above and beyond their duties to help me.
'They even arranged transport back to Eden for me when I left the hospital.'
Mr Furness said he is not a regular crew member of the yacht, and was only on board to help them take the boat, which is similar to his own yacht, 'SV Huey', to Sydney.
The majority of its regular crew are scheduled to arrive from the UK to take over and steer the yacht to Noumea.
Eden Water Police coordinator, Sergeant Steven Judd, said the rescue is a great example of collaboration between local emergency services to achieve a positive outcome.
'This job was a great example of a joint emergency response by both police and ambulance officers,' he said, 'Thankfully the patient got the treatment he needed and should be OK.'
...and it's great that their services were appreciated...
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