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Professionalism, grit and inspirational leadership were required to support a fishermen trapped in machinery onboard a Danish fishing vessel.
On the afternoon of Thursday 3 June 2021, Rescue 900, based at Sumburgh Airport, was tasked to provide assistance to a casualty trapped on a Danish fishing vessel located 75m west of Shetland.
Arriving on scene, the crew’s winch paramedic, Mark ‘Spike’ Hughes was lowered to the bow of the vessel and immediately made his way to the fish hold where he found the casualty to be seriously entrapped in heavy machinery, with major injuries to his lower right leg which he was unable to release. The situation was further complicated by the floor of the fish hold being awash with water contaminated by fish effluent and fish scales. Having confirmed the severity of the situation, the remaining crew of Rescue 900 departed for Sumburgh, noting that specialist cutting gear would likely need transporting to the vessel.
Despite the extremely unpleasant and unhygienic conditions, and without any indication of the availability of further assistance, Hughes focussed on providing first-class care and support to the casualty, while also providing inspirational leadership for the vessel’s crew. Whilst stabilising the situation Hughes was made aware that a doctor, three firefighters and cutting equipment were being despatched via a Norwegian SAR helicopter. Following their arrival Hughes worked with the firefighters to free the casualty and provide continued medical care, before co-ordinating the safe transfer of the casualty to the helicopter. With the casualty enroute to a major trauma hospital, and whilst awaiting the arrival of Rescue 900, Hughes commenced the initial process of decontaminating himself and his kit. Having recovered to Sumburgh and in spite of the pressure of the previous few hours, he subsequently spent the remainder of the evening cleaning and disinfecting his personal and medical equipment, much of which was so severely contaminated that it had to be scrapped.
Hughes’s calmness and professionalism in dealing with a serious medical emergency, while facing significant uncertainty regarding the availability of additional assistance, is worthy of significant recognition. Despite his actions taking place in very unpleasant conditions, he remained good-humoured and cheerful throughout, which clearly demonstrates his selfless attitude and a ‘can-do’ approach to adversity. As such he is fulling deserving of an individual commendation for his noteworthy actions.
