Patient Rescued from Antarctic Research Station - East Idaho News
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Patient Rescued from Antarctic Research Station

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Getty 080812 McMurdoStationAntarctica?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1344500585352iStockphoto/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — An Australian medical team has arrived in Christchurch, New Zealand, after departing the U.S. McMurdo Station in Antarctica where it rescued a U.S. expedition member who suffered a medical emergency.

The patient, who for privacy issues has not been identified, landed Thursday morning in New Zealand.  The patient was to be transported to a local hospital there, according to a spokesman from the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF).

The Australian Antarctic Division was asked to assist in the rescue and provided its A319 Airbus and a medical team to help, the Australian government division said in a statement.

The rescue team had been waiting for a break in the weather to make the risky trip to the Antarctica research station.  The team’s plane left Christchurch Wednesday evening en route to McMurdo Station, according to the Australian Antarctic Division.

The NSF coordinated the operation, but remained mum on most of the details.

NSF spokeswoman Debbie Wing told ABC News that privacy issues prevent the foundation from revealing the patient’s name, gender, age or illness.

“The patient’s condition may require treatment beyond what can be provided at the station’s medical facility,” the NSF said in statement Wednesday.

The NSF said the American patient is in stable condition, but the McMurdo medical facility is “equivalent to an urgent-care center in the U.S., and is not equipped for the type of procedure being contemplated.”

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