Timely rescue of passengers in distress on international luxury cruise ship.

On December 11th, information from the Vietnam Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Center indicated that at 2:18 AM on the same day, the Westerdam (a passenger ship, Dutch nationality, MMSI: 244128000, approximately 285m long and 32m wide) carrying 1,900 passengers en route from Quang Ninh to Tien Sa port, Da Nang, encountered a passenger who was fortunately rescued in time.

Specifically, when the Westerdam was approximately 32 nautical miles northeast of Son Tra Cape, a passenger (born in 1956, German nationality) fell down the stairs. The ship's doctor administered first aid and found that the patient had a damaged spleen, suspected internal bleeding, and was in critical condition. The ship immediately requested assistance to transport the patient to the hospital for emergency treatment. The captain requested emergency rescue.

Rescue teams are working together to provide emergency medical assistance to the passengers.

At that time, the weather in the area was characterized by northeasterly winds of force 6 and waves 3-4 meters high. After receiving the information, the Vietnam Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Center (under the Vietnam Maritime and Inland Waterways Administration, Ministry of Construction ) recognized that the patient's condition was critical if not rescued promptly due to continuous internal bleeding in the abdomen.

Given the situation, the center requested the captain of the Westerdam to move at high speed to reach Da Nang as soon as possible. At 3:27 AM on December 11th, a pilot vessel met the Westerdam at buoy number 0. At 4:30 AM the same day, the Westerdam safely docked at Tien Sa port. The Vietnam Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Center closely coordinated with relevant units and the ship's agent in Vietnam to organize the reception of the victims upon the ship's arrival at the port and provide them with medical assistance.

The Westerdam ship.

The timely rescue operation once again demonstrated the role of the Vietnam Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Center in receiving, processing, and coordinating search and rescue operations related to foreign crew members and vessels operating in Vietnam's waters of responsibility; it also showed the center's timely participation in responding to accidents and incidents at sea under the direction of the National Civil Defense Steering Committee, the Ministry of Construction, and the Vietnam Maritime Administration.

Source: https://cand.com.vn/Giao-thong/kip-thoi-cuu-nan-hanh-khach-gap-nan-บน-sieu-du-thuyen-quoc-te-i790752/