A medical emergency onboard a huge cruise liner bound for Edinburgh sparked the launch of an RNLI crew who raced to the North Sea.
Invergordon's volunteer crew were paged to assist the emergency which had departed the town earlier that day on Tuesday, August 9. Six crew members reached the mega cruise ship, with two casualty-trained crew boarding and transporting the person in distress back to ambulance crews waiting at Invergordon harbour.
Releasing more information on the vital rescue, the Invergordon Lifeboat Team said: "Invergordon’s Volunteer crew were paged to launch to assist with a medical issue on board a Cruise Liner which had departed earlier in the evening bound for Edinburgh.
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"The Lifeboat launched with a crew of six and made best speed to the Cruise Liner which had stopped at the Moray Firth Fairway Buoy to await the arrival of the Shannon Class Lifeboat. Arriving a short time later, two casualty trained crew boarded the liner and along with the liner medical time assisted the casualty and a senior medic onboard the lifeboat for the return journey to Invergordon West Harbour.
"The lifeboat was met by an awaiting Ambulance and Rapid Response Team along with local Coastguard where the casualty was conveyed to Raigmore Hospital for medical attention. The Lifeboat made the journey back to the Fairway Buoy to ensure the senior medic re-joined the liner on the continued journey south before returning to the lifeboat berth in the West Harbour, washed, refuelled and made ready for service by 10:15pm."
Coxswain Bruce Rae said: "At Invergordon RNLI we are always happy to provide support and assistance to our visiting cruise liners, a medical evacuation is a time critical event and we will always do what we can to ensure a successful outcome. I’d like to thank the crew for their rapid response time and wish the casualty well."
The team attached photos of the cruise liner before and after approaching, with the impressive vessel set to join a whole host of similar ships that have docked in the capital recently, including the Carnival Pride, which carries a crew of around 900 people, as well as being kitted out with 2,000 cabins, an onboard water park, gym and various restaurants.
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