Japanese lady airlifted after suffering spinal injuries

An elderly lady from Japan, who sufferred spinal injuries while visiting places of tourist interest in Badami and Pattadakal in north Karnataka, was shifted to Bangalore in the air ambulance introduced recently by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).

82-year-old Suniko Ikeda sufferred a fracture in her lower back-bone while travelling in a bus from Badami to Pattadakal. The mishap took place when the bus was negotiating a sharp curve. An immobilized Ikeda was rushed to the primary health centre at Badami, about 210 kms from Bangalore.

With the tourist requiring immediate treatment and further journey by road was not advisable, the Japanese embassy in New Delhi was contacted. The Japanese Ambassador to India contacted the Karnataka Government, which co-ordinated her rescue with the help of the air ambulance service of HAL in Bangalore.

The air ambulance took off to Badami at short notice along with a doctor from Bangalore-based Wockhardt Hospital. The helicopter landed at Bagalkot as there was no helipad at Badami. The injured Japanese tourist was rushed to Bagalkot and after administering first aid she was flown to Bangalore.

Ikeda is presently undergoing treatment at Wockhardt Hospital in Bangalore, according to a press statement.

“The operation took ten hours with 5.30 hours of actual flying and the remaining time spent in refueling and transporting the patient from Badami to Bagalkot”, HAL’s Chief Test Pilot Wing Commander (Retd) C D Upadhyay said. The co-ordination and communication, critical for the rescue mission, were precise, he added.

Ikeda was among a group of Japanese tourists, who were visiting Badami and Pattadakal in north Karnataka by bus after touring Goa.