TWO INJURED MEN FLOWN OUT

TWO INJURED MEN FLOWN OUT

Friends helped load the injured men into the helicopter.

By Marc Menne with Michelle Pierce - 2009.10.13

Two men injured in separate incidents required medical evacuation Saturday in Papua New Guinea.

On Friday night, helicopter pilot Ray Finsaas received a phone call asking if he could fly in early the next morning to pick up the men who were injured earlier that day.

A missionary fell in his house and broke a rib, leaving him with possible internal bleeding. The other man was working in the rocky hills near his village when a boulder broke loose and crushed the upper part of his leg.

"For them to have come out by road, aside from the fact of all their pain and possibility of internal injuries, it would have been a very rough ride," Ray said. "It would have been at least a full day’s trip. The 15-minute helicopter flight saves them a very grueling [up to] two-day drive."

The next morning Ray prepared the helicopter and lifted off at first light, arriving at the landing site where the two patients were waiting. Friends helped load the injured men into the helicopter, one on a stretcher formed out of logs and ropes. Within minutes they touched down in town and began receiving the medical care they needed.

Please pray for these two men as they heal and praise God for the personnel and equipment He has provided to make medevacs possible.