Sailor with severe head injury after ship fall rescued

A crew member who fell from height within the generator room of a ship and suffered a "severe head injury" has been rescued.

Following a Mayday call, the Gravesend RNLI Lifeboat was sent to a large work ship docked at London Gateway Port in Thurrock, Essex, at 19:40 BST on Tuesday.

Members of the lifeboat crew had to navigate "confined spaces, tight bulkheads and steep stairways" within the room to safely evacuate the crew member.

The patient was then transferred to a waiting ambulance on the shore.

Duty RNLI Thames Cdr Tyler Bonham said: "On arrival, two Gravesend RNLI lifeboat crew members boarded the casualty vessel via a pilot ladder, carrying specialist casualty care equipment. They were met by members of the vessel's crew, who escorted them to the generator room, where the casualty was located."

"To minimise further injury and reduce risk to the casualty, a multi-stage evacuation plan was agreed," Bonham added.

The lifeboat and vessel crew moved the casualty out of the generator room and onto the deck, then used the vessel's on-board systems to lower them onto a tug vessel, transferring the patient to a floating pontoon where an ambulance crew and doctor were waiting.

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