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#1
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India can kill you
I have just returned from Zanskar/Ladakh where a member of our group
started suffering from acute moutain sickness and needed a helicopter evac. Despite repeated requests the Indian military refused to send in a helicopter, but was happily ferrying ballot boxes around by copter while our friend lay helpless. She was eventually taken out by pony. Ladakh is a military zone (on border with Pakistan) and no private helicopters are allowed -- only military. So your medical/evacuation insurance is worth zero here -- but no-one tells you. If you get sick in Ladakh, u can die. You have been warned. |
#2
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I have just returned from Zanskar/Ladakh where a member of our group
started suffering from acute moutain sickness and needed a helicopter evac. Despite repeated requests the Indian military refused to send in a helicopter, but was happily ferrying ballot boxes around by copter while our friend lay helpless. She was eventually taken out by pony. It would have been very charitable of the Indian military to have provided helicopter evacuation. Apparently, the helicopter operators and their military commanders were not in a charitable mood. However, nothing compels them to be charitable, even to treking foreigners. Your suffering friend apparently survived after evacuation via more low-tech transportation. Ladakh is a military zone (on border with Pakistan) and no private helicopters are allowed -- only military. So your medical/evacuation insurance is worth zero here -- but no-one tells you. If you get sick in Ladakh, u can die. Best to inform yourself before traveling. Hmmmm..... One wonders whether the medical/evacuation insurance covered the cost of the evacuation by pony. You have been warned. Yep. |
#3
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Why do you think the Indian military should do ambulance work for tourists? What next, if your flight is delayed, call in the air force to fly you?? |
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#5
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#6
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wrote in message ups.com... Why do you think the Indian military should do ambulance work for tourists? What next, if your flight is delayed, call in the air force to fly you?? So I guess that if your boat sinks and your stranded at sea in a life raft, you shouldn't expect a passing Navy ship to help rescue you? What, you expect the Navy to be providing a ferry service for tourists whose boats sink? Idiot. |
#7
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In article , Chris Blunt
says... Why do you think the Indian military should do ambulance work for tourists? For the same reason the US military are using helicopters to evacuate people injured or in some other imminent danger in New Orleans. Many countries make use of their military facilities to rescue civilians in emergency situations (eg injured mountain hikers) when no alternative is readily available. I don't know how serious this person's mountain sickness was, but if it became life threatening then their request would seem reasonable. Well, the USA is the richest country in the world, while India a poor developing country with limited resources. The US military is saving their own people, while the Indian military would have to save some foreign tourists, who chose to go into a dangerous area. Nobody forced these tourists to put themselves at risk. -- Alfred Molon http://www.molon.de - 6000 photos from Asia, Africa and Europe |
#8
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redegecko wrote:
I have just returned from Zanskar/Ladakh where a member of our group started suffering from acute moutain sickness and needed a helicopter evac. Despite repeated requests the Indian military refused to send in a helicopter, but was happily ferrying ballot boxes around by copter while our friend lay helpless. She was eventually taken out by pony. Ladakh is a military zone (on border with Pakistan) and no private helicopters are allowed -- only military. So your medical/evacuation insurance is worth zero here -- but no-one tells you. If you get sick in Ladakh, u can die. You have been warned. While I feel pity for your friend, you should know that if you get sick *anywhere* you can die, a fact that is probably more true in remote areas of third-world areas; no matter where you go you have to be aware of the dangers you face. Also note that other countries might have flown her out, but if they determined she needlessly put herself and others at danger she could have faced a bill for that evac. Besides, AMS is rarely life threatening unless you don't know what you're doing and don't stop to either wait out the symptoms and/or slowly descend, both ideally with the help of oxygen (and medication, which a well-equipped high-altitude first aid kid should have); if you keep ascending it'll progress to life-threatening altitude sickness. It could be the military didn't think standard AMS (not life threatening and relatively common) was enough justification for a helicopter evac. Actually, a slow donkey ride down the mountain was probably the best thing for her. John W. |
#9
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"John W." wrote in message ups.com... redegecko wrote: I have just returned from Zanskar/Ladakh where a member of our group started suffering from acute moutain sickness and needed a helicopter evac. Despite repeated requests the Indian military refused to send in a helicopter, but was happily ferrying ballot boxes around by copter while our friend lay helpless. She was eventually taken out by pony. Ladakh is a military zone (on border with Pakistan) and no private helicopters are allowed -- only military. So your medical/evacuation insurance is worth zero here -- but no-one tells you. If you get sick in Ladakh, u can die. You have been warned. While I feel pity for your friend, you should know that if you get sick *anywhere* you can die, a fact that is probably more true in remote areas of third-world areas; no matter where you go you have to be aware of the dangers you face. Also note that other countries might have flown her out, but if they determined she needlessly put herself and others at danger she could have faced a bill for that evac. Besides, AMS is rarely life threatening unless you don't know what you're doing and don't stop to either wait out the symptoms and/or slowly descend, both ideally with the help of oxygen (and medication, which a well-equipped high-altitude first aid kid should have); if you keep ascending it'll progress to life-threatening altitude sickness. It could be the military didn't think standard AMS (not life threatening and relatively common) was enough justification for a helicopter evac. Actually, a slow donkey ride down the mountain was probably the best thing for her. John W. what made her sick? spicy chicken curry, dirty water, hot weather, insects? |
#10
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"o co no" wrote:
what made her sick? spicy chicken curry, dirty water, hot weather, insects? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acute_mountain_sickness -- Dave Fossett Saitama, Japan |
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