An 11-year-old boy with appendicitis rode to safety
early this morning as the Coast Guard rescued him from the Cruise Ship
Horizon about 80-miles southeast of Atlantic City.
At about 3 a.m., the Coast Guard received a call from the Horizon physician
indicating that Patrick Hogan, a young passenger onboard, had severe
abdominal pain and may need to be evacuated for care.
To facilitate the rescue, Coast Guard personnel instructed the captain of
the Horizon to head toward shore and position his ship within 80-miles of
the coast.
The Coast Guard then launched a C-130 rescue airplane from Coast Guard Air
Station Elizabeth City, N.C., to provide cover for the HH-65 rescue
helicopter and crew from Group Air Station Atlantic City. By about 5:58
a.m., both Hogan and his father, John Hogan, were safely aboard the
helicopter en route to Bader Field and waiting EMS personnel from the
Atlantic City Trauma Center.
"
Those guys just did an absolutely terrific job," said Hogan's father.
Hogan was admitted to the Trauma Center, where he will receive an
appendectomy. Trauma Center officials reported the boy in stable condition.