365: Chapter 363: Great Fate, Great Fortune, Great Destiny 365: Chapter 363: Great Fate, Great Fortune, Great Destiny Gao Yang and five others first arrived at Rio de Janeiro Airport, and while waiting for the plane from Rio de Janeiro to Punta Arenas, forty-five hours after learning about Yelena’s accident, Gao Yang received good news for the first time.
Yelena and Catherine had been transferred to the Chilean Navy’s Lynch Frigate, and now, the Lynch Frigate was making full speed towards the port of Punta Arenas.
Onboard the Chilean Navy’s Lynch Frigate, the medical conditions were much better than on the Bob Barker.
After being airlifted onto the Lynch by the frigate’s helicopter, Yelena regained consciousness after not too long, and her vital signs were very stable.
In other words, although Yelena was not yet out of danger, her life could be said to have been saved.
However, Catherine’s condition was still very bad.
Although she was on the better-equipped Lynch Frigate, she was still in a life-threatening stage.
The main threat to Yelena and Catherine was from severe hypothermia, which is to say, they were frostbitten.
Within the range of severe hypothermia, when the human body temperature drops to 31°C, the body begins to shut down almost all peripheral blood circulation, reduce breathing and pulse rates, and enter a hibernation-like state.
At a body temperature of 30°C, the body enters a state of suspended animation.
Between 30°C and 27.8°C, pulse and breathing rates become very slow, accompanied by atrial fibrillation, and between 27.8°C to 25.55°C, one loses consciousness completely, and heartbeat and breathing are almost undetectable, with the pulse so faint it’s barely noticeable.
A small shock could cause ventricular fibrillation leading to death.
But when the body temperature drops between 25.55 and 24 degrees Celsius, cardiac and respiratory failure are inevitable.
However, most people would have died long before their body temperature had dropped to that level.
Yelena and Catherine’s survival under extreme hypothermia can only be described as having great luck and strong vitality.
The treatment for hypothermia is far from as simple as directly raising body temperature.
A single misstep, and the patient with severe hypothermia may die instantly.
Fortunately, because they primarily operated in the Antarctic Ocean, the onboard doctor on the Bob Barker was experienced with treating hypothermia.
However, although Yelena and Catherine’s body temperatures were safely restored, the severity of their hypothermia was too great, with Catherine already suffering from organ failure, which was the most dangerous aspect for her.
Now that they had been taken aboard the warship, Yelena should be able to get out of danger soon, but the medical facilities on a warship were still not sufficient for severe organ failure.
However, conditions would definitely be much improved compared to staying on the Bob Barker.
Rescuing ships in the vast and extremely treacherous Southern Ocean called for national-level resources.
In all of South America, only the Chilean Navy was capable of rescuing the Bob Barker.
The Chilean Navy is the second strongest naval force in South America, second only to Brazil, which has an aircraft carrier.
However, Chile is still stronger than Brazil in terms of the number and advancement of non-aircraft carrier ships.
The Lynch Frigate involved in the rescue mission was a Type 23 Duke-class frigate from the United Kingdom, and none of the Type 23 frigates had been decommissioned yet.
Apart from the three in Chile, the remaining Type 23s will serve in the British Navy until after 2020.
The Lynch, formerly the HMS Grafton, was transferred to Chile in 2007 after serving in the British Navy for only eight years, so the Lynch was still a very new frigate, fast, and with a displacement of 4200 tons, it was equipped with the HM Mk.1 Merlin heavy anti-submarine helicopter.
Besides having good hardware, geographical location was also extremely important.
The Lynch Frigate was stationed at Punta Arenas port, and Punta Arenas is the southernmost city on Earth, as well as the closest city in the world to the Bob Barker.
Only from Punta Arenas could the Lynch have saved some time.
If it had departed from anywhere else, it wouldn’t have reached the Bob Barker before the Bob Barker itself arrived at Punta Arenas.
With high cruising speed, the Lynch, moving at full speed, managed to rendezvous with the Bob Barker faster than expected.
And with a heavy helicopter, they were able to transfer Yelena and Catherine onto the Lynch under harsh weather conditions.
Thanks to the assistance of the Chilean Navy, Yelena and Catherine were delivered to the hospital in Punta Arenas fourteen hours earlier than anticipated, and Gao Yang and his group finally arrived in Punta Arenas one hour after Yelena was admitted to the hospital.
After disembarking the plane, Gao Yang and Glolov, of course, immediately rushed to the hospital, while Li Jinfang and the other four members went straight to find a hotel to check in.
Gao Yang didn’t want them to show up in public because he worried that reporters would photograph all of them and then associate them with a series of major events that were bound to happen.
Many media outlets had gathered at the largest hospital in Punta Arenas.
Fortunately, the hospital had taken strict measures to prevent the journalists from interfering with the emergency treatment of Yelena and Catherine.
Only after confirming the identities of Gao Yang and Glolov, and with the testament of the early-arriving Natalia, were Gao Yang and Glolov allowed to enter the hospital.
“Thank God, Yelena’s okay,” said a tearful Natalia as she threw herself into Glolov’s arms upon seeing him.
But her first words were what finally allowed Glolov and Gao Yang to relax after being tense for over forty hours.
After receiving treatment aboard the Lynch Frigate, Yelena had already woken up by the time she arrived at the hospital, and she was very lucid.
Once she was transferred to the ICU and after the doctors confirmed her condition, they announced Yelena was no longer in life-threatening danger.
However, as a precaution, the doctors induced Yelena back into a deep sleep, and for the time being, visitors were not allowed.
Meanwhile, Catherine was still in the midst of a tense rescue effort, and her condition had not yet stabilized.
Yelena and Catherine were in two adjacent rooms, Yelena in the ICU, and Catherine in the operating room, where the lights were on, indicating that a surgery was taking place.
The corridor outside of the operating room was off-limits to everyone except relatives, so there were only three people there, one man and two women.
Gao Yang recognized one of the women as Adele.
Though Adele had fallen into the sea too, she was rescued earlier and therefore was in much better condition.
While the other volunteers continued the rescue efforts for Yelena and Catherine, they were attacked by high-pressure water cannons from the Nisshin Maru, delaying Yelena’s rescue by half an hour and Catherine’s by a full forty-five minutes.
As for the man and woman, they were a couple, Catherine’s parents.
Adele’s eyes were red, her face etched with exhaustion and panic.
Upon seeing Gao Yang, she stood up, and tears immediately streamed down her face as she said softly, “I’m sorry, Gao.”
Gao Yang had seen clearly on the television the moment Yelena fell overboard and how Adele and Catherine both jumped into the sea to rescue her.
Adele was unharmed, only because she was pulled from the water first.
Gao Yang had no idea what Adele had to apologize for.
He embraced her, gently patted her shoulder, and said softly, “You have absolutely no reason to apologize, Adele.
Be strong, Yelena is okay now, and Catherine will be okay too.
Relax, they will both be alright.”
Catherine’s father also had red eyes, gazing fixedly at the light above the operating room door.
His wife buried her head in his lap and sobbed helplessly.
Gao Yang sighed and said softly to Catherine’s father, “Mr.
Taylor, I am a friend of Catherine’s.
I believe she will be alright.
She’s a good girl, and God won’t abandon her.”
Catherine’s father nodded blankly but didn’t take his eyes off the light.
Knowing that Yelena was no longer in danger, Gao Yang had taken the opportunity to comfort Adele and Catherine’s parents first.
Then, he stood outside the ICU, looking at the sleeping Yelena through a small window in the door.
Yelena looked haggard in her sleep, her face still etched with an expression of terror.
Although he knew Yelena was out of danger, the expression on her face still made Gao Yang’s heart feel as if it were being squeezed and then cruelly twisted.
It was only then that Gao Yang understood what heartache felt like.
Gao Yang and Glolov stood motionless at the doorway of the room, gazing at the sleeping Yelena.
Gao Yang didn’t know how many hours he had been standing there.
He would only step aside when medical staff needed to enter the room; otherwise, he just kept staring at Yelena, ignoring Natalia and Adele’s suggestions to get some rest.
Finally, Gao Yang saw Yelena stir on the hospital bed.
Then, he saw her eyes slowly open.
As her gaze fell upon the circular window in the door and she saw Gao Yang and Glolov’s faces beyond the glass, tears filled her eyes, and she struggled to sit up.
A nurse was attending to Yelena by the bed, trying to prevent her from getting up, but Yelena, with a look of terror, continued to gaze at Gao Yang.
Unable to hold back any longer, Gao Yang pushed the door open and rushed to Yelena’s side.
After hugging Yelena tightly, Gao Yang let out a long sigh of relief.
At that moment, Yelena, crying, said, “Dad, Mom, Gao, I thought I would never see you again.”
When Gao Yang realized that Glolov and Natalia were still by his side, he slowly released Yelena.
Then Glolov and Natalia embraced Yelena tightly.
The nurse by the bed frowned but ultimately said, “The patient is very emotionally unstable.
Your presence might help her mood, but please don’t tire her.
Let her talk while lying down, and keep in mind, you can only stay for an hour.
Do not disturb her more than necessary until her body can handle it.” (To be continued.
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