3 sons British sailor struck by truck in Philippines

[pbmaise]

Frequently our worst nightmare is not at sea. As cruising sailors we venture into lands with inadequate healthcare, questionable legal systems, and bad roads. Many of us do it on a budget, wed into the local community, and adopt children. This past Saturday all factors were against the 3 sons of British sailor Ken Hughes and his Filipino wife Prezzie Palallos. Ospray SV location Tambobo Bay Negros

Headed into Dumaguete City a truck was overtaking around a blind corner. It crossed over clearly marked double yellow lines. The boys are as of Monday nigh.. Oldest closed head wound broken leg comatose. Middle treated released. The 15 yo has compound left knee, shattered right knee, both femurs broken, shattered hip bones. He appears to have gone under the wheels.

They are in ICU at Holy Child in Dumaguete. Yesterday I picked up 4 units A plus for youngest. He took 7 units first day. 3 units requested today. Distressingly no new call for oldest.

Discussion of double amputee of youngest is occurring for three reasons
1. Local doctor skills
2. Stem blood loss.
3. Cost of care.

Personally I have purchased 8 units and experienced walking the streets on a Saturday night looking for blood donors. I had to visit 7 pharmacies to find drugs. This is an odd system where anyone in a hospital depends on their relatives to go find what is needed.

Even something as simple as blood is out of stock, the local Red Cross is closed till Monday. Before selling you their blood you must find donors.

The temptation to say this is not my problem is tiny compared to fact I know this family. I don't know which is worse to see. The oldest on artificial breathing I think will die, or the child that waves to me that I personally cannot afford to whisk away to a Western hospital just one island away.

Philip Maise





Sent from my A660B using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[Cheechako]

This is in the Phillipines?

[MarkJ]

What a terrible situation! What can one say? I hope the doctor is good.

[JPA Cate]

Thank you PBMaise, for trying to help.

Ann

[MBWhite]

Mr Maise it is so wonderful you are helping. Sadly I am on the other side of the planet and have no connections over there, and no idea who to approach for advanced medical care but this is the sort of situation that many humanitarian organizations seem to be helpful with.

Best wishes and prayers sent to the kids and family.


Mark

[Ex-Calif]

Not clear from your posts - Where are mom and dad?

It appears the truck the kids were in was the one that crossed the lines?

Used to see that a lot in Malaysia - passing on blind hills and corners. Effin' crazy. My ex-wife had a driver shen we lived in Manila. I would never let that guy drive me. Personal policy never to let a guy with a 3rd grade education take my life in his hands.

Prayers for the kids.

[UNCIVILIZED]

Sorry to hear about this tragedy, especially as it involves kids. Prayers enroute. And thank you for helping them.

On solutions ideas:
Have you tried getting in touch with a few Embassies there? Say British, & American, as well as others? In addition to NGO agencies which handle overseas medical emergencies, amongst other thing. - Red Cross, Doctors Without Borders, etc.

Also, try & find out if there are any allied military units, ships, or bases within a few hundred miles. They of course have medical resources, as well as transport options (local, and LOOONG Distance). And sometimes help simply because it's the right thing to do.
Who knows, you might get lucky & find out that there's a British Naval Hospital Ship (with helo's onboard) 20 miles away.

Getting the press on your side in terms of finding the proper help can go a BIG way towards leveling roadblocks & getting help onsite quickly. Or transport if appropriate.
And I mean big, international, Western Press.
It's a lot easier to do nowadays, given the internet, plus all of our instant communications.
.
And it's a long shot, but odds are there are some allied Military Contractors in the area. As to their willingness to help, & or at what cost, I'd be purely guessing. But I doubt it could hurt to try.
Also, they would have a MUCH higher chance of knowing what specific resources which I've mentioned, would be in the area.

Oh, & try and tap into the Cruisers Networks in the region. A lot of MD's, PA's, & Nurses etc. go cruising. Like in a much higher percentage than you'd find in the general population. (Ditto on vacation travel networks, odds are there are high end Medical Professionals on vacation in the vicinity).
Also, if there's a Chaplain of most any denomination in the fleet, even if he/she's no longer practicing, they'll know who to call (guaranteed).

I'm not fully up to speed on how Cruisers Networks work right now, given how fast comms tech. changes any more. But high tech stuff aside, VHF, Ham, & SSB is likely still very viable, given that you can have a Huge number of folks listening to a daily broadcast at times X, & Y daily. Plus a good number of those on/in the net can also be land based. Such a setup makes it easy to reach a LOT of people with only a little bit of inexpensive technology.

Plus, any & all of the above listed folks/organizations have a decent chance of knowing of others who might be of aid, & or have further links & POC's for you to pursue.

Again, this is another a long shot, but some churches may have resources to help with this directly, & or POC's + ideas on others who might be of assistance.

PS: I forget the technical medical term for it. However, on the young lad with the swelling inside his skull, pressing on his brain (subdural hematoma). Have the doctors not tried the option to drill a small hole through the skull in order to give the pressure to go, & if so, why not?
Also, is the Red Cross in your neck of the woods termed the Red Crescent as well?

[pbmaise]

Update: Wednesday afternoon.

The long green couch in front of the operating room is empty.
The 15 year old inside. Operation 1 to stuff the bones of the left knee back inside has begun.

It has been a day of highs and lows for the family.

Knowing the couch is empty is alarming. The brain surgeon's report, not good. The earlier ICU report, that with a tracheotomy Jeremias might breathe without a mechanical breathing machine, isn't relevant.

Paddling around the bay I confirmed what I already knew. The handful of yachts occupied here, contain owners that are unable. As typically is the case, the oldest and known most impoverished widow gave both money and vital information.

Diane gave 4500 peso and told me to go look for an old bald man in the city.

Lunch in the city with some blood donors. I scream seldom and don't name call, however yesterday I called a cousin of the boys "short nose". Physically it matches which is why it is such an offense. He was telling me there was no reason to donate his blood as another cousin already did yesterday.

It worked he came and donated.

I dragged the 18 yo son from the hospital to lunch. He was in the middle position on that motorcycle. Why? The question he must ask again and again. Why did he escape with hardly a bump? I pounded him with beef burgers and rice. I sparred the speech of remaining strong.

After lunch I saw a bald older man crossing the street.

"Excuse me, do you write for the newspaper?"

I expected him to look at me like an alien. However, he thought a second and said I must be looking for Kojak. He told me he is usually at the mall in the afternoon.

Looking in on Jeremias the empty couch was explained. Mother head down on the bed. As I write this I do not know. Shortly after I left. Today. Tomorrow. It was clear. The brain surgeon said no.

As much as I can control the reality around me, I cannot control whether my fingers reach across this key pad to type a different word.

One more pass to that green couch. The dazed son and I sat. These people are so loving, so kind, I had to explain why he could not stand next to his little brother who just moments before held on.

One more pass to ICU to meet Ken Hughes. I suggested not telling. Ken has been raising these children now 6 years. So I knew he was correct. The 15 yo wasn't dumb. He would know.

My God! How many bald expats are there in just this city? What? Are there signs somewhere proclaiming if you are bald retire in Dumaguete.

I found Kojak. Aka James Hugh. Former US military and local paper writer. He was sitting at a table with a bald guy. The angle he will use is how inadequate the blood supply is.

This morning I awoke and found an email. It read 65 Singapore dollars were in my pay pal account.

Thank you Deutsche. This will cover about one unit of blood.

Each surgery will likely require more. I brought his shoes to the hospital. I promised him he would walk again.

I will follow all suggests made above to help.

Helping hurts in a very strange way. Helping makes me feel good. It feels good to locate donors, pay for items, shop for medicine, and send groceries home. Yet at the same time a stupid voice in my brain keeps saying I am only helping because it makes me feel good.

Philip Maise