IT FEELS GOOD TO BE A NURSE...truly a noble profession...saving lives Nurse, Navyman risk own lives to save others By Mars W. Mosqueda, Jr. and Elena L. Aben Published: August 18, 2013 Cebu City — In times of tragedy, heroes in ordinary people come to life. A 25-year-old nursing graduate managed to save the lives of up to 10 passengers from the sinking “M/V Thomas Aquinas” Friday night at the Lauis Ledge off the coast of Talisay City. Alwin Patosa, a nurse from Bacoor, Cavite, even managed to revive a dying infant by applying cardiopulmonary (or mouth-to-mouth) resuscitation (CPR) while they were onboard a lifeboat, floating in the dark and cold water. People all around them screamed in panic, asking for help. Patosa was with his cousins – Cecilia Galigao, 27, and Agot Mendoza, 19 – on their way to Manila from Surigao when a violent collision with the cargo vessel, “M/V Sulpicio Express 7,” sank their ferry vessel around 9 p.m. Friday. He recalls having dinner with his two cousins at the canteen upon impact. Their table was dislodged and glassware crashed on the floor. “When the lights suddenly went out, people started screaming and crying. My cousins were already in panic, but I told them to stay calm,” he said. When the lights turned on again, Patosa grabbed his two cousins and headed for cabin to get their important documents and belongings. While other passengers were already panicking, Patosa kept his presence of mind, placing all his documents and mobile phone in a plastic bag and sealed it. When the vessel started to tilt, Patosa told his cousins to wear life jackets and guided them towards the deck. Along the way, the nursing graduate of Arellano University said he saw children, old women, even men trapped near the door. “I saw a rope tied to the deck. That was the time I told my cousins that I will have to jump first using the rope so that I can catch them below,” he said. Patosa rappelled using rope towards the water, causing blisters in his right palm. When he hit water, he signaled his two cousins to slide down the rope. When the three were already in the cold water, Patosa said he saw a life boat and pushed his cousins into it. Assured of his cousins’ safety, Patosa boarded another life boat carrying one man and attempted to pull more people out of the water with the use of a rope he fashioned into a noose. But the rope was too short that it failed to reach other passengers in the water who were asking for help. “That was the time that I decided to jump back into the water and save the other passengers. I tied the rope around my waist and ask the other man to hold the other end so he can easily pull me back,” Patosa said. Within five minutes, Patosa and the unidentified man were able to save up to 10 people, including children, women, and senior citizens. The life boat was already filled with 15 people, when fishing bancas started arriving to help in the rescue. While on board the life boat, Patosa asked the other survivors if someone was in need of immediate medical attention. “Tinanong ko sila kung sino ang nahihirapan huminga. Then sumigaw yung iba na may bata na hindi na humihinga. So kinuha ko agad and I applied CPR,” Patosa said. The child, a baby girl less than one year old, was breathing heavily when Patosa grabbed her from her hysterical mother. “Sabi ko bahala na basta makaligtas lang bata,” he remembered. A few seconds after applying CPR, Patosa said the baby started crying. Patosa heaved a sigh of relief. He then gave back the child to the mother as he attended to an old woman who was also in need of assistance. Patosa also grabbed a flare and sent it off to alert rescue personnel. “It happened so fast. Good thing I did not panic. I also told the other survivors to stop panicking or we would all die,” he recalled. Fishing bancas brought the life boat boarded by Patosa and the other lifeboat boarded by his cousins to shore.
Posted on: Sat, 17 Aug 2013 23:27:17 +0000
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