KHAWR AL AMAYA OIL TERMINAL, Iraq, May 31, 2006 - The quick response of
two USS Port Royal crew members saved the life of an Iraqi contract
worker overcome by smoke inhalation while fighting a fire here May 26.
As part of Commander, Task Group 158.1 emergency response team, Chief
Petty Officer Doreen Lehner and Petty Officer 3rd Class Heather Watts
were the only medical personnel on the scene when an Iraqi Southern Oil
Company worker collapsed due to smoke inhalation.
Injuries from smoke inhalation and the toxic by-products of combustion
in fires account for 75 percent of fire-related deaths in the U.S.
Typically, the victim's lungs fill up with mucus and fluid, making it
difficult to breathe.
Oxygen deficiency leads to further complications, including tissue
hypoxia (stiffening of the extremities) and, finally, loss of
consciousness.
Lehner and Watts, hospital corpsmen, were on Port Royal's rigid-hull
inflatable boat when Cmdr. Eric Phipps, CTG 158.1 deputy commander,
received word that the Iraqi had collapsed on the north side of the
platform. He immediately dispatched the two corpsmen to the scene.
"He was breathing, but struggling, when we got there," Lehner said.
"Then he slipped out of consciousness. He had a very weak pulse, and he
was posturing (the stiffening of the extremities associated with
hypoxia). I knew we needed to give him an IV (intravenous feed)."
Lehner and Watts had to overcome the language barrier between them and
the victim's co-workers to convince them he needed an IV.
"I knew he was probably dehydrated, but when I gave him the IV, he
stopped breathing for 2 to 3 minutes," Lehner said. She then attempted to
insert a breathing tube down his throat.
"He was unconsciously fighting the tube, but he hadn't breathed in
about two minutes," she said. "I knew we were losing him."
"His jaw was clenched tight and his tongue was blocking his airway,"
said Watts, a native of Pharr, Texas. "It was pretty scary. I was just
trying to stay focused and grab everything Chief (Lehner) was asking for.
His friends were on either side of him helping us, rubbing his arms and
legs to help with circulation, and praying and encouraging him to
breathe."
Lehner said she was afraid to move the Iraqi in his weakened condition,
even though the platform was being evacuated. Phipps, who was torn
between concern for the safety of his sailors and the well-being of the
victim, stayed with Lehner and Watts throughout the ordeal.
"There was still a certain amount of risk on the platform, but it was
obvious that he was badly injured," Phipps said. "We had to make the
decision to do whatever we could to help him and the other terminal
workers."
Lehner said that in desperation she tried to insert the oral airway
again. This time, it provoked his gag reflex and stimulated him to gasp
for air.
"It was like he came back to life," she said. "He quickly sat up and he
gasped for air, then started coughing, and coughed out a lot of that
fluid. I cleared his airway, got all the fluid out and utilized the
bag-valve-mask to provide rescue breathing. Then we hurried him out of
there."
The Iraqi was by boat to nearby amphibious transport dock USS Ogden. He
stopped breathing three times before they got to their destination and
had to have the oral airway reinserted to prompt his reflexes again.
The team then medical evacuated him via helicopter to amphibious
assault ship USS Peleliu, which has a higher-echelon medical facility. He is
now ashore in Basra and is in good condition.
"This is the first time that I've saved somebody's life," Watts said.
"And it's a reward in itself, like you're walking on air. It's amazing."
Port Royal, part of Expeditionary Strike Group 3, is deployed in
support of maritime security operations in the North Arabian Gulf,
establishing conditions for security and stability in the region.
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