Man rescued from Antarctica base
2008-10-20 19:37
Oslo - A Norwegian injured at a remote research base in the Antarctic was evacuated during the weekend after his fellow crew members managed to clear snow and ice from a landing strip that had been closed for the winter.
Sigurd Sande, a 50-year-old mechanic, was flown to Cape Town for hospital treatment two weeks after he suffered a complex leg fracture, a news release from the Norwegian Polar Institute said on Sunday.
Sande was part of a six-member crew at Norway's base on Queen Maud Land. The base, which is 240 kilometres from the nearest coast, has its own airstrip, but it had been closed for the winter, leaving the team isolated.
The news release said Gulfstream GIIB aircraft reached the base on Saturday, and immediately brought Sande to South Africa, a roughly seven-hour flight.
Norway's Troll Base was built in 1990 for Antarctic summer use, and was expanded to a year-round station in 2005.
- AP