BajaNomad

Dramatic 2:00am Coast Guard Rescue at Gonzaga

jeans - 1-24-2005 at 02:42 PM

Well, the unthinkable happened. My mother fell on her way to the shrimp boat and broke
her hip. This was near Alfonsina?s in Gonzaga Bay. I received a SAT. phone call at 6:00 last night with the news. I immediately called Binational Emergency Medical Care Committee. Their 24/7 operator had the director, Celia Diaz call me within 3 minutes.

By 10:30pm, after numerous phone calls, she had arranged clearance for the Coast Guard to fly in and pick her up. They got there about 2:00 in the morning and she was in Sharps in San Diego by 7:00am.

I cannot even BEGIN to tell you how valuable Binational Emergency Medical Care Committee. was through this ordeal. I had arranged for membership for my parents and I had bugged my mother for weeks to get me her medical insurance info that Celia keeps on file. Mom mailed it to me as they were driving out of town on the way to Gonzaga. THANK GOODNESS!

For a paltry $30 a year membership, Celia is there to be the liaison between governments (they had to get clearance from Mexico City), distraught family members (ME!) insurance companies and emergency services, to get the injured out and back to the US as soon as possible. From personal experience, I can now tell you that this membership is PRICELESS!!.

My heartleft thanks to Celia, BEMCC, and the gang at Alfonsinas who helped my mother through this. Also, to the US Coast Guard, for their amazing promptness (Mom said they were very handsome, too ;D )

Edited in Jan 2010 to fix a broken link to BEMCC

[Edited on 1-17-2010 by jeans]

Debra - 1-24-2005 at 03:19 PM

So sorry to hear about your Mom's accident, but glad to hear that she was taken care of so quickly. Wishing her (and you from the almost fatal heart-attack I'm sure you must have had) a quick recovery.

Question? Just what was Mom doing on her way to a shrimp boat?

greybaby - 1-24-2005 at 03:32 PM

Just went to the website and enrolled!! Your story convinced me. Something none of us want to have to use but definitely helpful just in case. Thanks for the info.

Me No - 1-24-2005 at 03:50 PM

Glad to hear your mom is going to be OK.

I too have a couple of questions.

1. Is a broken hip a life or death type of emergency? I realize the answer will vary with the patient.

2. Who is going to foot the bill for 8 hours of Helio time? bi national, you , your mom or all the other US tax payers?

3. Was any attempt made to contact any of the dozens of people with planes who are visiting Gonzaga on any given weekend, if car travel was deemed an impossibility?

4. What is the deal with the shrimp boat? Your mom was going to dead head it for a couple of days to get the feel of the Ocean, mini tour, score a couple kilos of camarones? WTF?

I'm not making any accusations or judgements here, so civil answers will work just fine.

JESSE - 1-24-2005 at 04:25 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by jeans
Well, the unthinkable happened. My mother fell on her way to the shrimp boat and broke
her hip. This was near Alfonsina?s in Gonzaga Bay. I received a SAT. phone call at 6:00 last night with the news. I immediately called Binational Emergency Medical Care Committee. Their 24/7 operator had the director, Celia Diaz call me within 3 minutes.

By 10:30pm, after numerous phone calls, she had arranged clearance for the Coast Guard to fly in and pick her up. They got there about 2:00 in the morning and she was in Sharps in San Diego by 7:00am.

I cannot even BEGIN to tell you how valuable Binational Emergency Medical Care Committee. was through this ordeal. I had arranged for membership for my parents and I had bugged my mother for weeks to get me her medical insurance info that Celia keeps on file. Mom mailed it to me as they were driving out of town on the way to Gonzaga. THANK GOODNESS!

For a paltry $30 a year membership, Celia is there to be the liaison between governments (they had to get clearance from Mexico City), distraught family members (ME!) insurance companies and emergency services, to get the injured out and back to the US as soon as possible. From personal experience, I can now tell you that this membership is PRICELESS!!.

My heartleft thanks to Celia, BEMCC, and the gang at Alfonsinas who helped my mother through this. Also, to the US Coast Guard, for their amazing promptness (Mom said they were very handsome, too ;D )


Sounds like a heck of a deal, and i hope your mom gets better as rapido as possible.

Me No - 1-24-2005 at 04:29 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by jeans
Well, the unthinkable happened. My mother fell on her way to the shrimp boat and broke
her hip.


This is a common misconception. Usually the hip breaks then the patient falls. It can be triggered by something as seemingly insignificant as stepping on a small stone, or even walking in soft sand. Caused by aging and weakening of the bones.

Cyndarouh - 1-24-2005 at 04:41 PM

Jeans, I am sorry to hear about your mom. Glad to hear she is up here now. And Thank you for posting the info. I will be joining ASAP. Our paryers are with you, Cyndarouh

trap shooting

fishinrich - 1-24-2005 at 04:59 PM

Jeans---Tell you mom to heal on up and I will stake her to a few rounds of trap at the Tijuana gun club---fishin rich,,,,,,I would also like to know the answers to me-no's questions. Wondering what the coast guard charges per hour for out of counrty calls?????

Natalie Ann - 1-24-2005 at 05:37 PM

Jeans - Sorry to hear of your mom's broken hip. May she heal quickly.

When you the dust settles and you have time for a response, I too would love to know a bit more about the total expenses involved. Sure sounds like a darn good $30 investment!

David K - 1-24-2005 at 08:33 PM

I really hope your mom recovers completly... She was such fun at the Baja Cactus event... Here was the dinner table she was at: Going around, counter clockwise from the lower right: Mexico Ted, Neal & Marian Johns, jeans, her mom, Fishin' Rich, Ted's father in law.

PabloS - 1-24-2005 at 10:07 PM

Jeans, I don't post often but read everthing, your Mom is in our prayers as if she were our Mom and we pray for her speedy and complete recovery.

Me-no, who gives a r@@tz A** who pays for the Coast Guard helo, if your are an elderly US citizen you've paid for lots of copter time in taxes and now it's payback. Just like a tax refund.

Me No - 1-24-2005 at 10:24 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by PabloS
Me-no, who gives a r@@tz A** who pays for the Coast Guard helo, if your are an elderly US citizen you've paid for lots of copter time in taxes and now it's payback. Just like a tax refund.


No doubt. You are correct Pablo. Next time I have a tummy ache in Gonzaga, I will know who to call.:lol:

Me No - 1-24-2005 at 10:50 PM

Look Grover and anyone else.

The question isn't about who it is, what it costs per se, or if they were on a boat or anything else.

It is about the insurance. Who is paying, how the process works. I really don't care about the Jeans factor, other than that her mom is OK. So, Look at this objectively and lets examine the facts.

My point with the flippant comment was exactly that. If I have the insurance, where do the limits of my policy occur. If I call with a tummy ache from Gonzaga, do I have some sort of personal liability?

Cut it with the emotion. Jeans mom is OK.

jeans - 1-24-2005 at 11:49 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by greybaby
Just went to the website and enrolled!! Your story convinced me. Something none of us want to have to use but definitely helpful just in case. Thanks for the info.


You are very welcome. And thank you to the others with the sincere well-wishes.

My *only* reason for this post was to showcase the services that Binational Emergency Medical Care Committe provides. This was a flawless evacuation.

I knew full well who would start with the crap, and frankly I don't really don't care what anyone else thinks. These details would be irrelevant if your loved one was the injured one.

Anyone who has been on that road knows that to transport someone with a broken hip would kill them with pain. The airstrip is too small for the airevac plane and even though there was a private pilot willing to fly her out, there was no way she could climb into in a tiny plane.

Her insurance will be billed. We will see. For the record, my own health insurance covers foriegn evacuation, does yours? It might be good to find out before you need to know.

She was on the beach walking next to a brick patio when her ankle twisted and she landed on her hip on the patio.
She heard the crack when she landed. Any more detail was not important to me.

And for that last burning question: She makes a *killer* shimp scampi.

greybaby - 1-25-2005 at 12:19 AM

Having worked in the medical profession for 20+ years in the U.S., it is always a crap shoot as to whether an insurance company will cover something. They can deem almost anything not medically necessary and deny the claim. But when it comes down to a "life-threatening" situation, which a fractured hip in an elderly person is, it doesn't really matter. What is a life worth? I for one feel better knowing I can get to medical care I know I can trust and have a say in, rather than leave my hands in the care of people who, though they care about my welfare, don't have the means nor the know-how to provide me the best care. I love living this side of the border, but this is a risk we all live with down here and I'm glad we have one more option to the incredible technology available North of the border. I don't know your mom, but pray she recovers quickly and completely. Thanks for the info.

Oh, now I get it......

Debra - 1-25-2005 at 04:59 AM

(brain cramp on my part) :rolleyes:

She was on her way to BUY shrimp (DUH!).....I had a picture in my mind of a 76yr. old lady going out on a day trip or something.

Anyway, again I'm glad she is okay and everything went so smoothly for her.

bajalera - 1-25-2005 at 01:56 PM

Sorry to hear about your Mom, Jeans, and I hope she makes a quick recovery.

Lera

Just found this pic

Tommy A - 3-1-2005 at 04:22 PM

EMERGENCY EVACUATION THANK YOU--Celia Diaz (second from left) of Chula Vista's nonprofit Binational Emergency Medical Care Committee (BEMCC) presents certificates of appreciation to members of the U.S. Coast Guard who sent a nighttime helicopter to Gonzaga Bay to evacuate 78-year-old Carol Schall who had fell and broke a hip in January. With Diaz are (from left): Capt. John Long, Commander of U.S. Coast Guard Sector San Diego; Cdr. Sean Mahoney, Sector San Diego Response Officer; Schall's daughter Mindy Selinger; AST3 Mac Cunningham, USCG Rescue Swimmer; and LCDR Chuck Bell, USCG H-60 Pilot. The BEMCC provides collect call 24/7 emergency evacuation assistance from anywhere in Mexico for a tax deductible $30 per year membership fee, 619-425-5080