Mano a Mano Flights in Bolivia in July

Mano a Mano Apoyo Aereo pilot Ivo Daniel Martinez sent our US office an update about his recent flights during the past week:

Friday, July 8

We received a call asking for a flight to transport two patients from the community of San Lorenzo de Moxos. One had appendicitis and the other is waiting for test results to make a diagnosis.

Saturday, July 9

We transported four physicians to the community of Monte Cruz. They completed a weekend health clinic. A quick exam of two patients showed that they had to be transported immediately to Cochabamba in order to receive specialized attention so the aircraft returned to Cochabamba.

Sunday, July 10

We went to pick up the physicians from Monte Cruz. We combined this flight with a private pay flight which helps us generate funds. This way we don’t have an unpaid leg on the flight.  

Monday, July 11

We received a call from the mayor of Culpina, asking for an emergency flight for the daughter of one of the council members who had worked very closely with Mano a Mano Nuevo Mundo. This seven year old girl had been operated on during the previous month; it was a major operation which included changing heart valves. She had been recuperating normally but, inexplicably, the situation became seriously complicated. The child was unconscious and couldn’t move. Her parents took her to the city of Tarija where they hoped for help from a specialist but none were available. They saw the need to transport her to Cochabamba (where she received the operation). It was not possible to consider transporting her by land, given that the bus trip is 20 hours and the girl needed IV fluids and oxygen as soon as possible. The parents asked that the commercial airline transport her but it refused because of the girl’s complicated situation. Mano a Mano responded and flew her to Cochabamba; now the girl is doing well and is recovering normally.

Transporting her to Cochabamba in the Mano a Mano plane

Tuesday, July 12

We completed a private pay flight to the community of San Lorenzo, generating funds for Mano a Mano. In the afternoon, we completed another private flight to the city of La Paz with an overnight stay.

Wednesday, July 13

We returned from La Paz.

Thursday, July 14

We received a call asking for an emergency flight. Some Chilean tourists suffered an accident, a collision of two vehicles on the Salt beds of Uyuni that left eight wounded and two dead. The wounded could have been moved to a hospital in Potosi, but the urgency was to transport the two who had died to the city of Calama in Chile. Sadly, we had to turn down this flight because our small aircraft would only have been able to carry one of the coffins. Two coffins cannot enter the aircraft and the distance to Calama is great. Finally the Chilean Air Force sent a version of the C – 130 to Potosi to pick up all of the wounded and the dead.

Saturday, July 16 and Sunday, July 17

We are providing air support to a weekend health clinic in the community of San Pablo in the Beni province  (organized with Mano a Mano Bolivia).

Thanks for all your support. Without your help this would be impossible.

Ivo Daniel Martinez Velasquez