Cui Bono?
I read with interest how many people on ‘Twitter’ are concerned with ‘human suffering’ on both a small and a large scale, selflessly, often without a prayer of changing anything. This makes it incredibly important that when something can be done, a wrong can be righted if you like, we should whenever and wherever possible, lend our support. Even if that support is no more than a simple ‘tweet’; there is one of our own who desperately needs all the Karma, good will and, if you are so inclined, prayers to the pagan gods of choice.
I am amazed that the story has not made it into the mainstream media, for it has all the ingredients of a first class human interest story, in spades, redoubled.
Soon Karen Casey and her family will be in a court; fighting for dignity, honour and some form of compensation to help her and her family adjust their lives around the fact that Karen is no longer able to work, support herself or foster her children’s education. She did not know this was going happen when as a fully qualified, happy, flight nurse her patient was loaded onto a Pel-Air medivac flight, bound for Australia from Samoa. She had no prescience that within a few hours after take off, she would be struggling to keep her patient alive in a dark ocean, miles from the shore of a remote island in the vast South pacific ocean. After the aircraft ditched and broke in half, the patient had be un-strapped from the stretcher and helped into the cold dark sea. After the life raft had sunk, still secure in it’s canister all that stood between the survivors and certain death were the life vests. The patient’s life vest amongst others partially failed only half inflating; whistle cords hopelessly tangled, lights dim and intermittent. Karen spent 90 long selfless minutes, treading water, supporting her patient while permanently damaging her body, living now on fresh air, hopes of justice and pain killing drugs.
Here is a potted version of what she is trying to stare down:-
The Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) who not only allowed operational and systematic flaws to be enshrined within the Pel-Air SOP, directly connect with the causal chain, not only failed to prosecute the Chief pilot responsible, but hired him. Not content with that, they upped the ante and became involved with the ATSB report of the incident. That, standing alone is a remarkable story – See Pprune Senate Inquiry, for all the gory details.
The Australian Transport Safety Board (ATSB) under Doolaly Dolittle who happily cooperated in the farcical report which was to become the subject of a Senate inquiry; where breaches of the TSI Act and ICAO annexe 13 were exposed along with a plan to lay 100% of the blame on the pilot; who admits and regrets his errors.
The ‘Department’ and the minister who manage these two autonomous, fully protected bodies and happily admit there is no legal reason for Karen to be compensated.
Karen simply and happily went to work one day – that’s all; her patient and husband, the doctor travelled in good faith. Physical and mental trauma all at no fault of their own, can they expect justice and recompense; can they hell. No matter the political party’s did quite well out of it, what with donations happily coinciding with reports and all. Promotions and pay rises all around for the troops. For Karen, well she has the pleasure of dragging her family into a hostile court under subpoena as witness for the opposition.
She needs a bloody medal and time to heal, not forced into a dragged out, one sided court battle against large corporations, government agencies all intent on protecting (legally of course) their rice bowls. Does it stink – you bet.
Lear:
Close pent-up guilts,
Rive your concealing continents, and cry
These dreadful summoners grace. I am a man
More sinn’d against than sinning.
Selah.
Kharon
