The child was airlifted by SUC medical helicopter from a private clinic in southern Gran Canaria to the University Maternal and Child Hospital of the Canary Islands. During the flight, he was attended by the aircraft's doctor and nurse.
The Canary Islands Emergency Service (SUC), under the Canary Islands Government's Ministry of Health, coordinated the urgent transfer of a four-year-old child on the afternoon of Saturday, May 2, 2026. The child was showing signs of severe drowning. He was transferred from a private hospital in southern Gran Canaria to the University Maternal and Child Hospital of the Canary Islands, a referral center for specialized pediatric care.
According to information released by the Canary Islands Government, the child was rescued from a hotel swimming pool and initially taken by private ambulance to a medical center in the municipality of San Bartolomé de Tirajana. Due to the severity of his condition, the hospital contacted the Canary Islands Emergency Service (SUC) to arrange for his medical evacuation to Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.
The SUC coordinating nurse, using the clinical data provided by the private center, determined that a medical helicopter was needed. The aircraft landed in the parking lot of a school near the hospital, while a medical ambulance transported the child to the boarding point.
During the flight, the child was attended at all times by the helicopter's medical team, consisting of a doctor and a nurse, until his arrival at the helipad of the University Maternal and Child Hospital of the Canary Islands. The pediatric emergency service had been previously notified by the SUC coordinator to receive the patient upon arrival.
Services involved: the operation involved the Canary Islands Emergency Service, with the coordinating nurse, the resource manager, the medicalized ambulance and the medicalized helicopter, in addition to the private health center that requested the evacuation and the pediatric emergency team of the University Maternal and Child Hospital of the Canary Islands.
