Thuraya Simply Saved our Lives
“I wish to share an account following a tragic accident in the rain forests of Southern Cameron where our lives were saved by the use of a Thuraya mobile satellite phone.
My hunting companion and I were sitting in a ‘machan’ (platform on a tree) on the edge of a saline swamp. We were waiting for the dawn hoping that we could view the forest Sitatunga (a swamp dwelling antelope) and a forest buffalo.
At 02.30hrs a violent thunderstorm knocked a huge nearby teak tree onto the branch of the tree on which we were sitting cracking it at a sharp angle. We were hurled out of the ‘machan’ onto the ground 40ft below.
My friend sustained 4 broken vertebrae, 5 broken ribs and a cracked hip. I wasn’t aware at that time that my neck was broken too. I quickly used my Thuraya phone to call our base camp (located some 65 kms away from us) that had another Thuraya satellite mobile phone. Help arrived 5 hrs later. Again we used our Thuraya phones to telephone for an emergency aircraft evacuation and to notify our families and loved ones about the incident. Had we relied on communication via the normal HF and VHF systems, we would have suffered delay in seeking help but with the Thuraya system all communications went smoothly and within a very short time a jet was on its rescue mission. In the near future, we will make sure that all our vehicles are equipped with a Thuraya system. Without our Thuraya phones we would have been in a most serious and life threatening situation. In a nutshell, Thuraya mobile satellite phone system saved our lives.
My friend is now back in Miami, Florida. He is walking again and on the road to a full recovery. I am now back in Tanzania and about to resume my ‘guiding’ profession.
I thank Thuraya for a great service that simply saved our lives. I hope my experience will display an example of how important it is for people to give a good thought of obtaining a Thuraya satellite phone before setting off on journeys to remote areas where communications are difficult or do not exist at all”.
Douglas.Stephenson
Professional Safari Guide.
(Presently conducting safaris in Tanzania, Cameron and Namibia)