The news recently covered a story about a dangerous mission to rescue two sick workers from a remote station at the South Pole. One of those workers just happens to be my uncle. Many people do not realize what a historic event this was.
In Antarctica, temperatures are well below zero for most of the year. At remote work stations across the continent, such as the one my uncle worked at, transportation to and from the South Pole headquarters doesn't exist during winter months because of harsh temperatures and weather conditions. This extreme weather makes it difficult or nearly impossible for planes to fly without their engines freezing. Due to his co-worker's worsening state of health, an exception was made to rescue her and my uncle from their work station.
After about a month of communications with his employers and my uncle himself, he finally got home a few days ago to stay until his health is in better condition. Although he could've gradually gotten to better health in the South Pole, the altitude there made things much harder. He described his trip as tiring. His travels consisted of 10 hours in a tiny plane with enough room for the two rescued workers, two pilots, an engineer and fuel tanks to propel the plane the long distance from the South Pole station to the edge of the continent. From there, they made their way to a hospital in Chile to be treated shortly. My uncle has traveled to almost every continent so far in his life, but has not frequented South America. He had planned to make it to Chile after this season of work, but received an unexpected quick glimpse of the country during this medical stop. From there, he crossed into the United States and stopped in Texas until he boarded a plane to Pittsburgh, about two hours from our family's hometown.
Events like this remind us of the things we take for granted every day. The availability of having a well-equipped hospital nearby is something not everyone has. The opportunity to hop on the next flight out of town is something we may not take advantage of often, but its always there is we want to. My uncle did not have these privileges, and neither do his co-workers who are still living and working in extreme conditions.
On another note, this event reminds us of how big our world actually is. It is eye-opening to realize the distance we have between us and our loved ones and how quickly technology can close that gap. With a world this huge and so much to explore and learn about, it truly makes our every day problems seem minuscule in comparison.
