In A First, Hyderabad Metro Used To Beat Traffic And Transport Live Heart For Transplant

For the first time ever, the metro was used to transport live heart from LB Nagar to Jubilee Hills in Hyderabad, to save a precious life. Hyderabad Metro created a special green corridor for the transport, without passengers and covering a distance of 21 kilometers in just 30 minutes.

The organ, which was harvested from a 45-year-old man found to be brain dead, was transported from Nagole metro station to Jubilee Hills Check post Metro station. The special arrangement was made to save a critical patient in need of an urgent transplant.

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Passenger-free, all stations kept on guard

Usually, by road, the distance between the two hospitals from Kamineni Hospital in LB Nagar to Apollo Hospitals in Jubilee Hills takes more than an hour, owing to traffic. A team from Apollo hospitals started their journey with the live organ at around 4:40 pm, and the train crossed 16 stations between Nagole and Jubilee Hills in 30 minutes.

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It took less than 30 minutes for the train to reach Jubilee Hills, as the train travelled at an average speed of 40 km/hr. All stations were kept on guard and were informed regarding the movement of this special train. An ambulance was kept ready at Jubilee Hills to take the heart and rush to the hospital.

For the first time ever, #HyderabadMetro has created a special green corridor for the transport of a harvested heart from LB Nagar to Jubilee Hills, to save a precious life.#Hyderabadmetro #HMRL #GreenCorridor #MyMetroMyPride pic.twitter.com/1NNq0h3Ohy

¡ª Hyderabad Metro Rail (@hmrgov) February 3, 2021

Doctor says main challenged was distance

Dr. AGK Gokhale of Apollo Hospitals, who travelled along with the live organ in the metro, said that a 44-year-old patient in Apollo hospital was in a critical stage and in urgent need of heart transplantation. When they learned of the availability of a healthy organ from a 45-year-old brain-dead person in Kamineni hospitals, the distance between the two facilities and the traffic on road was the main challenge. ¡°We faced a logistics problem as the two hospitals are on two ends of the city. It would take more than an hour to reach the hospital even if a green channel was created on-road,¡± he said.

Further, he explained: ¡°If a heart is harvested for transplantation, it should start working in four hours. Short of a helicopter, we thought this is the best option available. We have saved half-an-hour to 45 minutes. This gesture by LTMRHL is highly appreciated.¡±

In a first, a special passenger-free train was arranged by @hmrgov @ltmhyd to transport a live heart from Kamineni Hospital in LB Nagar to Apollo Hospital in Jubilee Hills 21kms away in just 30mins. #organdonation #Hyderabad #Telangana photos:L&TMRHL @IndianExpress pic.twitter.com/vmP0P2zrC7

¡ª Rahul V Pisharody (@rahulvpisharody) February 2, 2021

Green corridor metro for the first time

¡°It¡¯s for the first time that such a special dedicated train was run to transport a heart to save a life,¡± said NVS Reddy, managing director, Hyderabad Metro Rail Limited (HMRL).

KVB Reddy, MD & CEO, of L&T Metro Rail Hyderabad Limited (L&T MRHL), thanked the two hospitals for reaching out to them with an opportunity to save a person¡¯s life. ¡°We have taken all safety measures in place along with creating a green corridor to mobilize a special non-stop train from Nagole to Jubilee hills, seamlessly facilitating the transportation of the heart in a quest to save a life,¡± he said in an official statement.

Watch visuals of the heart being transported by train:

In probably a first, doctors used the #Hyderabad Metro to transport a heart from one hospital to another in the city. A passenger-free train was arranged for the same. A distance of 21 kms was covered in less than 30 mins. pic.twitter.com/8p9hobtCCJ

¡ª Paul Oommen (@Paul_Oommen) February 2, 2021

Past incidents

While green corridors are nothing new in principal, this is the first time that the metro railway has been used for this purpose. For the past few years, various traffic police divisions in cities have been ensuring that the ambulance carrying the cadaver organ gets a stoppage free path to the destination hospital.

Recently in October 2020, the Hyderabad Traffic police had readied a green corridor between Global Hospital, Lakidikapool to KIMS Hospital, Secunderabad. The entire stretch of 5.7km could be covered in just 5 minutes due to this. Often, for patients in critical conditions needing such cadaver organs, time is of prime importance as even a few minutes delay can be a matter of life and death.