Richard Harris (anaesthetist)

Last updated

Dr

Richard Harris

SC , OAM (Gen)
Craig Challen and Richard Harris.jpg
Harris (right) with Craig Challen
Born
Richard James Dunbar Harris
NationalityAustralian
Occupation Anesthesiologist
Known for Tham Luang cave rescue
Medical career
Sub-specialties
Awards

Richard Harris SC, OAM, is an Australian anaesthetist and cave diver who is currently the Lieutenant Governor of South Australia. Harris is best known for having played a crucial role in the Tham Luang cave rescue. He and Craig Challen were jointly awarded 2019 Australian of the Year as a result of that rescue. Harris was appointed as South Australia's Lieutenant-Governor in 2024, and was sworn in on 9 February 2024. [1]

Contents

Education and career

After completing school at St Peter's College in Adelaide, South Australia, Harris completed a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery at Flinders University in 1988. He subsequently completed anaesthetics training in the United Kingdom and New Zealand. [2] [3]

Harris has worked on medical assistance teams in natural disasters in the Pacific region and taken part in Australian Aid missions to Vanuatu. As of 2018 he works as an aeromedical consultant and anaesthetist for the South Australian Ambulance Service's medical retrieval service. [2] [3]

In January 2024 it was announced that Harris was to become the Lieutenant Governor of South Australia. [4]

Cave diving

Harris is a cave diver with over 30 years of experience. Harris's cave diving experiences include leading a team of Australian divers to record depths of 192, 221 and 245 m (210, 242 and 268 yd) in 2011, 2012, and 2020 [5] whilst searching for the source of New Zealand's Pearse River: this mission was filmed for National Geographic . In 2011, Harris was requested by the South Australian Police to participate in the recovery of the body of his close friend Agnes Milowka, who had died whilst exploring a cave near Tantanoola in the south east of South Australia. [6] [7]

In 2009 Harris was awarded the "Outstanding Achievement" award at the Australian technical diving conference Oztek, to mark his exceptional contributions to cave diving exploration, in 2017 he was awarded the "Australasian Technical Diver of the Year" at Oztek. [8] [9]

Tham Luang cave rescue

In June 2018 Harris was about to depart on a cave diving holiday to the Nullarbor Plain when he and dive partner Craig Challen were requested by the Thai government, on the advice of British cave diving experts attempting to rescue twelve Thai children and their soccer coach who were trapped in the Tham Luang Nang Non cave system, to provide assistance with the rescue efforts. [3] [10]

Harris' efforts throughout the rescue have been described as essential; he conducted a medical assessment of all of the trapped boys. At the 18 July press conference, it was revealed that the soccer team decided as a group that the boys who lived the farthest away should leave first, so they could ride their bikes home. [11]

To allow the rescue to occur, Harris developed a plan to keep the boys anaesthetised with ketamine while spontaneously breathing through full face masks. This was to ensure they did not panic during the long extrication through underwater caves, which would have endangered both the rescue scuba divers and the boys. While one source states that Harris was the last rescuer to leave the cave, [2] this is not at all correct according to Harris' own detailed account of the rescue. [12] : 275–276 

On 24 July 2018 Harris, along with Challen, was awarded the Star of Courage (SC) and Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) by the Governor-General of Australia. [13] On 7 September 2018 the King of Thailand appointed Harris as a Knight Grand Cross (First Class) of the Most Admirable Order of the Direkgunabhorn. [14]

On Australia Day 2019, Harris was announced as the joint 2019 Australian of the Year with Challen. [15]

On 5 November 2019 Harris and Challen released the book Against All Odds chronicling their participation in the rescue of the boys from the Tham Luang Cave. In the book they corrected some of the inaccuracies in the media regarding the rescue. Harris stated that he did not pick the order that the boys would leave the cave, and that the boys decided that amongst themselves based on the distance each boy lived from the cave, as they thought they had to cycle back home. He also said the boys were fully unconscious as they were carried through the flooded cave, as he had given each boy two intramuscular injections in the thigh: ketamine to put them to sleep, and atropine to suppress saliva production to stop choking. [16]

Lieutenant Governor of South Australia

On 25 January 2024, Harris was appointed as the lieutenant governor of South Australia. [17] Harris was sworn in on 9 February 2024 by Her Excellency the Honourable Frances Adamson AC. [18]

Publications

Harris has published two children's picture books, based on his family's pet dog:

Notes

  1. ↑ Service worthy of particular recognition.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cave Diving Group</span> UK based cave diver training and certification agency

The Cave Diving Group (CDG) is a United Kingdom-based diver training organisation specialising in cave diving.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Naval Special Warfare Command (Thailand)</span> Special operations force within the Military of Thailand

The Naval Special Warfare Command, commonly known as the Royal Thai Navy SEALs, is the special operations force of the Royal Thai Navy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cocklebiddy, Western Australia</span> Roadhouse community in Western Australia

Cocklebiddy is a small roadhouse community located on the Eyre Highway in Western Australia. It is the third stop after Norseman on the journey eastwards across the Nullarbor Plain. Like other locations in the region, the site consists of little more than a roadhouse. The current business name of the roadhouse is the Wedgetail Inn and, like most other Nullarbor establishments, has access to satellite television, as well as providing caravan park and hotel-motel facilities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Caving in the United Kingdom</span>

Recreational caving in the United Kingdom dates back to the mid-19th century. The four major caving areas of the United Kingdom are North Yorkshire, South Wales, Derbyshire, and the Mendips. Minor areas include Devon, North Wales, and the Scottish Highlands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Doi Nang Non</span> Mountain range of the Thai highlands located in Chiang Rai Province, Thailand

Doi Nang Non is a mountain range in the Thai highlands in Chiang Rai Province, Thailand. It is a karstic formation with numerous waterfalls and caves rising at the southern end of the Daen Lao Range. Part of its area is managed as the Tham Luang–Khun Nam Nang Non Forest Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Craig Challen</span> Australian veterinary surgeon and technical diver

Craig Challen, SC is an Australian technical diver and cave explorer who played a substantial role in the Tham Luang cave rescue. He was the recipient of the Oztek 2009 Diver of the Year award for his services to caving, and was joint winner of the 2019 Australian of the Year.

The year 2018 was the 237th year of the Rattanakosin Kingdom of Thailand. It was the 3rd year in the reign of King Vajiralongkorn, and was the year 2561 in the Buddhist Era.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tham Luang cave rescue</span> 2018 international rescue in Thailand

In June and July 2018, a junior association football team was rescued from Tham Luang Nang Non, a cave system in Chiang Rai province, northern Thailand. Twelve members of the team, aged 11 to 16, and their 25-year-old assistant coach entered the cave on 23 June after a practice session. Shortly after they entered, heavy rainfall began and partially flooded the cave system, blocking their way out and trapping them deep within.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tham Luang Nang Non</span> Cave in Chiang Rai province, Thailand

Tham Luang Nang Non is a karstic cave system in the Tham Luang–Khun Nam Nang Non Forest Park, near the village of Pong Pha, in northern Thailand. It lies beneath Doi Nang Non, a mountain range on the border with Myanmar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Volanthen</span> British volunteer cave diver who specialises in rescues

John Paul Volanthen, is a British cave diver who undertakes cave rescues through the Cave Rescue Organisation, South and Mid Wales Cave Rescue, and the British Caving Association. In 2018, he played a leading role in the Tham Luang cave rescue. He cave-dives as a hobby and conducts rescues as a volunteer. He works as an IT consultant in Bristol.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rick Stanton</span> British cave diver who specialises in rescues

Richard William Stanton, is a British civilian cave diver who specialises in rescues through the Cave Rescue Organisation and the British Cave Rescue Council. He has been called "one of the world's most accomplished cave-divers", "the face of British cave diving," and "the best cave diver in Europe". Stanton has lived in Coventry for many years, and was formerly a firefighter with the West Midlands Fire Service for 25 years prior to his retirement. In 2018 he played a leading role in the Tham Luang cave rescue and was awarded the George Medal in the Civilian Gallantry List.

The Special Honours Lists for Australia are announced by the Sovereign and Governor-General at any time.

<i>The Cave</i> (2019 Thai film) 2019 Thai drama film about the Tham Luang cave rescue

The Cave is a 2019 Thai action-drama film about the 2018 Tham Luang cave rescue in Chiang Rai Province, Thailand, written and directed by Tom Waller and co-produced by Waller and Allen Liu. The story is written from the points of view of several individuals involved in the rescue operation, and features cave diver Jim Warny and others as themselves. The film premiered at the 2019 Busan International Film Festival, and was released in Thailand on 21 November. It had a re-edited release in 2022 as Cave Rescue.

<i>Thirteen Lives</i> 2022 American film by Ron Howard

Thirteen Lives is a 2022 American biographical survival film, based on the Tham Luang cave rescue, directed and produced by Ron Howard and written by William Nicholson. The film stars Viggo Mortensen, Colin Farrell, Joel Edgerton, and Tom Bateman.

<i>All Thirteen</i> 2020 childrens book by Christina Soontornvat

All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys' Soccer Team is a 2020 nonfiction children's book by American author Christina Soontornvat. It describes the 2018 Tham Luang cave rescue. The book received positive reviews from critics and was awarded a Newbery Honor and a Sibert Honor in 2021.

<i>The Rescue</i> (2021 film) 2021 documentary film by Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin

The Rescue is a 2021 documentary film directed and produced by Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin. It follows the Tham Luang cave rescue, a 2018 mission that saved a junior association football team from an underwater cave.

Troglodiplura samankunani is a species of troglomorphic spider in the family Anamidae, found in Western Australia, in caves on the Nullarbor Plain.

Troglodiplura challeni is a species of troglomorphic spider in the family Anamidae, found in Western Australia.

Thai Cave Rescue is a 6-part limited series produced by Netflix, directed by Kevin Tancharoen and Nattawut Poonpiriya. It was released on September 22, 2022.

References

  1. ↑ "Thai cave rescue hero appointed South Australia's Lieutenant Governor". ABC News. 25 January 2024. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
  2. 1 2 3 Andrews, Megan (30 July 2018). "Exemplary alumnus wins bravery award – and SA Australian of the Year". Flinders University . Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  3. 1 2 3 "Cave rescue: The Australian diving doctor who stayed with the boys". BBC News . 11 July 2018. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  4. ↑ "Thai cave rescue hero appointed South Australia's Lieutenant Governor". ABC News. 25 January 2024. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
  5. ↑ Harris, Richard (2020). "The Pearce Resurgence". Explorations. Seacraft. Retrieved 18 June 2023.
  6. ↑ Graham, Ben; Brook, Benedict (11 July 2018). "Calls for Aussie cave diver to be given Australian of the Year award". news.com.au .
  7. ↑ "Tragedy behind Dr Richard Harris' Thai cave rescue credentials". The Sydney Morning Herald . 9 July 2018.
  8. ↑ "Richard Harris". OzTek. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  9. ↑ "Dr Richard Harris SC OAM". Australian of the Year Awards. Archived from the original on 16 January 2021. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  10. ↑ Hancock, Sarah; Dayman, Isabel; Puddy, Rebecca (9 July 2018). "Thai cave rescue: Adelaide cave-diving doctor Richard Harris missed holiday to help operation". ABC News. Australia. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  11. ↑ "Thai cave rescue: Boys who lived furthest away were chosen to leave the cave first so they could ride their bikes and tell everyone to prepare food". Business Insider. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
  12. ↑ Harris, Richard; Challen, Craig (2019). Against all odds: The inside account of the Thai cave rescue and the courageous Australians at the heart of it. Penguin Books. ISBN   9781760899455.
  13. ↑ "Australian honours, 24 July 2018" (PDF). Commonwealth of Australia Gazette. Governor-General of Australia. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 July 2018. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  14. ↑ "His Majesty honours 188 for role in cave rescue operation". The Nation . Thailand. 7 September 2018.
  15. ↑ "Dr Richard Harris SC OAM and Dr Craig Challen SC OAM". Australian of the Year Awards. 25 January 2019. Archived from the original on 5 August 2020. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  16. ↑ Harris, Richard; Challen, Craig (2019). Against All Odds. Penguin Books Australia. ISBN   9781760890957.
  17. ↑ "Thai cave rescue hero appointed South Australia's Lieutenant Governor". ABC News. 25 January 2024. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
  18. ↑ "Dr Richard Harris appointed Lieutenant Governor". Premier of South Australia. 25 January 2024. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.