U.S. Navy dispatched to rescue seriously ill 1-year-old baby on round-the-world cruise

The U.S. Navy has dispatched the frigate USS Vandegrift 900 miles off the coast of Mexico to rescue a 1-year-old girl who became seriously ill while accompanying her parents on a round-the-world cruise, according to The Daily Mail.

San Diego couple Eric and Charlotte Kaufman radioed for help from the Coast Guard on Thursday, after their youngest daughter, Lyra, fell ill on their 36ft sailboat, The Rebel Heart.

A team of paraescuemen parachuted in to supply medical help to the one-year-old until she can be be airlifted to hospital once the Vanderfgrift arrives.

A spokesperson at the Moffett Federal Airfield in California, which is being coordinating the rescue, said: "The vessel’s remote location as well as the infant’s urgent need for medical care necessitated the rescue."

The spokesperson stated the pararescuemen would remain with the girl, "until she reaches a medical facility capable of treating her conditions."

According to reports, her condition has been stabilized, but it is thought that she may have contracted salmonella requiring hospitalization.

When her parents initially requested help earlier in the week, they statied that their daughter had developed a rash, was vomiting and had diarrhea.

The family had antibiotics on board, however they proved to be ineffective on Lyra.

The rescue comes just two weeks after the Kaufmans began their attempt to circumnavigate the globe, leaving San Diego with their two daughters, aged one and three.

Making matters worse, the boat encountered choppy waters, disabling communications and steering, and making a direct helicopter lift of the child impossible.

According to a family member posting on Facebook, "I just got off the phone with the Lt. Col in charge of this mission. Lyra is stable. They have got the boat running!"

The Rebel Heart is headed back towards Cabo San Lucas where it will meet the USS Vandegrift partway.

Her return trip to a hospital is expected to take fourteen hours.

[Photo from Rebel Heart Facebook]