A man who fell seriously ill at an Australian Antarctic station has been evacuated safely despite conditions considered harsh even for the region.
The man, a tradesman, was flown by helicopter from Davis Station to the ice breaker Aurora Australis on Sunday.
It was the final phase of a mammoth operation that also involved laying a temporary pipeline to refuel the ship, which had to remain offshore due to a build-up of ice in the harbour.
"People have been working around the clock to refuel the ship and they've been working in quite difficult conditions," Australian Antarctic Division operations manager Robb Clifton told reporters in Hobart.
"Often below minus 10 degrees (Celsius) and with a fairly constant snowfall."
The ship was on its way back to Australia when it had to turn around to pick up the ailing man.
Mr Clifton wouldn't elaborate on the man's illness other than to say it was not the result of an accident or incident.
He is in a serious but stable condition in the ship's medical bay and is being supported via tele-medicine by medical specialists in Hobart.
The ship has to negotiate about 100 nautical miles of ice before reaching open water and is not expected in Hobart until April 4.
There were initial reports the man was a scientist but the AAD confirmed he was a tradesman.
He arrived in Antarctica in November and fell ill about half-way through his stint.
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