KODIAK, Alaska – A Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew medevaced the 61-year-old master of the 167-foot Seattle-based fishing vessel Seabird 253 miles southeast of Kodiak in the Gulf of Alaska Monday afternoon.
The Coast Guard received the initial notification from a doctor with George Washington University Maritime Medical Access at 8:40 a.m. stating the vessel’s master was reportedly suffering symptoms of gastrointestinal distress.
The helicopter crew and an HC-130 Hercules aircrew were ordered to launch at 9:25 a.m. The Hercules aircrew served as a communication platform between the Seabird, the helicopter crew and the Seventeenth Coast Guard District command center watchstanders. The Hercules aircrew also provided rescue capability for the helicopter crew operating at the edge of their effective range.
The helicopter crew arrived on scene at 12:40 p.m. and safely hoisted the Seabird master. The rescue crew flew to Kodiak and safely transferred the patient to awaiting emergency medical services at 3 p.m. The vessel master was taken to Providence Kodiak Island Medical Center in stable condition for further medical care.
The Seabird’s chief mate will bring the vessel into Kodiak. Weather on scene was reportedly five mph winds with two-foot seas.
