PHILADELPHIA – The Coast Guard medevaced a diver reportedly suffering decompression sickness symptoms from Point Pleasant, New Jersey, to Philadelphia Saturday afternoon.
The Coast Guard was initially notified by a man aboard the 35-foot fishing boat Bluefin that a diver was reportedly suffering decompression sickness symptoms approximately 30 minutes after a dive about 15 miles offshore.
Watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector Delaware Bay dispatched a 29-foot Response Boat-Small crew from Coast Guard Station Manasquan Inlet.
The RBS crew escorted the Bluefin to Station Manasquan Inlet and transferred the man to emergency medical services (EMS) personnel.
EMS workers brought the man to Harold G. Antrim Middle School in Point Pleasant, N.J., where a Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin rescue helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Atlantic City took the man aboard and medevaced him to the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.
“This is a good example of how having a working VHF marine radio aboard your boat can allow rescuers to get on-scene quickly,” said Chief Petty Officer Kyle Gerkens. “Having a means to communicate allowed these divers to direct the Coast Guard quickly to their location, and that allowed us to quickly coordinate the medevac between EMS and the Coast Guard air crew.”
