A U.S. Coast Guard aircrew medevaced a 77-year-old fisherman experiencing stroke-like symptoms Sunday evening from a commercial fishing vessel approximately 138 miles southwest of Sanibel Island, Fla., the agency announced.
Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg received a call at 7:33 p.m. from the owner of the commercial fishing vessel Honey Bee, reporting that the vessel’s captain was suffering a medical emergency in the Gulf of Mexico, renamed by the U.S. government as the Gulf of America.
An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew from Air Station Clearwater was launched to assist. Due to the vessel’s distance from shore, an HC-144 Ocean Sentry aircraft from Air Station Miami also deployed to provide communication support.
Video shared by the Coast Guard showed that the ailing captain was transferred to the water and airlifted from the water by cable and basket. He was then transported to Gulfcoast Medical Center for advanced medical care, the Coast Guard said.
“The interoperability of our units is paramount to our success during long-distance operations,” said chief petty officer Jean Latimer, an operations specialist assigned to Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg. “Through the coordination of both our aircrews and our watchstanders at the command center we were able to get this fisherman the care he needed.”
