A fisherman who sustained serious injuries from being pinned by a crab pot was medevaced by a Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew on Tuesday, Oct. 19 200 miles southwest of Dutch Harbor and flown to Dutch Harbor for advanced care by LifeMed Personnel.
Coast Guard officials said they were responding to a request for a medevac from the Patricia Lee after the man suffered injuries to his pelvic region after having been pinned by the crab pot.
The Coast Guard helicopter crew was launched from Cold Bay, while the Patricia Lee made its way toward Dutch Harbor. A Coast Guard C-130 Hercules aircraft crew and an additional MH-60 Jayhawk aircraft crew were launched from Air Station Kodiak to provide back up.
Weather conditions at the time of the hoist were 40 mile an hour winds gusting to 55 miles per hour, with 14-foot seas and rain, snow and sleet squalls.
Lt. Robert McConnel, operations duty officer at Air Station Kodiak, said that thanks to cooperation from air crew members, the command center team and crew aboard Patricia Lee that the Kodiak team was able to hoist and deliver the patient to a higher level of care.
“Our crews routinely train for the treacherous Alaska night conditions they encountered,” he said. “It feels good to see our team execute when someone’s life is on the line.”
