A Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew medevaced a 42-year-old man on Jan. 24 from the fishing vessel Golden Alaska approximately 75 miles northwest of Cold Bay, Alaska.
The Jayhawk helicopter crew hoisted the 42-year-old man from the 94-foot factory stern trawler Golden Alaska at approximately 11:39 a.m. They safely transported him to Cold Bay where emergency medical services personnel waited for further transfer to Anchorage, Alaska.
Watchstanders at the 17th Coast Guard District command center received a medevac request from Health Force Partners that a 42-year-old man was suffering from a hernia. Watchstanders notified the Coast Guard duty flight surgeon who recommended medevac for the man to receive surgical care within eight hours. A Jayhawk crew flying near Dutch Harbor, Alaska, was diverted to medevac the man.
“In this case, we had a helicopter crew nearby which greatly assisted in the quick rescue of the man,” said LCdr Orion Bloom, 17th District command center command duty officer. “We were able to get him to medical providers in Cold Bay within approximately three hours from initial notification.”
On scene weather at the time of the medevac was 17-mile-per-hour winds, four-foot seas and 10 miles visibility.