Coast Guard medevac man from fishing vessel 322 miles northwest of St. Paul Island

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KODIAK, Alaska – Coast Guard aircrews medevac a man from a fishing vessel 322 nautical​ miles northwest of St. Paul Island, Alaska, Wednesday.

The 45-year-old man was safely hoisted by an Air Station Kodiak MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrew, at 12:12 p.m. and taken to St. Paul for a wing-to-wing transfer with a commercial medevac company for further transport to Anchorage.

At 11:48 p.m., Tuesday, District 17 Command Center watchstanders received a medevac request for a fisherman reportedly experiencing gastrointestinal bleeding aboard the 170-foot fishing vessel Baranof. Watchstanders conferred with a duty flight surgeon and launched three Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak aircrews, MH-60 Jayhawk and HC-130 Hercules, to respond.

Collectively, the aircrews flew 20 hours, covered approximately 1,600 nautical miles and refueled three times on the ground to successfully transport the man to further care.​

“Alaska presents a unique set of challenges, one primarily being the remote locations of some of the cases,” said Petty Officer 1st Class Christopher Catalioto, a District 17 watchstander who coordinated the initial response. “The long-range medevac missions such as this require a lot of coordination and are a team effort. We are fortunate to have such dynamic crews ready and capable to respond in a moment’s notice.”

Weather on scene was 17-mph winds, four foot seas and 10 miles visibility.

-USCG-

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