Coast Guard rescues fishing boat captain off Hilo

The Coast Guard medivaced the captain of a commercial fishing vessel 80 miles offshore Hilo to Hilo Benioff Medical Center on Friday.

Joint Rescue Coordination Center Honolulu received a phone call at 6:50 a.m. Tuesday from the captain of the 78-foot fishing vessel Sea Angel, which was about 675 miles northeast of Hilo. The captain, a 68-year-old man, had reportedly been experiencing severe symptoms, such as abdominal pain and fever, for the previous 10 days.

After conferring with the duty flight surgeon, the rescue center established a regular communication schedule with the vessel’s crew and directed them to transit toward Hawaii. Coast Guard 14th District and Coast Guard Base Honolulu personnel procured antibiotics, which an HC-130 Hercules airplane crew from Coast Guard Air Station Barbers successfully dropped to the Sea Angel at 1:07 p.m. Wednesday.

At 10:27 a.m. Friday, an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew from Air Station Barbers Point arrived on scene with the Sea Angel, hoisted the patient, and transported him to Hilo Benioff Medical Center. He was reportedly in stable condition.

Additionally, an HC-130 Hercules airplane crew provided communication and translation support during the hoist.

“Communication and coordination are essential when it comes to search and rescue, especially complex, offshore cases,” said Cmdr. Andrew Williams, JRCC Honolulu search-and-rescue mission coordinator. “It was through the training and readiness of each crew, the ability of our personnel to translate Vietnamese and the long-range capabilities of our aircraft, that we were able to successfully deliver the patient to the care he needed.”