ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The U.S. Coast Guard medevacked a 65-year-old man from a commercial fishing boat Monday in the Gulf of Mexico, the service branch said in a news release.
A Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater helicopter crew was able to safely pick up the man who was 40 miles northwest of Johns Pass. He was taken to Tampa General Hospital and is said to be OK.
Watchstanders in St. Petersburg received a very high frequency (VHF) marine radio call at approximately 2:23 p.m. from the boat on reports of the captain suffering from abdominal pain, according to the Coast Guard.
A sister boat was able to meet up with the other boat and escort the crew back to port.
"Having an VHF-FM radio on board allowed us to get our resources to the correct location within ample time," pilot Lt. Weston Dodson said in a statement.
