July 19th, 2015
CLEVELAND, OHIO
U.S. Coast Guard crews conducted a MEDEVAC of a 74-year-old man from a 35-foot sailboat involved in the Bell’s Beer Bayview Mackinac Race early Sunday morning on northern Lake Huron.
Just before 6:30 a.m., the crew of Coast Guard Cutter Alder, homeported in Duluth, Minnesota, and deployed to assist with the race, was contacted by the sailboat stating that a crew member had lost consciousness for approximately three minutes and had a history of heart issues.
Alder diverted to assist and it was determined by the on-call Coast Guard flight surgeon that a MEDEVAC was necessary.
Alder arrived on scene, approximately 32 miles off-shore from Tawas City, Michigan, and brought the man on board. The Alder was met by a boat crew from Coast Guard Station Tawas, Michigan, aboard a 25-foot response boat with local emergency medical services personnel aboard.
Once ashore, the man was transferred to EMS at Station Tawas in stable condition and was taken to St. Joseph Hospital in Tawas City.