Crew member medevaced from freighter in St. Mary's River

NEWS RELEASE

U.S. COAST GUARD

************************* Coast Guard medevacs man from freighter in St. Mary's River

CLEVELAND – The crew of the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Mobile Bay, homeported in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, medically evacuated a 61-year-old crew member from the motor vessel Algoway in the St. Mary's River just off De Tour Village, Michigan on Sunday afternoon. The man reportedly began experiencing high blood pressure and mild heart-attack symptoms Saturday evening, but took medication and believed the problem was under control. The crew of the Algoway, a 646-foot bulk freighter, contacted the Coast Guard again at about 4 p.m. Sunday when the man’s symptoms started to return. “Instead of waiting until later when the weather was poor, as a precaution we decided to medevac him while we had a better weather window,” said James Barber, command duty officer of Coast Guard Sector Sault Ste. Marie, which oversaw the response. The Coast Guard Cutter Mobile Bay, which was about a half-mile away assisting with aids-to-navigation and ice-breaking duties, transported the crewman to shore where he was taken to a local hospital for further evaluation.

He was reportedly in stable condition throughout the transport.

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