Coast Guard Air Station Sitka aircrew locates stranded miners 23 miles from Haines, Alaska

A Coast Guard Air Station Sitka MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrew rescues two stranded miners on the Chilkat River, 23 miles from Haines, Alaska, Nov. 3, 2018. The Jayhawks crew located the stranded men by a fire they had built to stay warm near the Chilkat River. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Lt. Kellen Browne.

KODIAK, Alaska - A Coast Guard Air Station Sitka MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrew rescued two stranded, hypothermic mine workers on the Tsirku River, off the Chilkat River, 23 miles North of Haines, Alaska, Saturday.

The Jayhawk aircrew safely transferred the men to awaiting emergency medical services personnel in Juneau. The men were reported to have been mildly hypothermic upon transfer to higher care.

Watchstanders at District 17 command center received notification from Alaska State Troopers requesting assistance with rescuing two male miners in the Chilkat River area. They were transferring mining equipment when they swamped and submerged their vehicle in a remote portion of the site. They were reported to have been hypothermic, as they became stranded Friday afternoon at approximately 2:30 p.m. They were reported to have made a make-shift shelter in a ditch approximately 250 yards from the water, but were experiencing difficulties maintaining their fire. District granted an Air Station Sitka MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrew to assist. The aircrew launched and recovered the two men Saturday morning.

“This is one of those cases that reminds us how important it is to prepare for any outdoor activity here in Alaska,” said Petty Officer 2nd Class Dave Hastings, an avionics electrical technician on the case. “Having the proper equipment and clothing was their saving grace in this situation. Despite the degraded weather, we were still able to communicate and triumph over the severe winter weather.”

Weather on scene was winds exceeding 20 mph, low temperatures with freezing conditions, and low visibility.

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Coast Guard rescues helicopter crash survivor, searches for others near Lituya Bay, Alaska

Photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Jon-Paul Rios (archive)

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — The Coast Guard rescued a survivor of a helicopter crash Friday near Lituya Bay, Alaska, and is searching for three potential others Saturday.

The 14-year-old survivor was flown to Sitka by a Coast Guard Air Station Sitka MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew and placed in the care of awaiting EMS. He displayed signs of mild hypothermia but was reported to be in good condition.

An additional Air Station Sitka MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew is searching Saturday along with a Civil Air Patrol aircraft crew out of Juneau, for three others who were aboard the helicopter when it went down.

The crew of Coast Guard Cutter Bailey Barco out of Ketchikan is searching the water in the vicinity of the crash, and their small boat crew is searching the shoreline.

Watchstanders in the Coast Guard 17th District command center in Juneau initially received an overdue aircraft alert at about 6:30 p.m. Friday from the Juneau Flight Service Station. The alert stated a private helicopter with four people aboard expected to arrive in Yakutat Friday had not arrived.

A Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew launched from Air Station Sitka at 8:15 p.m. The crew learned the last known position of the aircraft due to the signal of a GPS locator. The Coast Guard helicopter crew landed on the beach about 3 miles east of Lituya Bay, where the crew’s rescue swimmer located the boy.

“We did not locate any other survivors tonight but the Coast Guard and others will conduct a thorough search Saturday,” said Lt. Kellen Browne, helicopter co-pilot for Friday's rescue.

Two adults and two adolescents were aboard the crashed helicopter that was reported to be brand new out of the factory. The pilot is reported to have 40 years flying experience including Alaska flight time in both fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft.

The new helicopter was on a trip that originated in Grand Prairie, Texas, and was bound for Wasilla.

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Coast Guard medevacs woman from vessel over 40 miles off West Coast

An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew hoists a 32-year-old woman from the Bell M. Shimada over 40 miles northwest of Grays Harbor, Wash., Aug. 26, 2018. 

The woman had reportedly suffered a seizure and a temporarily loss of consciousness while aboard the 196-foot National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration research vessel. 

U.S. Coast Guard video courtesy Sector Columbia River.

ASTORIA, Ore. — A Coast Guard air crew medically evacuated a 32-year-old woman from a vessel over 40 miles northwest of Grays Harbor, Wash., Sunday evening after she reportedly suffered a seizure.

An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew from Coast Guard Sector Columbia River safely transferred the woman to waiting emergency medical service personnel, who then transported her to Columbia Memorial Hospital for further care.

At 10:23 p.m. a watchstander at Coast Guard Station Grays Harbor in Westport was contacted by a crew member aboard the Bell M. Shimada who reported a woman aboard had sat down on the deck due to being dizzy, suffered a seizure and then temporarily lost consciousness.

The watchstander notified command center personnel at Sector Columbia River, who in a conference call with the duty flight surgeon and captain of the vessel, determined a helicopter hoist was best due to safety concerns and medical needs. A surface transfer would have required the woman climb down a 6-foot ladder alone and, due to the potential seizure, needed to be seen by a neurologist with the next six hours.

Once on scene, the helicopter crew deployed their rescue swimmer, who secured the woman in a stokes litter on deck before the air crew hoisted her from the vessel.

The Bell M. Shimada is a 196-foot Oscar Dyson-class fisheries research vessel operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration out of Newport.

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