Air Station Kodiak Crew Medevacs Three From Tanker

Jay Barrett/KMXT

Three injured Indian men aboard a Chinese-flagged chemical tanker were successfully medevac’d this (Monday) afternoon by an Air Station Kodiak Coast Guard helicopter crew about 80 miles south of Adak.

The MH-60 Jayhawk and an HC-130 Hercules left Kodiak on Sunday night after receiving a request for a medevac at 4:15 p.m. Meanwhile, the tanker Bum Chin altered course towards Adak to lessen the distance the helicopter had to fly. The Jayhawk and ship rendezvoused at about 12:30 this afternoon. Thirty-five mile-per-hour winds, 12-foot seas and snow showers were reported at the time.

Coast Guard spokeswoman Sara Francis said the three crewmen suffered injuries after a rogue wave hit the 478-foot tanker, knocking them down. The chief officer received head injuries; an able seaman sustained a compound fracture of his left leg and wounds to his forehead and left hand; while the fifth engineer sustained injuries to his left leg, lower back and rib cage.

The men, reportedly in stable condition, were flown back to Adak, where they were transferred to the C-130 for the flight to Anchorage.

The Bum Chin was en route from Ulsan, South Korea, to San Francisco, and has since resumed its course.