The U.S. Coast Guard airlifted a 19-year-old fisherman from a Canadian fishing vessel after he suffered a knife wound to his leg Saturday afternoon.
The commercial fishing vessel was about 80 kilometres off the coast of Neah Bay, Washington — on the Olympic Peninsula across from Port Renfrew — when the rescue occurred, said Levi Read of the U.S. Coast Guard.
A helicopter crew arrived on the scene around 2:15 p.m. and lowered a basket down to the injured man, who climbed inside. He was then hoisted up into the helicopter and transported by air to the emergency medical services at a Coast Guard base in Port Angeles before being taken to the Olympic Medical Center for further treatment.
The man was in stable condition, but his injuries from the knife wound required more extensive medical care than the fishing crew could provide.
The U.S. Coast Guard base received a call from the rescue co-ordination centre in Victoria, because the boat was in U.S. in waters.
A video of the rescue shows the man being lifted off the fishing boat and pulled into the helicopter, where he waves and gives a thumbs up.
