Portsmouth, Va. - The Coast Guard medevaced a sick crewman from a German freight vessel approximately 25 miles east of Virginia Beach on Friday.
Watchstanders at Coast Guard 5th District Command Center in Portsmouth, Virginia received a report Thursday at about 4:35 p.m. from the 1089-foot, German-flagged freight ship Houston Express, stating a male crewman was suffering from abdominal pain approximately 345 miles east of Virginia Beach.
To enable a medevac, the crew of Houston Express, en route to France, changed course toward Virginia to meet with a Coast Guard helicopter crew.
A Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew launched from Air Station Elizabeth City, North Carolina, around dawn on Friday. The aircrew met with Houston Express about 25 miles east of Virgina Beach at approximately 7:15 a.m., hoisted the man and took him to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital in Norfolk where he is reported as stable.
