By Ben Raymond from WJMN-TV • October 18, 2022

U.S. Coast Guardsmen braved poor weather Friday to help the crew of a freighter on Lake Superior. 

The crew from the U.S. Coast Guard Air Station Traverse City was responding to call from the freight for a medical evacuation for a crew member.

 The U.S. Coast Guard approaches the ship in Lake Superior Friday night.  Image: USCG

Lowering a basket from a helicopter onto a ship in the middle of the lake in the best weather conditions is challenging. Adding in rain and snow didn’t help. Raising the difficulty of the mission even more was that it happened at night.

The ship's crew member is loaded into the rescue basket to be hoisted to the Coast Guard helicopter.  Image: USCG

The rescue swimmer returns from the ship's desk as he is hoisted to the helecopter.  Image: USCG 

“USCG crews take operational risk management incredibly seriously,” a Monday Facebook postfrom the Coast Guard read in part. “Before each flight there is a specific and deliberate portion of our brief devoted to it. This ensures that even on a dark and difficult night, we are using every tool in the box to maintain the highest degree of safety.”

The Coast Guard did not release any information about the condition of the crew member.

To see the original report and read related stories, follow this link to the WJMN website. https://www.woodtv.com/news/michigan/coast-guard-video-shows-medical-evacuation-on-lake-superior/