LifeFlight crew winches man from bulk carrier in coastal emergency

Rescue crews have performed a complex winching operation to extract a patient from a vessel at sea off the Central Queensland coast yesterday morning.

A man was winched from a vessel off the Central Queensland coast on Thursday after a medical incident.

Bundaberg-based LifeFlight aeromedical crew winched the man, aged in his 60s, from a bulk carrier after a medical incident.

The LifeFlight helicopter was tasked at 10.50am by Retrieval Services Queensland to a ship 10 nautical miles off the coast of Gladstone.

The helicopter winched the rescue crew officer and critical care Queensland Ambulance Service flight paramedic down to the ship.

After the patient was assessed, all three were winched back into the helicopter.

The patient was flown to Bundaberg and he was then transported via road by QAS to Bundaberg Hospital.