Rescue chopper dispatched after man nearly drowns near Lady Musgrave

A man was airlifted from the Great Barrier Reef at Lady Musgrave Island after almost drowning in a snorkelling incident.

Stunning Coral Reef Lagoon on Lady Musgrave Island where a man almost drowned on Friday, March 21, while snorkelling.

A man aged his 60s was in a stable condition in the Bundaberg Hospital on Friday night after being airlifted from Lady Musgrave Island by the Bundaberg-based LifeFlight aeromedical crew earlier in the day.

The man had been snorkelling in an outer reef off the island during a day trip with a group and his family when he got into trouble and went under water, almost drowning about 10.51am.

He was airlifted to Bundaberg Hospital in a “potentially life threatening condition”, according the Queensland Ambulance Service.

A hospital spokesman confirmed late Friday the man was in a stable condition.

The LifeFlight crew were tasked at 11.15 am and landed the chopper on the sand before being transported by water to the patient who was on a boat.

The man was treated by the LifeFlight critical care doctor and Queensland Ambulance Service (QAS) flight paramedic.

He was airlifted to Bundaberg Hospital for further treatment in a serious condition.

The Bundaberg-based LifeFlight helicopter and crew service the Wide Bay-Burnett region and beyond.

Lady Musgrave Island is a 14ha coral cay on the Great Barrier Reef, with a 1192ha of surrounding reef.

The island is the second southernmost island in the Great Barrier Reef chain of islands, the first being Lady Elliot Island.

Originally published as Rescue chopper dispatched after man nearly drowns near Lady Musgrave