CAPE MAY – The U.S. Coast Guard medevaced a diver 46 miles east of Cape May on Wednesday.
Watchstanders at the Coast Guard Sector Delaware Bay command center received a report via VHF Channel 16 that a 50-year-old woman was unresponsive after returning from a dive off the dive vessel Gypsie Blood. The diver dove to a depth of 150 feet before resurfacing unconscious.
Coast Guard Sector Delaware Bay dispatched an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter aircrew from Coast Guard Station Atlantic City to the scene.
The aircrew medically evacuated the woman and transported her to the closest decompression chamber available at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.
“Without the proper communication that we had, we would not have been able to safely conduct the mission especially considering the distance offshore that the vessel was,” said Lt. Anthony Barletta, the command duty officer in the command center. “A marine band radio is the best way to get first responders on scene when an emergency arises.”
Video by Petty Officer 3rd Class Breanna Centeno
