Coast Guard Evacuates Woman From Cruise Ship

SAN DIEGO, CA — A 66-year-old woman was medically evacuated from a cruise ship about 280 miles south of the U.S. and Mexico maritime boundary, authorities said Saturday.

Coast Guard personnel responded to calls around 7:10 a.m. Friday from a crew member aboard the Koningsdam, a Holland-America Line cruise ship that requested a medical evacuation for a woman who was experiencing symptoms of a stroke, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.

A Coast Guard Dolphin helicopter crew based in San Diego and a Coast Guard C-27 crew out of Sacramento assisted in the evacuation.

Officials said the air crews arrived at the Koningsdam, where the Sacramento crew coordinated communications while the San Diego crew hoisted the patient aboard the helicopter.

"Rescues like this are exactly what our crews train for," USCG San Diego pilot Lt. Brady Stepan said in a statement. "Through coordination from the command center and outstanding support from our C-27 cover aircraft crew, we were able to get the patient to higher-level care."

The patient was taken to Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla, where she was reported to be in stable condition, officials said.

— City News Service