Coast Guard rescues man suffering burns from ship off Charleston

ATLANTA - A 45-year-old man had to be evacuated from a ship about 179 miles off the coast of Charleston after suffering a chemical burn on Sunday, the Coast Guard said.

That man was aboard the motor vessel Southern Shark when he suffered those burns during a tank cleaning, the Coast Guard reports. An MH-65 Dolphin helicopter from Coast Guard Air Station Savannah responded to the ship around 3 p.m. to fly him to the Augusta Burn Center Hospital.

"Due to the nature of this seafarer's injury and the specialized care requirements, this air-sea rescue operation involved complex planning and seamless execution," said Cmdr. William R. Cahill, Coast Guard Air Station Savannah Operations Officer. "The elite aircrew that successfully carried out this offshore medevac overcame challenging conditions conducting a very dynamic hoisting evolution in 10-foot seas and 35 miles per hour winds. Air Station Savannah thanks the crew of the Southern Shark for their excellent preparation and on-scene actions."

The Coast Guard released a video of the evacuation on Monday. Officers said they faced 10-foot seas and winds of 35 mph.

The condition of the 45-year-old man has not been released.

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