A Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater aircrew medevaced an 85-year-old man, Sunday, 1 mile south of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge.
The man was transported to Tampa General Hospital for further medical care.
The distressed boater radioed Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg watchstanders on Channel 16, at approximately 11 a.m., reporting his vessel had engine failure, and he was experiencing heart attack-like symptoms.
A Station St. Petersburg boat crew also assisted.
“The distressed boater did an outstanding job by hailing over Channel 16 for assistance,” said Lt. Casey Skomer, an operations unit controller at Sector St. Petersburg. “Coast Guard units already in the area for training heard the man’s hail and were able to immediately respond and assist the boater in a timely manner.”