Indonesian fisherman evacuated from trawler off Durban coast

A crew member of a Japanese fishing trawler had to be evacuated during the early hours of Saturday after he developed a medical condition.

The National Sea Rescue Institute in Durban and paramedics were placed on alert on Friday night to prepare for the evacuation operation from the trawler which was in deep waters.

“A 55-year-old Indonesian fisherman on-board the vessel was reported to have sustained a medical condition ... and it was deemed necessary for the patient evacuation operation to take place as soon as possible.

“The vessel was requested to head towards the nearest port: Durban,” the NSRI said in a statement.

A rescue crew was dispatched just before 6am on Saturday to meet the vessel five nautical miles offshore, where the fisherman was transferred to a sea rescue craft and then taken to hospital by ambulance.

TimesLIVE