A sick sailor had to be evacuated from a tanker in the Firth of Forth.
Kinghorn RNLI lifeboat’s volunteer crew was alerted to the emergency aboard the Christian Essberger vessel after HM Coastguard received a call for assistance at around 4.22pm on Monday.
The oil and gas tanker had been anchored off the coast of Kirkcaldy at the time, and crew members requested help after one of their number was said to be suffering from a “deteriorating medical condition”.
The Kinghorn lifeboat launched at 4.30pm and was alongside the 100m long tanker six minutes later where the casualty was able to make his way down the ladder onto the lifeboat.
He was then briefly treated at the Kinghorn lifeboat station before being taken to Kirkcaldy’s Victoria Hospital.
His condition is not yet known, but it is understood the man’s illness is not Covid-19 related. Kinghorn RNLI helmsman Scott McIlravie said: “We were quickly alongside the tanker and fortunately the casualty was able to climb down the ladder unaided.
“We prepared him for the short journey back to Kinghorn and returned to the lifeboat station.
“Our casualty care trained crew assessed and looked after the casualty until an ambulance arrived.
“He was taken to Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy for further treatment.
“This was a successful job for our RNLI volunteers and we were able to get the casualty ashore for urgent treatment as quickly as possible.”
It was the 97th call-out of 2020 for the Kinghorn RNLI lifeboat crew, which dealt with 79 rescues in the whole of 2019.
The crew on this occasion were Scott McIlravie, Paul Stather, Mel McGarva and Kirstie Wakefield, with Ralph Johnston, Rob Douglas, Donnie MacLean, Neil Chalmers, Megan Davidson, Stephen Hall, Paul Wibberley and Liz Davidson on shore duties.
The Christian Essberger, which is registered as a chemical tanker with a Portuguese flag, remains anchored in the Firth of Forth.
