The Joint Rescue Coordination Centre (JRCC) tasked a Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) CH-149 Cormorant helicopter and a CC-115 Buffalo aircraft from 442 Transport and Rescue Squadron, based at 19 Wing Comox, to conduct a medical evacuation of an injured crew member on board United States Coast Guard Cutter (USCGC) Healy on the evening of June 25. The rescue took place approximately 100 nautical miles west of Cape Scott.
At 9:15 p.m. the JRCC Victoria received a call indicating there was an injured crew member onboard USCGC Healy in need of medical evacuation. The crew member was hoisted to the CH-149 Cormorant helicopter and taken to Port Hardy where they were then transferred to the CC-115 Buffalo aircraft and taken to Comox. The individual was transferred to Emergency Health Services at 3:15 a.m. 442 Transport and Rescue Squadron Cormorant and Buffalo aircraft are JRCC Victoria’s primary means for aviation Search and Rescue (SAR) responses in the Victoria Search and Rescue Region. JRCC Victoria is operated by a team of Search and Rescue (SAR) experts from both the Canadian Armed Forces and the Canadian Coast Guard (CCG). They can task dedicated military SAR aircraft and CCG SAR vessels to respond to maritime and aeronautical incidents anywhere in British Columbia, the Yukon and nearly 600 miles into the Pacific Ocean.
Search and Rescue Region Victoria covers approximately 1,427,000 square kilometres of mainly mountainous terrain in British Columbia and Yukon Territory, and 687,000 square kilometres of the Pacific Ocean.
