Auckland Westpac Rescue Helicopter picks up fisherman off Bay of Islands coast

A fisherman has been plucked from a boat off the Bay of Islands and flown to Auckland City Hospital in a critical condition.

A spokesperson for the Auckland Westpac Rescue Helicopter said they winched the man, in his 40s, from the boat after he suffered a medical complaint 12 nautical miles off the Bay of Islands yesterday morning.

In a video seen by the Herald, the helicopter hovered above the stern of the fishing boat before lowering a wire down to the rescuer on the vessel.

The rescuer then attached the wire to the man before he was winched into the helicopter.

A man in his 40s was rescued by Auckland Rescue Helicopter from a fishing 12 nautical miles off the Bay of Islands. Photo / Auckland Rescue Helicopter Trust

Critical care paramedic Will Thompson told the Herald time was of the essence to rescue the man.

“He needed to get to hospital relatively quickly,” he said.

“Waiting for him to get into shore and then getting in an ambulance and then transferring to a helicopter on land would have been too long.”

Thompson said the fishing crew was very competent and helpful before the rescue helicopter arrived.

“We talked to them on the phone before we got out there,” he told the Herald.

“We had a look at their boat on a picture before we got there and so we had already discussed what we were going to do before we got there.

“I was probably on the deck of the boat for five minutes maximum.”

Thompson added the three-hour job was easier than others.

“It was pretty good weather, it was super stable and we had been training yesterday with the same crew so we were all feeling pretty good,” he said.

“It’s exactly what we train for. It shouldn’t be exciting, it should just be business as usual.”