News Release

Petty Officer 2nd Class Christopher Wolner hoists Petty Officer 3rd Class Troy Ramsdell, a rescue swimmer, along with an individual who was rescued from the mud in Lake St. Clair near Mitchell's Bay, Ontario, Nov. 2, 2012. The Air Station Detroit aircrew was assisting Joint Rescue Coordination Centre Trenton in the rescue efforts. U.S. Coast Guard video by Air Station Detroit

Petty Officer 3rd Class Troy Ramsdell, an aviation survival technician, sits at the aircraft door of an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter after he assisted two duckhunters who were stuck in the mud in Lake St. Clair near Mitchell's Bay, Ontario, Nov. 2, 2012. The aircrew, from Air Station Detroit, was assisting Joint Rescue Coordination Centre Trenton in the rescue of the boaters. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Lt. Ryan Lamb

Petty Officer 2nd Class Christopher Wolner, an aviation electronics technician, and Petty Officer 3rd Class Troy Ramsdell, an aviation survival technician, pose next to an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter after they assisted two duckhunters who were stuck in the mud in Lake St. Clair near Mitchell's Bay, Ontario, Nov. 2, 2012. Both air crewmembers, from Air Station Detroit, were assisting Joint Rescue Coordination Centre Trenton in the rescue of the boaters. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Lt. Ryan Lamb

The inside of an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter is covered in mud after the rescue aircrew assisted a boater who was stuck in the mud in Lake St. Clair, Nov. 2, 2012. The Air Station Detroit aircrew was assisting Joint Rescue Coordination Centre Trenton in assisting two duckhunters near Mitchell's Bay, Ontario. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Lt. Ryan Lamb

CLEVELAND — The Coast Guard assisted a duckhunter who was stuck in the mud in Lake St. Clair near Mitchell's Bay, Ontario, Friday.

The name and hometown of the individual assisted in this case is not being released by the Coast Guard at this time.

At 7 a.m., a good Samaritan called the London, Ontario Provincial Police reporting that two people were stuck in the mud aboard a 15-foot boat. Shortly after receiving the report, the OPP officers notified a search-and-rescue coordinator from Joint Rescue Coordination Centre Trenton, Ontario, who proceeded to coordinate the response.

Prior to rescue assets arriving on scene, one of the boaters reportedly jumped out of the boat and freed the boat from the mud but in the process got himself stuck.

Due to the location of the stuck individual, response assets on scene were unable to assist the man. The search-and-rescue coordinator at JRCC Trenton then requested assistance from the U.S. Coast Guard's 9th District Command Center, located in Cleveland at around 3:45 p.m. The SAR coordinator there directed the launch of a rescue aircrew from Coast Guard Air Station Detroit.

The Detroit-based aircrew quickly arrived on scene and lowered a rescue swimmer, Petty Officer 3rd Class Troy Ramsdell, from an MH-65 Dolphin rescue helicopter. Ramsdell made his way through the mud and assisted the man from the waist-deep mud. The stranded duckhunter and Ramsdell, who was conducting his first rescue as a rescue swimmer, was hoisted up to the helicopter by Petty Officer 2nd Class Christopher Wolner, the flight mechanic, and pilots Lt. Ryan Lamb and Lt. Bruce Wilson. Upon arriving into the aircraft, the aircrew assessed the hunter's condition and was returned to his hunting buddy aboard the 15-foot boat, now free from the mud. The rescue was successfully completed at  4:49 p.m.

"It was an awesome case," said Ramsdell. "It wasn't nearly as hard as what they put us through in A-school.  Thanks to school and my shop, I was prepared and knew exactly what I needed to do."

"Once the duck hunter was back on his boat," Ramsdell said, "he took off his glove, stuck out his hand, looked me directly in the eyes, and said, 'I would have died if you hadn't have come.  Thank you.'  We shook hands."

The Coast Guard reminds all boaters to be prepared for all emergencies, especially as the seasons change from fall to winter and the water and air temperatures continue to decrease.