“Trees are heavy and you must be able to handle them quickly and efficiently (and safely),” according to the VanNatta Brothers’ Web site about historic logging and the use of heavy equipment in the Pacific Northwest. That may be stating the obvious, but accidents can happen.

In fact, NAS Whidbey Island Search and Rescue responded to a 911 call from Skagit County March 2, requesting assistance to airlift a logger with a broken leg out of a deep canyon about 15 miles southeast of Concrete, Wash. He had been struck by an unsecured log and was stranded in an area with deep brush in one direction and a steep incline on the other; not unusual terrain for the North Cascade Range.

SAR launched from the air station at 10:10 a.m. and arrived on scene at 10:30 a.m. Crew included Lt. Cmdr. Nelson Craig, pilot and mission commander;, Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Black, pilot; Naval Air Crewman 2nd Class Salomon Padilla, Crew Chief; Naval Air Crewman (Swimmer) 2nd Class William Rush; and Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Andrew Peterson.

Local fire and emergency responders had reached the logger and stabilized his leg by the time the helicopter arrived. Due to the seriousness of his injuries and the length of time and effort it would take to transport him on foot, it was decided that SAR would airlift him to St. Joseph Hospital in Bellingham, Wash.

“Guess I’m not a rookie anymore,” said Black, a Hillsboro, Ore. native, and currently serving with NAS Operations in a “Retired retained on active duty” capacity. This rescue is good news since he has more career flight hours than his peers and has flown several SAR missions since reporting last June without one rescue until now.

Although SAR events are rarely routine, Black said this one, conducted at about 1,200 feet elevation with no snow and no significant weather to contend with, was fairly straightforward. After delivering the logger to the hospital the crew headed back to Whidbey, arriving back at NAS Whidbey by 12:35 p.m.

“I’m really glad I was able to go on a rescue before I left,” said Black. He officially retires May 1.