AN INJURED crewman was plucked to safety from a ship in a dramatic rescue mission off Portland.

The Russian man, aged in his early 50s, was in agony after falling from two metres on board the Polish car carrier Kebbi.

His condition was so serious it was decided to airlift him to Dorset County Hospital in Dorchester for treatment.

It was a delicate operation for the crew of the Portland Coastguard rescue helicopter, which involved winchman and paramedic Duncan ‘Dougie’ Ayles bringing the man up to the aircraft on a stretcher.

Mr Ayles was lowered to the deck to assess the man’s condition before calling for a stretcher from the helicopter once he realised the man needed specialist treatment.

He explained how the injured man couldn’t speak English so all communication had to be done with the help of a phrase book and hand signals.

Mr Ayles said: “It was mostly a Polish crew on board and they had managed to call a doctor for advice before we arrived.

“The man had fallen onto his left side and had sustained bruising. All indications were that he was suffering internal abdominal trauma.

“He was actually walking around in his cabin but it was clear he was in a lot of pain.

“His condition wasn’t life threatening but it needed investigation and it was decided to get him off to hospital where surgery could be performed if necessary.”

Mr Ayles said the stretcher was used because the helicopter’s rescue strops had the potential to cause the man more damage.

The helicopter was met at the Dorchester landing site by an ambulance and Wyke Coastguard Rescue Team.

The crew of the aircraft also included pilot Kevin Balls, co-pilot Mark Bazalgette and winch operator Tony Campbell.

Mr Campbell said: “We didn’t have any problems with the weather as it was relatively clear, so it was quite a straightforward lift.”

The ship, which was travelling in the shipping lanes 26 miles off Portland when the man had his fall, continued on its way to Takoradi, Ghana, once he had been taken off by the helicopter on Saturday evening.