San Diego icon, Dee Sanford, discusses importance of Black History Month

SAN DIEGO (KUSI) – In honor of Black History Month, San Diego Icon Dee Sanford joined KUSI’s Lauren Phinney to discuss the African American inventor Michael Croslin.

Born in 1933, he was abandoned by his family. After being taken in by a family who raised him for a time, he made it off of the island of St. Croix into the United States where he attended college and graduated by the age of 17. He earned two master’s degrees.

He served as a pilot during the Vietnam and Korean War. He invented the devices Medtek 410 and 420 which assisted medics by giving accurate readings of blood pressure. The Medtek 420 was designed specially to accommodate for air pressure changes and surrounding noise, making it a viable tool for helicopter emergency evacuations.