Tag Archives: maersk-alabama-

Hijacked Ship Back in Port, Its Captain Still a Hostage

The U.S. ship whose crew overcame a band of pirates off the coast of Somalia docked in the Kenyan port city of Mombasa on Saturday, its sailors relieved to be safe but distraught over the fate of their captain, who remains captive in a lifeboat at sea

Ship’s captain prepared for pirate attack, ex-crew member says

A former crew member on the American ship attacked by pirates off Africa said the ship’s captain is exactly the kind of person who would offer himself in exchange for the crew’s safety. “I was amazed when I heard that he offered himself up to the pirates, but he’s definitely the kind of person to make that sacrifice,” the former crew member of the Maersk Alabama, who asked not to be identified, said of Capt.

Hostage dies as French attack Somali pirates

A French hostage and two pirates died Friday in a rescue operation off Somalia’s coastline, the French president’s office in Paris said Friday. Four hostages, including a child, were freed from the hijacked yacht after almost a week of captivity, Nicolas Sarkozy’s office said.

Captain tried to escape pirates, U.S. official says

Richard Phillips, the captain of a U.S.-flagged cargo ship, tried to escape from his captors Thursday night by jumping out of the lifeboat where he’s being held, a U.S. official said Friday. Phillips was believed to be trying to swim to the USS Bainbridge, a naval warship that is in communication with the gunmen holding Phillips off Somalia’s coast, the official said.

Dodging pirates off the Horn of Africa

Well into Thursday morning, Speers and about 10 colleagues from Maersk Line Ltd. huddled in a hurriedly made situation room in the company’s Norfolk headquarters. The group was monitoring naval efforts to rescue the captain of their cargo carrier, the Maersk Alabama, who was taken hostage by pirates who hijacked the ship early Wednesday