The captain and chief engineer of an oil tanker en route from Tallinn, Estonia, to Houston, Texas, were killed Thursday when a big wave raked the ship northeast of Bermuda, a shipping company official said.
The tanker Aegean Angel encountered heavy weather and the captain, chief engineer and others had gone forward to check for damage, said Capt. Mattheou Dimitrios, quality and safety manager for Arcadia Ship Management of Athens, Greece.
"While they were forward, a heavy wave broke on deck, the seamen were struck by the water and knocked down, and the master and chief engineer died immediately," he said.
The incident occurred about 800 miles northeast of Bermuda.
The first officer was injured and was in stable condition aboard ship awaiting a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter to pick him up and take him to Bermuda for further treatment. The ship was expected in Bermuda about January 3, Dimitrios said.
The vessel sustained only minor damage. It will stop in Bermuda to take on a new captain and chief engineer and then continue on to Houston with its cargo of fuel oil, Dimitrios said. It is expected in Houston January 7 or 8, he said.
