Ex-Maersk Alabama crew members file case against employers

Six mariners hijacked in the April pirate attack upon the Maersk Alabama have hired Vujacinovic and Beckcom, PLCC, to represent their claim against their employer.

The men seek compensation for physical and mental damages as well as loss of income from Maersk Line Ltd., the vessel's operator, and Waterman Steamship Corp., the crewing company.

The crewmen allege that Maersk failed to provide them with adequate self-defense protection before transiting through high risk waters.

"Maersk made a conscious decision, despite going into pirate-infested waters, not to provide any meaningful security for its workers." said Brian Beckcom, attorney for the mariners. "Instead they'd just rely on the taxpayers and U.S. military to bail them out after the fact."

The vessel was attacked for the second time in seven months Wednesday. This time, they fended off three pirates in a skiff who opened fire when armed security guards on the ship returned fire, driving away the assailants. Crewmembers say that Maersk did not properly act upon safety concerns that they expressed in a meeting before the attack.

Other crewmembers not a part of this suit allege that Maersk did not follow up a request to repaint, change the name or re-route the vessel after the attack. Former crew member John Cronan alleges that Maersk rejected the changes because they would require too much paperwork.

Both Cronan and Shane Murphy, the vessel’s former chief officer who became acting captain when Captain Richard Phillips was taken hostage, said in separate interviews that they feared the ship could be attacked again if operated off of east Africa.

"It was my recommendation to take that ship off the run or change the name or do something," said Murphy. "Because, honestly, we have to realize that American seamen are not going to be treated like the rest of the world if they’re caught."

The 20 sailors were freed from the pirates during operations that included a daring rescue of Captain Phillips by Navy SEALs, who killed three hijackers. Phillips had been held inside one of the vessel’s lifeboats.

The lawsuit is being filed in Houston because "judges here have a sophisticated grasp of maritime law," says Beckcom, and because it is the nation's second busiest port.

Officials for Maersk, which has an office in Houston, and Waterman, out of Mobile, Alabama, have yet to comment on the lawsuit.

"It’s not the first vessel to have been attacked twice, and it’s a chance that every single ship takes as it passes through the area," Cmdr. John Harbour, a spokesman for the European Naval Force. "At least this time they had a vessel protection detachment on board who were able to repel the attack."

Despite the effective use of the armed security detail on the ship in repelling the recent pirate attack, the international shipping community remains largely opposed to the use of firearms aboard vessels. Reasons cited include the fear of crew members being killed or injured as well as jurisdictional issues.

Certain information for this article was provided from Associated Press reports.