The Tribune

GAINESVILLE

Associated Press

Federal investigators say the captain of the doomed El Faro cargo ship that sank after being battered by Hurricane Joaquin intended to pass 65 miles from the centre of the storm, a decision maritime experts say was risky.

The National Transportation Safety Board said yesterday that the captain, Michael Davidson, emailed a company safety official on September 30 about his route.

The 790-foot El Faro left Florida for San Juan, Puerto Rico, with a cargo of vehicles after the National Hurricane Centre sent out an advisory that then-Tropical Storm Joaquin was predicted to become a hurricane.

The freighter eventually sunk, and all 33 crew members aboard were lost, as the Category 4 storm produced huge seas. A Navy team is currently searching for the wreckage.

F John Nicoll, a retired captain who spent years piloting the run to Puerto Rico, says his rule of thumb was always to stay 300 miles away from a storm’s centre.