A captain of container ships has been arrested, accused of operating the container while drunk with a blood alcohol content level six times the limit for sailors.
The MSC Jubilee IX captain, a 333 -meter container ship that operates under the Flag of Liberia, was arrested Wednesday in Seattle, the coast guard said in a press release on Saturday. The name of the captain was not revealed.
A Puget Sound pilot aboard the ship had informed the observers of the Coast Guard that the captain was “exhibiting signs of poisoning.” The pilot and the first partner operated the ship from near Everett, Washington, to the port of Seattle “without incident,” said the statement.
After the ship tied at terminal 5, a coast guard team and the agents of the Coast Guard Research Service boarded the ship.
The captain completed a source test and field breathalyzer, “which discovered that the legal limit for commercial sailors was affected,” said the guard.
According to the federal law, a person who operates a container that is not a recreational vessel with a blood alcohol concentration of .04% or more is considered under influence.
The captain was arrested and transported to the King County prison. The charges were sent to the King County Prosecutor for navigation under the influence, and the case remains under investigation. The prosecutor did not immediately return a request for comments.
The ship received a help captain and has since been clear to resume operations, said the Coast Guard.
“The Coast Guard is proud to guarantee the safety of the maritime transport system,” said Paul Shultz, a special agent in charge of the Northwest CGIS field office, in a statement. “The immediate intervention of the pilot mitigated significant risks and assured the safe step of the container.”
