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Phillips, 53, of Underhill, Vt., is captain of the Maersk Alabama, a 17,000-ton container ship carrying relief aid to Mombasa, Kenya. On Wednesday, the ship was attacked by Somali pirates. While the unarmed crew repelled the initial attack, Phillips reportedly prevented a bloody counterattack by the pirates by offering himself as a hostage.
NAIROBI, Kenya - In a riveting high-seas drama, an unarmed American crew wrested control of their U.S.-flagged cargo ship from Somali pirates Wednesday and sent them fleeing to a lifeboat with the captain as hostage.
A sailor who spoke to The Associated Press said the entire 20-member crew had been taken hostage but managed to seize one pirate and then successfully negotiated their own release. The man did not identify himself during the brief conversation.
Phillips, 53, had previously volunteered to be a hostage after his unarmed men took back their freighter, the Maersk Alabama, from the pirates. The captain stepped forward to be a hostage to avoid a bloody battle with the gun-toting pirates.
He and four pirates, one who was seriously injured when the 20 American crewmembers of the Alabama retook their ship, have been bobbing in the water for three days. The boat can hold 76 people, so there is room for them to move around at times.
The American captain being held hostage by Somali pirates dove into the water during the night in an attempt to escape but was quickly recaptured, Defense Department officials said today....At one point during the night, Phillips courageously leaped off and began swimming for freedom, officials told ABC News. Almost immediately, a pirate jumped in after Phillips and dragged him back to the boat, officials said.
The lifeboat was said to be "dead in the water' after running out of fuel early yesterday, and was drifting in calm seas within sight of the Bainbridge.
