Body of capsized tug captain found

The body of the 46-year-old captain of the tug Fairplay-22, which capsized in Rotterdam on November 11th, was found today on the beach close to Hoek van Holland, the Netherlands. Owner of th tug, Fairplay Towage, did not release the name of the captain.

The captain began his seagoing career in 1980. Since 1987, he had been working as tugboat captain, both in Antwerp and Zeebrugge, as well as on various seagoing tugs.  At the beginning of this year, the captain took command of the Fairplay-22, which was predominantly employed in the Port of Rotterdam, assisting seagoing ships.

As we reported November 18, the tug Fairplay-22, which capsized on November 11 while it was assisting the superferry Stena Brittanica to its terminal at Hoek van Holland, Netherlands, has been refloated by Smit Salvage using the sheerleg Taklift 7.

Three crew were rescued and the captain and engineer died. The police investigation has been finalized and the authorities are presently evaluating their findings. As of now, the cause of the accident is still unclear.