Norfolk Personal Injury Lawyer Report – Hero Captain is Named in Lawsuit over Somali Pirate Attack

The actor Tom Hanks has been a familiar sight in Norfolk recently where he is making a movie about the story of Captain Richard Phillips, who offered himself as a hostage to Somali pirates in exchange for the freedom of his crew and ship.

But at the same time more than half of the crew who were on board the Maersk Alabama in April 2009 have filed a $50 million lawsuit in Norfolk, VA against the owner and the operator of the ship, the Virginian-Pilot reported.

“Though Phillips was hailed as a hero, 11 former crew members allege in lawsuits filed in Norfolk Circuit Court and in Mobile, Ala., that his employers, through Phillips’ actions, put them in grave danger when the ship sailed within about 250 miles of the Somalian coast despite warnings to stay at least 600 miles out because of pirate activity,” the Pilot reported.

The lawsuits claim crew members suffered a number of personal injuries. Norfolk-based Maersk and Alabama-based Waterman Steamship Corp., which operated and crewed the ship under a charter, are accused of negligence.

The suits allege personal injuries suffered by the crew and say the companies failed to provide decent working conditions.

As Norfolk, VA personal injury attorneys we are interested in the outcome of this high profile case.

Not that the lawsuits will feature in the movie. Tom Hanks was recently sighted in Charlie’s Café on Granby Street in Norfolk close to the offices of the Cooper Hurley law Firm.