Captain Drunk, Mate Reports; Ship Held Here

U.S. Coast Guard personnel raced out to a huge cargo ship leaving Long Beach harbor early Saturday, boarded it and ordered the captain to relinquish command after receiving a radioed warning from the first mate that the captain was drunk at the helm and steering erratically.

The captain, Alan Jones, complied, took a blood alcohol test on board the 728-foot Century Hope and was being investigated for possible charges of operating a vessel negligently and the nautical equivalent of drunk driving. The first federal offense carries a possible fine of $10,000. The second can carry a maximum prison sentence of two years, Coast Guard officials said.

In addition, Coast Guard officials said they have contacted the British Embassy in connection with possible punitive action against the captain’s license of Jones, who is a British citizen.

Rear Adm. J. William Kime, district commander of the Coast Guard, praised the first mate and the crew members who alerted the Coast Guard about the captain’s condition.

“It certainly showed a great amount of integrity to do that. They took a very responsible action,” Kime said.

He added: “Obviously, the recent unfortunate incident in Alaska has sensitized people to what can happen to a vessel if someone is intoxicated.”

Kime said the Coast Guard reacted immediately when it received the radioed warning because of the potential for a major disaster.

“Our first concern was to stabilize the situation. We have a great deal of tanker traffic in that area. Oil platforms are out there and in addition the ship carries a lot of fuel oil that could spill,” he said.

Took On Fuel Oil

The first mate of the vessel said it had just taken on 1,500 metric tons of fuel oil.

Jones, born in Ealing, England, on March 31, 1931, could not be reached for comment. Crew members said he was not on board the ship Saturday afternoon. Al Hodges of Williams Dimond & Co., the steamship agency that represents the ship’s owners, said he had no comment about the situation.

Shortly before Coast Guard officers boarded the Century Hope at about 1 a.m. Saturday, the ship, which was on its way to the Japanese port of Mizushima with a load of 57,000 tons of soybeans, had cleared the Queen’s Gate entrance to the harbor breakwater.

The chief engineer, the chief navigator, the third mate and two deck hands all told the Coast Guard investigators who boarded the ship that Jones was drunk at the helm, the Coast Guard said in an official statement.

First Mate Leung Wing Yu, who had radioed the Coast Guard to alert it of the captain’s condition, said in an interview on the ship Saturday that the Century Hope narrowly missed a collision with the breakwater, which he said could have blocked one of the two entrances to the harbors of Long Beach and Los Angeles.

“When we came to the breakwater, he put the ship to the starboard,” said Leung, who has been placed in temporary command of the ship. “Then he put the helm hard over to port.”

Leung, a Hong Kong resident, said Jones had been on a collision course with the breakwater until he made the course correction.

“He is lucky,” he said. “Otherwise, he would have hit the breakwater. There is no doubt. We would block entrance of the port. There is no doubt.”

Pleaded With Captain

Leung and the second mate, who refused to give his name, said that after clearing the breakwater they pleaded with the captain to relinquish the helm. Leung and the second mate said that they smelled alcohol on the captain’s breath, that his speech was slurred and that his balance was unsure.

Leung said he told Jones: “For the safety of the ship, let your officers navigate and lie in your bunk.” Leung said that Jones “started cursing and insulting us. I told him I didn’t want to risk my life.”

The first mate said he decided to call the Coast Guard and tried to use a radio telephone on the bridge, but Jones cut off the call, he said. Leung said he went to the radio room and was able to get through.

Once the Coast Guard arrived, officials ordered Jones to give up command because of the danger and turn over the helm to Leung, Coast Guard officials said.

But even then, Jones resisted, Leung said. Only when Coast Guard officials warned him of legal repercussions did Jones give up, the first mate said.

Leung said Coast Guard officials took the captain to his cabin and later took blood and urine samples for alcohol analysis. Coast Guard officials said the results would be available Monday.

Kime said he was unaware of any similar incident in Southern California waters since he took command of the 11th Coast Guard District in May. The district runs from Northern California to the Mexico-Guatemala border and half way to Hawaii.

The Century Hope, anchored near the midpoint of the middle harbor breakwater, is being detained until a new captain can be found.

“We do not intend to let the vessel go with this master,” Petty Officer 1st Class Kerry Tim said.