Escape from the Persian Gulf
The tanker surged at full speed towards the Strait of Hormuz. Then the captain made the hardest decision of his life.
Captain Carl-Henrik Wersäll, leading a 27-person crew, made a critical decision to leave port in Dubai immediately after hostilities began, rather than risk being trapped with thousands of other vessels in the region. As the ship sailed toward the Strait of Hormuz, the crew faced multiple threats, including explosions nearby, GPS jamming, and uncertainty over whether the strait had been closed.
Navigating partly without modern systems and under extreme pressure, Wersäll chose to continue at full speed, trusting his judgement despite conflicting radio messages and other ships turning back. After a tense overnight transit, Bow Summer successfully exited the strait—becoming one of the first, and later one of the last, vessels to escape before it effectively closed.
Shortly after their passage, attacks on shipping intensified, including a fatal strike on another vessel. Around 2,000 ships and 20,000 seafarers were left trapped in the Gulf.
The article highlights the risks faced by seafarers in conflict zones, the importance of decisive leadership, and how timing and quick thinking allowed Bow Summer to avoid what could have been a far more dangerous situation.
