Why did Captain Michael Davidson set a course that brought his ship, El Faro, into the path of Hurricane Joaquin last October with tragic results? That question, for which we many never have a fully satisfactory answer, has been at the core of the initial investigation being held at US Coast Guard hearings in Jacksonville, Florida which began on Tuesday.

Several officials from TOTE Services, the ship owner and operator, were questioned at the hearing. Vice President of Commercial Maritime Operations Philip Morrell reiterated that the captain made the final decision as to ship routing. Captain Davidson had sent an email the day before encountering the hurricane, requesting a course change on the way back to Jacksonville from Puerto Rico. Morrell responded to questions about the email by saying that captain did not require permission and that the email was sent as a courtesy to the home office. TOTE President Phil Greene was questioned on Wednesday and said much the same thing, albeit not so directly.

The Coast Guard asked why the an alert was sent out to the TOTE ships during Hurricane Danny, earlier in the year and yet for Hurricane Joaquin. Likewise, the Coast Guard did not understand why there were numerous emails regarding Hurricane Danny and also Tropical Storm Erika, whereas there were realtively emails regarding  Hurricane Joaquin.

The course taken, north of the Bermuda Bank in the face of a major hurricane, is particularly perplexing as Captain Davidson sailed a significantly more southerly route to avoid Tropical Storm Erika last August.