Capt. Henrick Kurt Carlsen, a sea captain who gained international attention in 1952 for staying aboard his crippled freighter for seven days as it slowly sank, died Saturday at his home. He was 75.
On Dec. 29, 1951, Carlsen was the 37-year-old captain of the freighter Flying Enterprise when a storm ripped open the ship's hull in the English Channel.After ordering the 40 crewmen and 10 passengers overboard, he remained with the ship, owned by American Export-Isbrandtsen Lines of New York, so the vessel could not be claimed for salvage by another company.
On Jan. 5, 1952, Carlsen and a companion jumped overboard and watched from the tugboat's deck as the ship sank into the Channel near Falmouth.