In a lawsuit filed in Federal Court on Wednesday, the widow of Seacor Power Captain David Ledet says the owner of the ship ordered her husband to sail into perilous conditions, which ultimately lead to disaster.
Yvette Ledet’s lawsuit directly contradicts public statements made by the CEO of Seacor Marine Holdings, Inc., the owner of the Seacor Power.
Mrs. Ledet’s suit accuses Seacor Marine and Talos Energy of negligence.
She refutes the claims by CEO John Gellert that the Seacor Power’s sailing was totally the responsibility of Captain David Ledet.
According to the Times-Picayune/New Orleans Advocate Mrs. Ledet’s suit says her husband was trying to save the sailors aboard his ship as it was foundering. The suit goes on to claim he was thrown into the sea and fought for his life to survive. His body was ultimately recovered with “severe burns and other debilitating injuries.”
The suit states: “Despite (weather) warnings, the defendants put their profits over the safety, lives of their employees and crew members, and ordered the Seacor Power to leave Port Fourchon.”
Speaking at a press conference six days after the disaster, CEO John Gellert stated: ““The go/no-go decision is entirely the captain’s. The captain had 50 years of experience… He was one of our best captains and very prudent and conservative. We are very confident he would not have gone out if he had any doubt whatsoever.”
Ledet’s suit is the fourth filed against Seacor Marine Holdings and Talos Energy. Families of lost crewmen have filed similar suits in Texas and Louisiana state courts.