Crew Reviews, Ratings & Info for Horten

On January 21, 2026, the crew of the commercial tanker 'Horten' undertook a remarkable rescue mission in the Atlantic Ocean, successfully saving Belgian ocean rower Benoit Bourguet, 47, after his boat capsized due to massive rogue waves. The incident occurred over 1,100 nautical miles east of Puerto Rico during Bourguet's participation in a grueling 3,000-mile solo rowing race that started from the Canary Islands and was headed to Antigua. Bourguet's single-person rowing vessel, 'City of Liverpool', was overwhelmed by two unexpected waves in turbulent seas measuring between 13 and 15 feet. This unfortunate event forced Bourguet to abandon his boat and deploy his life raft. The U.S. Coast Guard Sector San Juan received a distress signal around 2 a.m. from an unregistered 406 MHz Emergency Position-Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB), which was soon followed by an additional alert from Bourguet's personal locator beacon. Despite efforts to communicate with Bourguet via the race coordinators, the situation prompted the Coast Guard to initiate an AMVER call for nearby commercial vessels. Responding promptly to the distress signal, the tanker 'Horten', which was traveling from Wilhelmshaven to offshore Guyana, altered its course over 100 nautical miles. The crew navigated through challenging conditions for more than 12 hours to locate Bourguet's coordinates guided by the beacon data. Eventually, the dedicated crew spotted Bourguet’s life raft amidst heavy seas and, despite the harsh weather conditions, skillfully recovered him using a lifering. Although Bourguet was dehydrated after spending nearly 24 hours adrift, he was found in relatively good health, having successfully tethered his overturned vessel to the raft. Coordination between the 'Horten' crew and race organizers is now underway to facilitate Bourguet's safe transfer to shore in the near future. For more details and visuals from this extraordinary rescue, visit the U.S. Coast Guard's press release: https://www.news.uscg.mil/Press-Releases/Article/4385688/coast-guard-horten-tanker-ship-recue-capsized-belgium-rower-during-worlds-tough/