CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - The chief engineer of a container ship that lost control of its engines and prompted the temporary closure of the Ravenel Bridge last June has accepted a plea deal.
Fernando San Juan agreed to enter guilty pleas to charges of failure to report a hazardous condition and obstruction of an agency proceeding on Thursday, according to court documents.
Court documents alleged that San Juan knowingly and willfully failed to report and caused the failure to immediately report that the ship’s main engine governor linkage had to be manually manipulated for the main engine to achieve the required speed.
The second charge is based on allegations that San Juan, during a proceeding of the National Transportation Safety Board and U.S. Coast Guard, “corruptly endeavored to inf