A crewman on board the training sailboat Spirit of Bermuda was hurt yesterday and the vessel damaged after it was struck by a wave.

However, schoolchildren and teachers from the Whitney Institute who were on board were said to be “safe and fine”.

The injured man was taken to hospital for treatment.

Fierce weather buffeted the vessel at about 2.30pm at Murray’s Anchorage off the East End, injuring the man’s hand and shoulder, tearing the ship’s sail and knocking out its engine.

The pilot boat St George and tugboat Faithful were dispatched and the sloop, which still had power on board, was towed to Dockyard. There were 28 people on board.

All of the children were later collected by their families.

The boat’s engine will be examined today to determine any problems.

Diana Martin, the chief executive of the Bermuda Sloop Foundation, told The Royal Gazette: “It was a busy day and the captain and crew handled a difficult situation professionally and with the safety of all first and foremost.”

Gale-force winds from the west persisted throughout the day yesterday, caused by a low pressure system to the Island’s northeast, the Bermuda Weather Service said.