An oil tanker has been diverted to Bermuda so a crew member with a broken leg can seek treatment.

A spokesman for the Bermuda Maritime Operations centre said the 50-year-old Filipino national got injured when a wave crashed over the bow of the Genmar Progress, a 52,000-ton tanker.

The ship, which is Liberian-registered, was en-route from Nigeria to Halifax in Canada when the sailor got hurt during heavy seas.

According to the spokesman, the inclement weather is hampering the ship's progress towards Bermuda, and the earliest it is likely to arrive is Sunday evening. As of noon on New Year's Eve, the ship was located 930 nautical miles to the north east of the Island.