Danish Family Knew They Might Be Hijacked by Pirates

The Danish family that was captured by pirates in the Indian Ocean on Thursday wasn't caught unawares, reports the AP. The family—a couple with three children, ages 12 to 16—had written on a travel blog that they were in daily contact with anti-piracy forces, and had prepped a "piracy plan" in the event they were attacked. "It is reassuring that they look after us," a Feb. 20 blog post said, referring to naval authorities. On Feb. 23, in what was to be their last posting, they wrote, "We have NOT been boarded by pirates." A day later, that changed.

The blog identified the family as Jan Quist Johansen, wife Birgit Marie Johansen, sons Rune and Hjalte, and daughter Naja. Earlier posts showed that the five were aware that an American yacht had been taken by pirates last week. "Of course, we talked quite a lot about it but this is far over thousands of kilometers away and the Arabian Sea that we sail in is the size of Europe," the family wrote. It's unclear if they ever learned that those hostages were killed. Click for more on the family's ordeal. (More pirates stories.)