--- description: They both suffered from respiratory failure title: Autopsy Reveals Why Navy SEALS Died on Captain Phillips Ship image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltca5fdc427192fa98/6986832f810bbb3679c9035f/captain-phillips-ship-death1.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Autopsy Reveals Why Two Died on 'Captain Phillips' Ship by [Laura Stampler](/author/laura-stampler/) ## Laura Stampler Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 25, 2014 2:14 PM CUT  U.S.-flagged container ship, Maersk Alabama, sails into the Kenyan coastal sea port of Mombasa, Nov. 22, 2009. U.S.-flagged container ship, Maersk Alabama, sails into the Kenyan coastal sea port of Mombasa, Nov. 22, 2009.Joseph Okanga—Reuters by [Laura Stampler](/author/laura-stampler/) ## Laura Stampler Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 25, 2014 2:14 PM CUT An autopsy revealed that the [two former NAVY Seals found dead last week onboard the Maersk Alabama](http://world.time.com/2014/02/20/two-americans-found-dead-on-captain-phillips-ship/ "undefined")—the container ship that inspired the movie _Captain Phillips—_died of [respiratory failure and suspected heart attacks](http://www.cnn.com/2014/02/25/world/asia/seychelles-maersk-deaths/index.html?hpt=hp%5Ft1 "undefined"). Seychelles police said Tuesday that they are investigating whether the two 44-year-old American security officers consumed a substance that triggered the failure. “The police preliminary investigation report includes suspicion of drug use, as indicated by the presence of a syringe and traces of heroin which were found in the cabin,” police said in a statement. The deceased, Jeffrey Reynolds and Mark Kennedy, were hired to deter pirates. The ship was hijacked in 2009 off the coast of East Africa. Those events inspired the 2013 Oscar nominated film _Captain Philips._ \[[_CNN_](http://www.cnn.com/2014/02/25/world/asia/seychelles-maersk-deaths/index.html?hpt=hp%5Ft1 "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/9957/captain-phillips-navy-seals-autopsy/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/9957/captain-phillips-navy-seals-autopsy/"},"headline":"Autopsy Reveals Why Two Died on 'Captain Phillips' Ship","datePublished":"2014-02-25T14:14:19.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T06:29:50.391Z","description":"They both suffered from respiratory failure","url":"https://time.com/9957/captain-phillips-navy-seals-autopsy/","keywords":["pirates","World","Security"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltca5fdc427192fa98/6986832f810bbb3679c9035f/captain-phillips-ship-death1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Laura Stampler","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/laura-stampler/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltca5fdc427192fa98/6986832f810bbb3679c9035f/captain-phillips-ship-death1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"U.S.-flagged container ship, Maersk Alabama, sails into the Kenyan coastal sea port of Mombasa, Nov. 22, 2009.","caption":"U.S.-flagged container ship, Maersk Alabama, sails into the Kenyan coastal sea port of Mombasa, Nov. 22, 2009.","creditText":"Joseph Okanga—Reuters","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/9957/captain-phillips-navy-seals-autopsy/","name":"Autopsy Reveals Why Two Died on 'Captain Phillips' Ship"}}]}] ```