As a then young man working for the charterer of the vessel, Hiro felt some personal responsibility for the loss of the crew of 15 seamen who lost their lives. He believed that seamen’s safety should come first and decided to dedicate his career to improving safety at sea.

In 1986 he founded Weathernews, which has since become the world leader in the provision of optimal and safe routing of ships at sea (as well as a full range of additional services to improve fleet safety and performance).

Weathernews is proud to support the Sailors' Society in their work to improve the lives of all seamen and has sponsored a number of Sailors' Society events, including the launch of their 2009 fund-raising at Trinity House in February 2009.

Weathernews also believes in the Society's aims and goals and will promote the Sailors' Society through its extensive global client base, in particular through introducing clients to the Society and attending such events as the 2008 inaugural Geneva Shipping Ball - where key clients joined members of Weathernews Board of Directors amongst the more than 450 guests attending. A photograph commemorating this appears on this website.

For further details of the Sailors' Society, go to http://www.sailors-society.org/