An oil tanker has been redirected to Bermuda so that its chief engineer can receive medical treatment after losing two fingers in an accident while at sea.

The tanker is expected to reach St. George?s early this afternoon where the injured seaman will be brought ashore and taken to King Edward VII Memorial Hospital for treatment.

The , which sails under the flag of Liberia, set off from the port of Skikda in Algeria and was crossing the Atlantic when the crewman was injured.

A spokesman for Bermuda Maritime Operations Centre said the vessel, which has a crew of 25, had radioed its medical emergency and was diverting to Bermuda and was expected to reach St. George?s around 2.30 p.m.