The crew had to scuttle the ship to prevent it from falling into pirates' hands.

scuttle 是动词，意思是"故意使船沉没"，通常指在紧急情况下通过打开船底阀门或凿穿船体来快速沉船，以防止被敌人俘获或用于其他战略目的。这个词特别用于军事或海盗情境中。