But questions remain over the final moments before the ship sank in the midst of Hurricane Joaquin.
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The U.S. Coast Guard announced Wednesday that the search for survivors would be suspended at sunset. On the morning of October. 1, the day the ship went missing, the National Weather Service continuously warned about the severity of the storm, which at that time was a category 4 hurricane that was expected to strengthen.
Family members of the missing crew members thanked the coast guard for their efforts, but said they were devastated. He said that the sunken ship was the undercurrent of all the meetings and presentations he attended, and that the mariners who died, their families, and their greater communities were on everyone’s mind. They then lost communication.
The El Faro container ship is believed to have sunk after it suffered engine failure and was caught in the path of powerful Hurricane Joaquin last Thursday off the southern Bahamas.
This was “an all-hands effort”, he said. “We are compiling a factual record of everything we can here on scene. And these 33 sailors were united by a bond that has linked our merchant mariners for more than two centuries – a love of the sea”, Obama said.
“We will thoroughly document the vessel, its systems and its equipment, and that includes documenting the exact location of the VDR (voyage data recorder) on these vessels”, NTSB Vice Chair Bella Dinh-Zarr said at a press conference on Thursday.
The device, which has a 30-day battery life, sends out pings so it can be located. “We wanted them to know everything we did to find their loved ones”.
Robert Green, father of LaShawn Rivera, says he remains hopeful, adding: “Miracles do happen”.
Anthony Chiarello is the president of Tote Inc., which owns the 240-meter-long ship.
During their last communication with land, crew members reported the ship had lost power, taken on water and was listing 15 degrees but that they still thought the situation was manageable.
“TOTE Maritime Puerto Rico’s focus has been and will continue to be on the safety and well-being of the seafarers of the El Faro”, Horton said in an email.
The Coast Guard has told family members it is ending its search for 33 missing crew members from a US cargo ship that sank last week during Hurricane Joaquin. He gave no details on the nature of their work.
“I don’t believe based on the work they were doing that they would have had anything to do with what affected the propulsion”, said Mr Greene, a retired Navy admiral.
“May God bless the men and women of the El Faro”, it said.
The American Bureau of Shipping, a nonprofit organization that sets safety and other standards for ships, did full hull and machinery inspections in February with no red flags, the company said.
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Following the sinking, TOTE has said those decisions are left up to captains of ships, and in the case of the El Faro it was believed the ship would have relatively clear sailing. However, because of the 140 mile per hour winds and 50 foot swells, it would have been an incredible feat to make it through the storm. Nick Mavadones is the general manager of Casco Bay Lines, a passenger and cargo boat company in Portland, Maine.
