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Coast Guard Ending Search for Crew Missing from Sunken Cargo Ship

The U.S. Coast Guard will suspend its search for survivors of the cargo ship El Faro at sunset Wednesday, officials told the crew’s family members.

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“Any decision to end a search is painful”, Capt. Mark Fedor said. “And may He watch over and protect all those who serve at sea on behalf of us all”.

“My deepest condolences go to the families, loved ones and friends of the El Faro crew”, he said.

The U.S Navy will conduct the actual search for El Faro.

That could help determine the cause of the sinking because the NTSB can use El Yunque to understand the effects of storm conditions on El Faro, she explained. In addition, an empty, heavily damaged lifeboat was found. Company records show it underwent its last annual Coast Guard inspection in March. No other crewmembers have been found, and hopes of survival had dimmed. The Coast Guard has concluded the vessel sank near the Bah… Every crew member – including the navigator, pilots, maintenance technicians, electrical technicians and the engineer – were involved in the search for the full flight, which covered more than a 1,000 square miles.

A search for the voyage data recorder will take place, according to the New York Post.

The NTSB has remotely operated underwater vehicles that will be able to retrieve the recorder once it’s located, she said.

“My guess is that he saw that he could outrun the storm, providing everything went right”, Larry Legere, of Maine, said.

Authorities have found debris, but have not seen the ship nor any survivors since the cargo vessel lost contact near the Bahamas on Thursday – just as Hurricane Joaquin was barreling through the area.

One of the missing crew members from the U.S. cargo ship, El Faro, that sank off the Bahamas, grew up in Groton.

“The U.S. National Hurricane Center issued a warning about the likelihood of Joaquin becoming a hurricane at 5 p.m. EDT on Tuesday, almost three hours before El Faro left port”, the letter said.

This story was reported by The Associated Press, CNN, USNews.com and Slate.com.

It is not clear why the captain chose to lead the ship into waters near Hurricane Joaquin.

It’s been six days since anyone has heard from the crew of cargo ship El Faro. But if the ship is disabled and getting pounded by waves on its broadside, it will become more unstable, he said. So you’re talking about 140-mile-an-hour winds, 50-foot seas, zero visibility.

“Mike was a very capable and experienced captain”, Legere said.

What happened to the ship’s propulsion?

Investigators are focusing on the communications between the captain and the vessel’s owner and may further explore whether the five workers whose job was to prepare the engine room for a retrofitting had any role in the boat’s loss of power. “The ship has gone down, took everybody with it. There’s really no speculation to be made”, said Mary Shevory, mother of crewmember Mariette Wright.

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“I know that the Coast Guard along with our brethren in the Navy and Air Force as well as the commercial tugboats that were out there helping us did all that they could…”, Foder said. Bill Nelson (D., Fla.), the ranking Democrat on the Senate Commerce Committee, which oversees the agency, said the incident raises “serious concerns”, and asked investigators to review policies at TOTE and other carriers for sailing in severe weather.

Groton Graduate Dies When Cargo Ship Sinks Near Bahamas