NEW YORK:The Coast Guard says a container ship with 33 aboard likely sank in Hurricane Joaquin, but searchers continue to look for possible survivors. Officials say one set of human remains was located, as well as an empty lifeboat.
The cargo ship that vanished five days ago near the Bahamas sank in the brutal seas and high winds of Hurricane Joaquin, but the search for survivors will continue, the Coast Guard said Monday. Coast Guard Capt. Mark Fedor said the 790-foot container ship El Faro, with 33 people aboard, sank last week. Twenty-eight of the crew were Americans.
“We believe it sank in its last known position on Thursday,” Fedor said. “We are still looking for survivors or any signs of life.”
Fedor said aircraft searched 70,000 square nautical miles Sunday, the first day that weather allowed an intensive search. The rescue efforts are now targeting two debris fields, one about 300 square miles and another of about 70 square miles, he said.
Fedor called the survival conditions “challenging,” but noted that the crew would have been well-trained at abandoning ship.
