El Faro, RO/RO ship underway to Puerto Rico, likely lost with all hands

[Anti Federalist]

I sailed on this ship years ago, when she was sailing for a different company under another name.



Coast Guard has lost contact with cargo ship in Hurricane Joaquin

http://www.firstcoastnews.com/story/...quin/73203942/

Jacob Rodriguez, First Coast News 1:49 p.m. EDT October 2, 2015

MIAMI — The Coast Guard announced Friday they'd lost contact with El Faro, a cargo ship en route to Puerto Rico from Jacksonville.

Thirty-three crew members are on board, the Coast Guard said.

According to marinetraffic.com, El Faro was supposed to arrive in San Juan at 5:00 p.m. Friday. It is reportedly a vehicle carrier.

The site also tracks the ship's last reported locations. The last report from El Faro puts the ship just west of the Bahamas.

Multiple search parties have been sent out by the Coast Guard, including two Air Force C-130 Hurricane Hunters, and are searching near the eye of the hurricane.

The last message the Coast Guard receive from the El Faro said that the ship was beset by Joaquin and had taken on water, but had since contained the flooding.

However, the Coast Guard has yet to reestablish contact with the vessel.

All 33 crew members are members of the local chapter of the Seafarers International Union, the union confirmed to First Coast News.

TOTE Maritime owns the ship, and announced in a press release that they have reached out to the families of those on board and said they've given them an open line of communication for updates on the situation.

The company also said they're working closely with the Coast Guard to try and reestablish communication in whatever way possible. TOTE Maritime is not releasing the name of the crew members, stating that it could be dangerous for families and the crew members.

The Coast Guard issued a release shortly after 11:00 a.m. The full text is reproduced below:

COAST GUARD SEARCHING FOR CONTAINER SHIP CAUGHT IN HURRICANE JOAQUIN

MIAMI - Coast Guard search and rescue crews are searching for a container ship with 33 crewmembers aboard reported to be caught in Hurricane Joaquin, near Crooked Island, Bahamas.

The El Faro, a 735-foot ro-ro cargo ship, was en route to San Juan, Puerto Rico, from Jacksonville, Florida. At approximately 7:30 a.m. Thursday, watchstanders at the Coast Guard Atlantic Area command center in Portsmouth, Virginia, received an Inmarsat satellite notification stating the El Faro was beset by Hurricane Joaquin, had lost propulsion and had a 15-degree list. The crew reported the ship had previously taken on water, but that all flooding had been contained.

Watchstanders at the Coast Guard 7th District command center in Miami launched an HC-130 aircrew out of Clearwater, Florida, to search for the El Faro. At this time Coast Guard watchstanders and rescue crews have been unable to reestablish communications with the El Faro crew.

Two Air Force C-130 Hurricane Hunter aircrews attempted to locate and reestablish communications with the El Faro unsuccessfully Thursday. Coast Guard crews remain on scene and will continue search efforts Friday by both air and sea.

[presence]

Minouche went down Thursday; 212' cargo. All 12 crew rescued north of Haiti

http://gcaptain.com/twelve-rescued-a.../#.Vg7YbZe350w

[roho76]

Anti-Fed......I salute you. You're a hardcore motherfucker, aren't you?

[Anti Federalist]

Anti-Fed......I salute you. You're a hardcore motherfucker, aren't you?

Not to hear Danke tell it...

He hates sailors.

[JK/SEA]

damn....

[luctor-et-emergo]

Is it reasonable for all communication to be lost when the ship hasn't sunk ? I don't think this story will end very well.

[Danke]

Not to hear Danke tell it...

He hates sailors.

You calling me a homophobe?

[Anti Federalist]

You calling me a homophobe?

Hate is not a family value.

[Anti Federalist]

Is it reasonable for all communication to be lost when the ship hasn't sunk ? I don't think this story will end very well.

No, it is not reasonable.

You should have at least had an EPIRB go off.

If they lost power in 100-140 knots winds and 30 to 40+ foot seas (current forecast for the area), they would capsize pretty quickly, with no chance to get to survival equipment.

[Anti Federalist]

Still no sign.

Ship with 33 people missing in Hurricane Joaquin

http://www.cnn.com/2015/10/02/us/hurricane-joaquin/

[XNavyNuke]

No, it is not reasonable.

You should have at least had an EPIRB go off.

If they lost power in 100-140 knots winds and 30 to 40+ foot seas (current forecast for the area), they would capsize pretty quickly, with no chance to get to survival equipment.

That there is no EPIRB I take as a positive sign. The HRU is supposed to be located such that there is minimal chance of getting tangled in rigging in the event of a capsize. Hopefully what we have here is a complete loss of power with a stable hull orientation. The captain hasn't manually activated the EPIRB because the situation is stable. A fifteen degree list is bad but the last contact reported the source of flooding had been contained. They would have immediately tried to trim by flooding tanks on the opposite side. If they could get her trimmed, taking 8-10m waves beam-on are undesirable but with her 28m beam there's a chance she won't roll.

XNN

[XNavyNuke]

TOTE has set-up an incident site with the latest USCG news releases.

http://elfaroincident.com/

XNN

[mad cow]

That there is no EPIRB I take as a positive sign. The HRU is supposed to be located such that there is minimal chance of getting tangled in rigging in the event of a capsize. Hopefully what we have here is a complete loss of power with a stable hull orientation. The captain hasn't manually activated the EPIRB because the situation is stable. A fifteen degree list is bad but the last contact reported the source of flooding had been contained. They would have immediately tried to trim by flooding tanks on the opposite side. If they could get her trimmed, taking 8-10m waves beam-on are undesirable but with her 28m beam there's a chance she won't roll.

XNN

I think she capsized,quickly.She was supposed to be in San Juan 5:00 P.M. yesterday,the owners,33 families and many others are frantic.If it turns out that the Captain could get out any message and did not,he is an Ex-Captain.

Beyond the EPIRB(s),they have a bunch of other comm equipment,with SOLAS required battery backup out of the ER,probably right there in the wheelhouse.A sat-phone sits in its charging cradle when not in use and the hand-set has its own antenna that works fine when you step out on deck and flip it up.

They have had time to jury-rig an antenna for one of their many radios in the off-chance that every one of them got swept overboard.A ship that size also has hand-held VHF radios to use when docking.They have many flares,smoke bombs and dye packs,They have not been heard from since 7:30 A.M. Thursday.

I hope I,m wrong

[Danke]

Probably inattention due to a gay drunken orgy, sailors are like that.

[timosman]

Why no signal from distress radiobeacons ?

[GovBotDotNet]

Hurricane forecasting is due for open source disruption.

[Anti Federalist]

The entire GMDSS suite has a full battery back up, that is supposed to be tested and assured for 48 hours.

That's two MF sets, at least three VHF sets and at least one INMARSAT set, in addition to EPIRBs and hand held VHFs and sat phones, like you noted.

I concur, sadly.

I think they are gone.

And the wreck will be hard to find, if so. That is some deep ass water, around the area they were last reported, anywhere from 6000 to over 18000 feet deep.

I think she capsized,quickly.She was supposed to be in San Juan 5:00 P.M. yesterday,the owners, 33 families and many others are frantic.If it turns out that the Captain could get out any message and did not,he is an Ex-Captain.

Beyond the EPIRB(s),they have a bunch of other comm equipment,with SOLAS required battery backup out of the ER,probably right there in the wheelhouse.A sat-phone sits in its charging cradle when not in use and the hand-set has its own antenna that works fine when you step out on deck and flip it up.

They have had time to jury-rig an antenna for one of their many radios in the off-chance that every one of them got swept overboard.A ship that size also has hand-held VHF radios to use when docking.They have many flares,smoke bombs and dye packs,They have not been heard from since 7:30 A.M. Thursday.

I hope I,m wrong

[Anti Federalist]

If I was master and in that same situation, you can bet your ass I would activating the EPIRB, so that my position was known beforehand in the event of capsizing, especially if all other forms of communication were out.

A complete power loss would mean that you were on the e-gen or battery back up. Keep in mind, this is a steamship (or was, they may have re-powered her from the time I sailed her) which means a power loss also means loss of primary electric power.

That would mean no ballast pumps or bilge pumps to right her trim.

That there is no EPIRB I take as a positive sign. The HRU is supposed to be located such that there is minimal chance of getting tangled in rigging in the event of a capsize. Hopefully what we have here is a complete loss of power with a stable hull orientation. The captain hasn't manually activated the EPIRB because the situation is stable. A fifteen degree list is bad but the last contact reported the source of flooding had been contained. They would have immediately tried to trim by flooding tanks on the opposite side. If they could get her trimmed, taking 8-10m waves beam-on are undesirable but with her 28m beam there's a chance she won't roll.

XNN

[Danke]

http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthr...=1#post6006731

[Anti Federalist]

http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthr...=1#post6006731

I'm ignoring you on purpose, flyboy.

There are men dying here.

[presence]

Life ring from missing cargo ship is found
CNN‎ - 47 mins ago

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...argo-ship.html

[timosman]

Devil's Triangle - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bermuda_Triangle ?

[Anti Federalist]

Body found during search for missing El Faro cargo ship

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/...ard/ar-AAf7qoA

MIAMI, Oct 5 (Reuters) - The U.S. Coast Guard on Monday said its crews had found a body and an empty, heavily damaged lifeboat in their search for the cargo ship El Faro, believed to have sunk after going missing off the Bahamas in Hurricane Joaquin.

Rescuers are no longer looking for the ship, which sent a distress call four days ago after getting caught in the powerful storm's ferocious winds and 50-foot seas, Coast Guard Captain Mark Fedor said.

He said aircrews continued to search for the missing crew - 28 U.S. citizens and five Polish nationals - but acknowledged they had faced tough odds in the storm's dangerous conditions.

"We are still looking for survivors, any signs of life," he told reporters in Miami.

Crews were unable to identify the body, discovered wearing a survival suit on Sunday, Fedor said.

The recovered lifeboat was one of two from the ship, each with a capacity for 43 people.

On Sunday, the Coast Guard spotted two large debris fields littered with items identified as coming from El Faro, including styrofoam, cargo doors and 55-gallon drums.

The 735-foot (224-meter) container ship had left Jacksonville, Florida on Tuesday, for San Juan, Puerto Rico.

On Thursday, it reported losing propulsion, listing and taking on water after sailing into the path of Joaquin off Crooked Island in the Bahamas, according to the owner, Tote Maritime Puerto Rico.

The Coast Guard said the ship had not been heard from since it sent a distress call Thursday morning.

[Anti Federalist]

Why no signal from distress radiobeacons ?

The EPIRB transmitter is self contained and floats.

It is supposed to self release when a vessel sinks, but damage, flotsam, and any number of restrictions can cause it to get hung up.

If it was hung up on the ship as it sunk, it would have been crushed around 1000 feet or so, preventing it from ever surfacing.

Water depths in the area range from 5000 to 20,000 feet.

[XNavyNuke]

Video from today's USCG press conference can be found here:

https://www.dvidshub.net/video/42666...e#.VhMaR2K9KSN

XNN

[Anti Federalist]

Coast Guard ends search for 33 missing crew members

http://www.seattlepi.com/news/us/art...ew-6556753.php

Curt Anderson and Tony Winton, Associated Press

Updated 5:10 pm, Wednesday, October 7, 2015

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — The Coast Guard officially ended its search Wednesday for the missing crew members from a U.S. cargo ship that sank off the Bahamas during Hurricane Joaquin.

Petty Officer Mark Barney said the search for survivors from the El Faro ended at 7 p.m.

Earlier Wednesday, the Coast Guard broke the news to grieving family members that it was abandoning the search for the 33 mariners and investigators turned their attention to finding the vessel's data recorder 3 miles down at the bottom of the sea.

An intensive search by air and sea over tens of thousands of square miles turned up one unidentified body in a survival suit and a heavily damaged lifeboat but no sign of survivors from the 790-foot El Faro, which was last heard from nearly from a week ago as it was being tossed around in rough seas.

By preparing to end its search at sunset, the Coast Guard all but confirmed family members' worst fears — that all hands were lost. On board were 28 crew members from the U.S. and five from Poland.

"Any decision to suspend a search is painful," Coast Guard Capt. Mark Fedor said. "They did all they could."

Even before the announcement, hopes of finding anyone alive were fading.

"The ship went down. And there's no questioning the outcome of that. The ship has gone down, took everybody with it. There's really no speculation to be made," said Mary Shevory, mother of crew member Mariette Wright.

Robert Green, father of LaShawn Rivera, held out hope despite the Coast Guard decision: "Miracles do happen, and it's God's way only. I'm prayerful, hopeful and still optimistic."

President Barack Obama promised the "full support of the U.S. government" as officials investigate the sinking of the cargo ship. In a statement issued Wednesday evening, Obama said the families of the crew members lost at sea deserve answers, and those who work at sea must be kept safe.

The El Faro went down in 15,000 feet of water east of the Bahamas last Thursday after losing propulsion while attempting to outrun Joaquin along the ship's regular route from Jacksonville to Puerto Rico, according to ship owner Tote Maritime and the Coast Guard. The captain reported the ship was listing and taking on water through an open hatch. Then transmissions ceased.

The key to the mystery of what caused the ship to stall and sink may be in the voyage data recorder, similar to the "black box" on an airliner. The device, presumably pinging away in the blackness and crushing pressure on the sea floor, has a battery life of 30 days after it hits the water.

Assuming the device can be located, the National Transportation Safety Board will work with the Coast Guard, Navy and other agencies to devise a way to bring it up, probably using a remote-controlled, unmanned submersible capable of diving great depths.

Among the questions raised in the wake of the tragedy: What caused the ship to lose power? Did pressure to deliver the cargo on time play a role in the captain's decision to press ahead? Was the ship's advanced age — more than 40 years old — a factor? And was the mechanical trouble caused by work that was being done in the engine room at the time?

The recorder, required for all large ships since 2002, would contain radio communications, command discussions on the bridge, the ship's speed and heading, the condition of its hull, wind speed and radar readings. Generally the recorders retain information from the 12 hours before they enter the water.

"We want to find every bit of information that we possibly can," NTSB vice chair Bella Dinh-Zarr said. "We will be here as long as it takes."

The ship left Jacksonville on Sept. 29 while Joaquin was still a tropical storm. Joaquin quickly developed into a powerful Category 4 hurricane, but Tote officials say its captain, Michael Davidson, had an acceptable plan to bypass the storm that would have worked had the ship not lost power amid 140 mph winds and 50-foot waves.

The NTSB said a key part of the investigation is learning how to prevent similar tragedies. Family members said they hope so, too.

"I am hoping other companies will take a good look at when they're going to ship out, when they're going to set sail," Shevory said. "And not do it with a storm coming that can potentially become a hurricane."

(Tell that to local government, that often will force a ship out to sea in the face of a hurricane, rather than allow it to remain moored in harbor. - AF)

[timosman]

Insurance scam ?

[Anti Federalist]

[Anti Federalist]

Insurance scam ?

No.

[TheNewYorker]

Dumb question, probably. Why would they sail into a hurricane?