The hunt for missing U.S. Navy sailors has come to a halt Sunday after bodies were retrieved from flooded berthing partitions on the USS Fitzgerald.
Numerous sailor bodies located
The USN 7th Fleet stated in a report Sunday morning that numerous sailor bodies that went missing after the collision were located in flooded compartments. The naval commander could not give a precise count of the bodies found because personal reports were still being finished. “search and rescue efforts were ended,” he stated.
In a report, the 7th Fleet commander said, "Divers were able to access the space and found a number of bodies.” Once the vessel was docked back at the naval port in Yokosuka, search operations began.
The bodies of the sailors are currently being transferred to a naval hospital on U.S. soil where they will be identified and at that point, their names will be released.
"Families of the deceased are currently being alerted and provided the help they need during this challenging time," the 7th Fleet stated.
The USS Fitzgerald crashed with Philippine Merchant Ship the ACX Crystal at approximately 2:30 a.m. Saturday local time, roughly 56 nautical miles from Yokosuka, officials reported. At the time of the collision, a substantial portion of the crew was sleeping.
The collision tore a large gouge beneath the water line. The crew fought to keep the vessel from foundering or sinking so they could make it back to base.
Three sailors including the ship’s commander, Bryce Benson were evacuated to the U.S. Naval Hospital at the Yokosuka port, the Navy said. All three are in stable condition. The Fitzgerald navigated back to port on Saturday evening, registering approximately 5 degrees, as stated by a Navy spokesman in Yokosuka.
Collision currently being investigated by experts
It is currently unclear how the collision occurred. "As soon as the investigation is complete, legal concerns can be addressed at that time," the 7th Fleet said.
Authorities are looking into endangerment of transport caused by expert carelessness, Japanese broadcasting stated, however, it is unclear whether that would apply to one or both of the ships.
Japan's chartering ship company, Nippon Yusen KK, which commissioned the container ship that struck the USS Fitzgerald, said in a declaration on Saturday it would fully cooperate with the United Stated Coast Guard and the investigation of the collision.
