Cargo ship missing after sailing into Hurricane Joaquin

28 missing American crew members

El Faro, a cargo ship, was caught in Hurricane Joaquin, leaving several American crew members missing. Worried friends and family of the missing staff members continue to hope for survivors.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - The US Coast Guard announced that they have ceased their search for the missing cargo ship. El Faro, which "sailed into Hurricane Joaquin" last Friday, is believed to have sunk along with its 28 American crew members. Though the search for El Faro has come to an end, the hunt for its survivors continues throughout the day.

In a press conference Tuesday morning Captain Mark Fedor announced a body was discovered floating in a life vest on Sunday but the rescue team was forced to leave it behind as it was "unidentifiable." The search for the 28 other crew members continues.
"I don't know what the master was thinking, or what his company was telling him," Fedor admitted since El Faro was top heavy with 391 shipping containers on deck that sailed into tropical weather forecasted to develop into a major hurricane.
The ship's last transmission came through Thursday morning, when the crew reported a loss of power, the ship had taken on water and was at 15 degrees. However, they claimed the situation was "manageable."
Forty-four-year-old Rochelle Hamm, crew member Frank Hamm's wife, told DailyMail, "We [the families] were wondering why they shipped out even though they knew that the storm was coming. And why didn't they re-route as well ... Basically they were emphasizing that the captain has had 20 years of experience plus and that he could decide and have good decisions on things of that nature."
Katie Griffin, crewman Keith Griffin's wife, told the Boston Herald she was pregnant with twins and was "devastated." The last time she spoke to her husband was in an email last Wednesday.
"We just talked about our day and he was getting ready to go bed and that he probably wouldn't get much sleep because it was stormy out."
She added that Keith was to return later this month in time to discover the gender of their twins. "My babies are all I have left of him now," she said.
Keith Griffin was one of several American El Faro crew members who were identified as missing on Monday morning. 53-year-old Steven Shultz was also reported missing. 
Shultz's mother told station WBBH she believes her son is still alive and with the rest of the crew, though she worries supplies may be dwindling.
The US Coast Guard continues to search for the missing crew. El Faro's owner claims the ship had more than enough life boats and rafts for the crew to abandon ship with.
Captain Fedor admitted the Coast Guard found one of two lifeboats, each of which has a carrying capacity of 43 people. The search will be focused on a debris field that is roughly 300 square nautical miles and another that is 70 square nautical miles.
Fedor stated, "We are remaining hopeful."
Since Sunday, searchers found El Faro's life ring, cargo, wood and styrofoam from the ship that was last reported to be near the Bahamas' Crooked Island.
President and CEO of TOTE Inc. Princeton, NJ, the company that owns and operates cargo ships, Anthony Chiarello released the following statement:
"We continue to hold out hope for survivors. Our prayers and thoughts go out to the family members and we will continue to do all we can to support them. The efforts and assistance from the US Coast Guard has been extraordinary and we continue to be grateful for their dedication and efforts to find surviving crew members. 
"TOTE Maritime Puerto Rico continues to work closely with the Coast Guard in ongoing search and rescue operations."
By Sunday night, three life rings and several life vests had been spotted, all of which were empty of life. Chiarello admitted, "You don't want to find that of course but we hold out hope that until we have specific confirmation of what the debris field includes and specific identification that ties it to the El Faro.
"You have to remember there was a lot of debris that came off the neighboring islands and blew into the water so to have a significant debris field in that area there likely will be many one would expect based on just the severity of the storm.
"So we hold out hope until there is confirmation that the materials in the debris field came in fact from El Faro ... We're looking for anything we can - the ship, lifeboats or both."
Daily Mail reported other materials located over the 70,000 square nautical mile search so far includes containers, loose deck materials and oil sheen. Officials believe the findings are a step in the right direction.
"It validates our search efforts and while we are disappointed we did not find the ship today we are hopeful, Coast Guard Spokeswoman Marilyn Fajardo told CNN.
"Tomorrow, we will have three C-130s flying and the Navy will be assisting again with a P-8 aircraft."
Shaun Rivera was reported among the missing crew and his uncle, Barry Young, said, "We have and still are to this moment holding on hope that just maybe he is one of those still floating out in the ocean and alive. Knowing him, he's a fighter. He's not a man that would lay down."
Young is a minister and spoke for the Rivera family, adding, "I have to rely on my faith. Even our pain, there's a lesson to be learned in everything that happens. Don't cease in praying. Our prayers are vital. 
"Our prayers are meaningful. Our prayers matter ... We appreciate the media attention that this is getting. At the present there's not a lot of information as far as what has been found. I just want to say this to the community: We really, as families of these people, we're asking for your prayers, sincere prayers because in this situation that's all we can do."
A private prayer vigil will be held this evening for families of some of the missing crew members.
Phil Greene, President and CEO of Tote Services Inc. Jackson, FL, said the ship's captain, Michael Davidson, "was a highly competent, qualified master, by all accounts a calm, well collected and thoughtful leader who looked after the ship and the crew as his ultimate priority. 
"We place great faith and confidence in our captain's voyage planning. The captain established his voyage plan. He had been observing this weather system for many days. He had come back from Puerto Rico on his northbound run and had been monitoring the beginning of it when he was in port he was doing his voyage planning accordingly.
"He had intentions of passing in front of the weather system with an adequate margin. Regrettably he suffered a mechanical problem with his main propulsion system which left him in the path of the storm ... The vessel had two lifeboats on board which were certified and approved by the US Coastguard each with the capacity of 43 persons. 
"El Faro was equipped with five life rafts also the kind of life rafts that you deploy by throwing over the side then pulling a cord they each have a capacity that can encompass somewhere between 15 and 17 people. So when you look at the life rafts plus the lifeboats there was well over a 200 percent capacity versus the crew that was on board."
Greene continued, insisting El Faro was an "extremely well built vessel," originally designed to operate an Alaskan route, so it was "purpose built to operate in some of the most rugged and arguably dangerous waters in the world as she transited back and forth up to the Arctic."
Mike Hanson of MPI Network - a crisis management company - told Daily Mail Online, "Tote is literally all hands on deck. Management is obviously seriously engaged we've set up a special team to assist family members. We set up a special 800 number for family members to call into with questions and concerns. That's a private number.

"We've set up an 800 number for media. I think I mentioned that I now have a team of 7 assisting either both management in Jacksonville - 3 of them are in Jacksonville one is en route and there are 4 of us up here in our offices in Stanford. We're MPI Network and this is what we do assist ship operators in crisis situations."
The eye of Hurricane was expected to pass west of Bermuda on Sunday. However, the storm might veer closer to the island as forecasters have warned. Rick Knabb, the director of the hurricane center, said Hurricane Joaquin is expected to pass offshore from the eastern seaboard, "But we are still going to have some bad weather." 

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