Coast Guard to Probe El Faro Disaster

JACKSONVILLE, FL — The U.S. Coast Guard has announced it is launching a Marine Board Investigation into the loss of the cargo ship El Faro and its 33 crewmembers.

The first series of hearings in the probe will kick off in Jacksonville on Feb. 16 and are anticipated to last until Feb. 26, according to an email from the Coast Guard.

“The first hearing session will focus on the pre-accident historical events relating to the loss, the regulatory compliance record of the EL FARO, crewmember duties and qualifications, past operations of the vessel and the Coast Guard’s Search and Rescue operations,” the email said. “During a later hearing session (date to be determined) the accident voyage, including cargo loading, weather conditions and navigation will be examined in detail.”

The National Transportation Safety Board, which is conducting its own investigation, is expected to participate in the hearings. The purpose of the hearings is to determine the factors that contributed to the accident, whether there is evidence of misconduct or negligence, including willful violation of the law, and whether there is any evidence that Coast Guard personnel or other government employees contributed to the loss, the email said.

See Also:

• El Faro Search Ends

As investigations into the ship’s loss continue, the families of 10 crewmembers lost in the sinking have settled claims with TOTE Maritime, the ship’s owner. Those families will each receive $500,000 to settle pending lawsuits, according to NBC News.

The 735-foot container ship was headed to San Juan, Puerto Rico, from Jacksonville when it became caught in the fury of Hurricane Joaquin near Crooked Islands in the Bahamas, the U.S. Coast Guard reported. Watchstanders at the Coast Guard’s Atlantic Area command center in Portsmouth, Va., received the ship’s initial distress call. At that time, crew members said the ship 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,” the Coast Guard wrote in a media release.

The distress call kicked off a multi-day search for the ship and its personnel. Coast Guard crews searched more than 172,257 square nautical miles before calling off the search for survivors. Personnel from Clearwater and St. Petersburg were actively involved in the search.

Photo of the search for the El Faro courtesy of the U.S. Coast Guard