NTSB schedules meeting to determine cause of El Faro sinking

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is scheduled to meet on Dec. 12, 2017 in Washington, D.C. to determine the probable cause of the October 2015 sinking of the TOTE Maritime cargo vessel El Faro.    The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said Tuesday it plans to meet on Dec. 12, 2017 in Washington to determine the probable cause of the October 2015 sinking of the El Faro in the Atlantic Ocean, which resulted in the loss of all 33 crewmembers on board.
   The 790-foot cargo ship operated on TOTE Maritime’s service between Jacksonville, Fla. and San. Juan, Puerto Rico.
   It set sail from Jacksonville on Sept. 29, 2015 and was last heard from on Oct. 1, 2015 as it neared the eye of Hurricane Joaquin.
   On Oct. 31, 2015, the wreckage and debris field was located near the Bahamas in about 15,000 feet of water.
   The voyage data recorder (VDR), which contained more than 26 hours of audio recorded from the El Faro’s navigation bridge, was located April 26, 2016 under 15,000 feet of water, about 41 miles (36 nautical miles) northeast of Acklins and Crooked Islands, Bahamas, and on Aug. 8, 2016, the VDR was retrieved.
   The recording began Sept. 30, 2015 at 5:37 a.m., about eight hours after the El Faro departed Jacksonville. At 6:13 a.m. on Oct. 1, 2015 the vessel’s loss of propulsion was mentioned, and at about 7:30 a.m. on Oct. 1, 2015 the master ordered abandon ship and sounded the alarm. Ten minutes later, the recording had ended.
   “The 500-page VDR transcript was placed in the El Faro accident docket, where it is among more than 16,000 factual reports, interview transcripts and related documents,” the NTSB said Tuesday. “In addition to determining the probable cause of the sinking and any factors that may have contributed to the accident, the board is expected to vote on recommendations to address safety issues uncovered during the investigation,” the NTSB added.