Federal officials have ended the deep sea search for the device that could help explain why the cargo ship El Faro sank in a hurricane on Oct. 1.

Nearly a week after locating the ship’s bridge in about 15,000 feet of water off the Bahamas, the National Transportation Safety Board announced Monday that it doesn’t plan any more attempts to locate the voyage date recorder. Known as the black box, it was attached to the bridge area and contains information such as the ship’s heading, speed and audio that could shed light on why the ship sank.

Nevertheless, the agency did say that the Navy had completed a video documentation of shipwreck that could help officials determine the cause of the tragedy.

“Over the years, we’ve completed many investigations without the aid of recorders and other investigative tools,” NTSB Chairman Christopher A. Hart said in a statement Monday. “While it is disappointing that the voyage data recorder was not located, we are hopeful that we’ll be able to determine the probable cause of this tragedy and the factors that may have contributed to it.”

The 790-foot El Faro sank during Hurricane Joaquin with 33 crew members aboard, including four Mainers: Michael Davidson of Windham, the captain, Michael Holland, 25, of Wilton, Danielle Randolph, 34, of Rockland, and Dylan Meklin, 23, of Rockland. All were graduates of Maine Maritime Academy, as was a fifth crew member, Mitchell Kuflik of Brooklyn, New York.

Holland’s mother, Deb Roberts of Jay, could not be reached for comment, but she posted a message on a special Facebook page that she established several weeks ago to remember the men and women who served on the ship.

“While I am OK with the fact that they didn’t find the VDR, I know so many others are heartbroken over the news,” Roberts wrote. “For me I’m just not sure that anything they would’ve found would help ease this emptiness and heartbreak I feel over the loss of my dear son, Michael. No matter what they might have found, the truth is, it won’t bring him back.”

The El Faro left Jacksonville, Florida, on Sept. 29 on its regular run to San Juan, Puerto Rico – a journey of about 1,300 miles to the southeast. At the time, Joaquin was classified as a tropical storm, but it intensified into a hurricane and the ship encountered winds of 130 mph and waves of 30-40 feet.

In one of its last transmissions with the ship’s owner – TOTE Maritime Puerto Rico – crew members reported that the ship had lost power, had taken on water and was listing 15 degrees. The company lost all contact with the El Faro around 7:20 a.m. on the morning of Oct. 1.

On Oct. 5, a Coast Guard helicopter crew spotted a survival suit with a deceased person inside, but opted not to retrieve the body, wanting to use the diminishing light to search for crew members who might be alive. No other bodies have been found.

In October, the NTSB contracted with the Navy to conduct a search for the wreckage of the El Faro.

The Navy ship Apache, using an underwater remotely operated robot called CURV 21 found the hull of the El Faro on Oct. 31, sitting upright in about 15,000 feet of water near Crooked Island in the Bahamas.

The ship was about 2,000 feet deeper than the Titanic.

“TOTE would like to express its appreciation for the extraordinary work of the crew and support staff of the Navy vessel Apache for its efforts locating the El Faro. We remain committed to the process of investigation into the tragic accident and will continue to work closely with the NTSB and the U.S. Coast Guard,” the company said in a statement Monday evening.

Though the Apache had found the ship’s hull, it said that the ship’s navigation bridge and the voyage data recorder, which was sealed in a container the size of a large suitcase and attached to the ship’s mast, had separated from the vessel and were missing.

The Navy found the bridge on Nov. 11 about one mile from the wreckage, but its mast and the voyage data recorder were no longer attached.

“After five more days of searching with CURV 21, it was determined that the voyage data recorder could not be located,” the NTSB said. “The search and video documentation efforts of El Faro were completed on Nov. 15. No further search missions are planned.”

 

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