Coast Guard tries to reach disabled ship

Associated Press

ELEUTHERA, Bahamas

Hurricane Joaquin destroyed houses, uprooted trees and unleashed heavy flooding as it hurled torrents of rain across the Bahamas on Friday, and the U.S. Coast Guard said it was trying to reach a disabled cargo ship with 33 people aboard that lost contact during the storm.

The Coast Guard said the 735-foot ship named El Faro had taken on water and was listing at 15 degrees near Crooked Island, one of the islands most battered by the hurricane. Officials said the crew includes 31 U. S. citizens and two from Poland.

“This vessel is disabled basically right near the eye of Hurricane Joaquin,” said Capt. Mark Fedor. “We’re going to go and try and save lives. We’re going to push it to the operational limits as far as we can.”

Officials said they hadn’t been able to re-establish communication with the vessel, which was traveling from Jacksonville, Fla., to San Juan, Puerto Rico. The Coast Guard said the crew earlier reported it had been able to contain the flooding.

Fedor said there were 20- to 30-foot waves in the area, and that heavy winds could have destroyed the ship’s communications equipment. The ship went missing when Joaquin was a Category 4 storm. The hurricane has since lost strength and became a Category 3 storm.