US sailors found dead in bunks

SAILORS aboard a US Navy destroyer that collided with a container ship were found dead yesterday in flooded sleeping berths.

The USS Fitzgerald was sailing off the east coast of Japan on Saturday morning when the incident took place. Seven sailors were reported missing.

Yesterday US 7th Fleet commander Vice Admiral Joseph Aucoin, speaking at the Yokosuka naval base, said: ‘The search and rescue is over.’

The Vice Admiral said the destroyer sustained ‘a large gash’ below the waterline, and nearby crew would have had little chance to escape the ‘tremendous’ amount of water that poured into the ship through the breach. ‘It was 2:20 in the morning. A significant part of the crew was sleeping,’ he added.

The US Navy said it had found ‘a number’ of bodies inside the guided missile destroyer, but a final death toll will not be released until the sailors’ families had been contacted.