Last of missing sailors on USS McCain recovered
Navy orders pause to review safety, systems and training on all ships
Divers have recovered the remains of all 10 sailors who went missing after the USS John S. McCain and an oil tanker collided near Singapore last week, the U.S. Navy said Monday in Singapore.
Navy and Marine Corps divers had been searching in flooded compartments of the destroyer for days after the damaged ship docked in Singapore. The cause of the Aug. 21 collision is under investigation. The crash ripped a gash in the McCain’s hull, flooding crew berths and machinery and communications rooms.
The commander of the Navy’s Japan-based 7th Fleet was fired last week after a series of accidents this year raised questions about its operations. The firing of Vice Adm. Joseph Aucoin, a three-star admiral, was a rare dismissal of a high-ranking officer for operational reasons.
The Navy also ordered an operational pause for its fleets worldwide to make sure all steps are being taken to ensure safe and effective operations. The Pacific Fleet also will carry out a ship-by-ship review of its vessels, looking at navigation, mechanical systems, bridge resource management and training.
The victims ranged in age from
20 to 39 years old and came from eight U.S. states:
Charles Nathan Findley,
31, Electronics Technician 1st Class, from Amazonia, Mo.
Abraham Lopez, 39, Interior Communications Electrician
1st Class, from El Paso, Texas Kevin Sayer Bushell, 26, Electronics Technician 2nd Class, from Gaithersburg, Md.
Jacob Daniel Drake, 21, Electronics Technician 2nd Class, from Cable, Ohio Timothy Thomas Eckels
Jr., 23, Information Systems Technician 2nd Class, from Manchester, Md.
Corey George Ingram, 28, Information Systems Technician
2nd Class, from Poughkeepsie, N.Y.
Dustin Louis Doyon, 26, Electronics Technician 3rd Class, from Suffield, Conn.
John Henry Hoagland III,
20, Electronics Technician 3rd Class, from Killeen, Texas
Logan Stephen Palmer,
23, Interior Communications Electrician 3rd Class, from Decatur, Ill.
Kenneth Aaron Smith, 22, Electronics Technician 3rd Class, from Cherry Hill, N.J.
In Poughkeepsie, Jacqueline Ingram, Corey Ingram’s mother, said a representative from the Navy told her about the discovery of her son’s body Saturday evening.
“He said, ‘We have Corey,’ ” she said. “I was sad, but at least I know that they found him, because not knowing was the hardest part for me. Not knowing and waiting.”
The Navy hasn’t released the body, Ingram said, and the family has yet to begin making plans for a funeral service.
She said Sunday she felt “overwhelmed” by the support of friends, family and the Poughkeepsie community, like the city fire house that had flags lowered to half-staff and a sign reading “In Memory of Petty 2nd Class Corey Ingram USN” Sunday.
“It’s good to know that people remember Corey and know he’s a good person,” she said. “He served his country, and that’s all he wanted to do. To protect and serve.”
“Poughkeepsie’s such a tightknit community, there’s so much love,” Sherona Gardner, Corey Ingram’s cousin, said. “He has a big family and people supporting him all around the neighborhood, and that’s part of the reason why he wanted to join the Navy and see the world.”