Wreckage Of Cargo Ship Lost In Hurricane 'Found'

The wreckage of a vessel believed to be the cargo ship El Faro has been recovered, which disappeared last month with 33 on board.

A sophisticated sonar system detected the wreckage on Saturday afternoon, and it is located at a depth of 15,000ft.

In a statement, US officials said it was "consistent with a 790ft cargo ship, which from sonar images appears to be in an upright position and in one piece".

El Faro disappeared as Hurricane Joaquin battered the Bahamas on 1 October, and had encountered high winds and heavy seas. A crew of 28 Americans and five Polish nationals were aboard.

If confirmed, the sinking would be the worst cargo shipping disaster involving a US-flagged ship for more than 30 years.

The US National Transportation Safety Board now plans to send a deep ocean remotely operated vehicle to confirm the identity of the shipwreck - and has asked the navy to assist in finding the crucial voyage data recorder.

On 5 October - four days after the vessel was reported missing en route from Florida to Puerto Rico - search teams recovered the body of one crew member, who was found wearing a survival suit.

At the time, the ship's owner said the captain planned to bypass the hurricane but some kind of mechanical failure left the vessel helplessly adrift in the path of the powerful storm.

The company also defended its decision to sail, saying crew members were "equipped to handle situations such as changing weather".

El Faro was scheduled for retirement from sailing across the Caribbean, and was being retrofitted by the Polish engineers as it sailed.

The next phase of the operation to recover the voyage data recorder is expected to take 15 days if conditions are ideal - longer if the weather is unfavourable.