The wreckage of the El Faro was found by a U.S. Navy search team on Saturday afternoon about 15,000 feet from it's last known location using sonar imaging, according to CNN. The cargo ship and its 33 crew members went missing a month ago during Hurricane Joaquin.
"Sophisticated sonar equipment towed from Apache first detected what are believed to be images of the vessel using Orion, a side-scanning sonar system, at about 1:36 p.m. ET on Oct. 31 during the fifth of 13 planned search line surveys," said the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), according to NPR.
"To confirm the finding, specialists on Apache will use CURV 21, a deep ocean remotely operated vehicle, to survey and confirm the identity of the wreckage," the NTSB added.
"The target identified by Orion is consistent with a 790-foot cargo ship, which from sonar images appears to be in an upright position and in one piece," the NTSB said.
Hurricane Joaquin was listed as a category 4 storm, and hit at the same time the ship disappeared while traveling from San Juan, Puerto Rico to Jacksonville, Fla., as previously reported by HNGN. Two Air Force C-130 Hurricane Hunter crews were dispatched to find the El Faro, but were not able to find the cargo ship.
