News / Military

Divers locate human remains in warship: US admiral

Tuesday, 22 August 2017 12:32 PM [ Last Update: Tuesday, 22 August 2017 1:15 PM ]

Admiral Scott Swift, commander of the US Pacific Fleet, speaks to reporters during a press conference, as the guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain is seen in the background, at Changi Naval Base in Singapore on August 22, 2017. (Photo by AFP)

US Pacific Fleet Commander Admiral Scott Swift has said divers searching for 10 missing sailors on an American warship that collided with an oil tanker off Singapore have found human remains.

The USS John S. McCain collided with the oil tanker Alnic MC on Monday morning local time while the guided-missile destroyer was passing near the Malacca Strait to make a port visit in Singapore, the Navy's 7th Fleet said in a statement.

"The divers were able to locate some remains in those sealed compartments during their search today," Swift told reporters on Tuesday at Singapore's Changi Naval Base, where the damaged warship is docked. He was referring to a search by divers of compartments on the ship.

Swift also said that Malaysian authorities, one of three countries involved in the major hunt for the missing sailors who are feared dead, had also found a body.

He added that the US Navy was trying to identify the body to see if it was one of 10 missing US sailors in the accident.

He also said the warship suffered "significant damage" and noted investigators were trying to figure out what happened and how.

The guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain, with a hole on its port side after a collision with an oil tanker, makes its way to Changi naval base in Singapore, on August 21, 2017. (Photo by AFP)

The dramatic pre-dawn collision, which also left several people injured, was the second major accident involving a US warship in two months.

A search operation involving ships and aircraft from three countries was underway Tuesday for the missing sailors.

US Defense Secretary James Mattis said on Monday that an extensive investigation was underway to “look at all related accidents, incidents at sea."

In June, another guided-missile destroyer, the USS Fitzgerald, collided with the Philippine-flagged merchant ship ACX Crystal 56 nautical miles southwest of Yokosuka, Japan. Seven US sailors were killed in that collision.

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.co.uk