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Data Recorder Recovered From The Sunken Cargo Ship El Faro

BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- The voyage data recorder from the sunken U.S. cargo ship El Faro has been recovered from the ocean floor near the Bahamas.

The successful mission caps a 10-month effort that began last October after Captain Michael Davidson tried to avoid Hurricane Joaquin, but ended up sailing right into it.

Investigators hope the recorder, which was designed to record navigational data and communications between crewmembers on the ship's bridge, will reveal information about the final hours of the voyage and the circumstances leading up to the sinking.

"The recovery of the recorder has the potential to give our investigators greater insight into the incredible challenges that the El Faro crew faced, but it's just one component of a very complex investigation," said NTSB Chairman Christopher A. Hart.

"There is still a great deal of work to be done in order to understand how the many factors converged that led to the sinking and the tragic loss of 33 lives."

Baltimore County native Frank Hamm was one of the crew members who perished.

In his statement, Hart went on to thank the U.S. Navy, the Coast Guard, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, the National Science Foundation and the University of Rhode Island for their assistance in the three separate recovery missions.

The recorder was found 15,000 feet below the surface, with the help of CURV-21, a deep ocean remotely operated underwater vehicle.

It is not yet known how long it may take to review the data and audio information that may have been captured on it.

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