Bodies of Missing American Sailors Found from Damaged Navy Ship

U.S. Navy officials have confirmed that the bodies of several missing American sailors after a maritime accident near Japan have been found inside the flooded cabins of the warship. The U.S. Navy announced the discovery of these bodies on Sunday, June 18, although the number of bodies found has not yet been disclosed. Earlier, rescue teams had stated they were searching for seven American sailors who went missing during the maritime accident near the coast of Japan. On Friday, a commercial ship collided with an advanced American warship. Admiral Joseph Aucoin, commander of the U.S. Seventh Fleet, stated, "Navy members are having a tough day." The recent maritime accident occurred after the U.S. warship, USS Fitzgerald, collided in the early hours of the day with a commercial ship flying the Philippine flag. In this incident, the USS Fitzgerald sustained damage but did not sink and returned to port on its own. The maritime accident resulted in injuries to three crew members of the USS Fitzgerald, including its commander. The crew of the commercial ship, all of whom are Filipino, are reported to be safe. The cause of the collision between the two vessels is still unknown. The Japanese company Nippon Yusen K.K., which chartered the commercial vessel, stated it will "fully cooperate" with the Coast Guard in the investigation related to the accident. According to this company, the chartered commercial ship did not sustain significant damage. U.S. President Donald Trump expressed condolences to the sailors of the American warship and their families via his Twitter account and thanked Japan for its cooperation and assistance. The waterways around Tokyo Bay are busy maritime areas, with a large number of commercial ships passing through these waterways to transport cargo from the ports of Tokyo and Yokohama. Each of the ports of Tokyo and Yokohama services over 30,000 ships annually.