JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Friends and family members who have loved ones on El Faro are telling Action News Jax there were problems with the ship way before this incident.
These friends and families of crew members say there was water on the ship last month. They sent us a picture from Sept. 18 showing the bottom of the ship filled with water.
On Tuesday night, family members will meet with officials from Tote, the owner of the ship, for the fifth night in a row hoping to get some answers on what really happened.
Timothy Littles said he has several friends who are now missing after Coast Guard officials said the container ship El Faro sank on its way to Puerto Rico.
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The ship left Jacksonville last Tuesday but ran into Hurricane Joaquin after losing power. We have been at the Seafarers International Union hall since Friday and have spoken with several family members over the last five days.
Action News Jax: "In your opinion, should they have sent that ship out there in those conditions?"
Littles: "Negative, no. We could have went anywhere, around, could have stayed off the coast of Miami, anywhere but through the storm."
Littles said his friend Roosevelt "Bootsy" Clark sent him a photo of the inside of El Faro during a trip he was on last month and a portion of the boat was filled with water.
Action News Jax: "Who's to blame for this?"
Littles: "Pretty much the captain. At the end of the day, it's the captain's responsibility."
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