USS Fitzgerald: Dozen sailors to be disciplined following the tragedy

The commanding officer of the USS Fitzgerald and two other senior crew are among those to be disciplined after the destroyer collided with a Filipino merchant ship off the coast of Japan

Damage on the destroyer USS Fitzgerald following the collision off Japan

Credit: AFLO/Press Association Images

18 August

The US Navy has announced that around a dozen crew of the USS Fitzgerald, including the commanding officer, Commander Bryce Benson, are to be disciplined following a collision in June which left seven sailors dead.

The destroyer was in collision with a merchant ship, ACX Crystal, at around 2.30am local time on 17 June, around 56 nautical miles southwest of Yokosuka in Japan.

The USS Fitzgerald sustained damage below the water line, causing the lower decks to flood.

The damage to the USS Fitzgerald. Credit: UPI/PA Images

The seven dead sailors, aged between 19 and 37, were later found by divers.

An investigation into the exact cause of the incident is ongoing.

Speaking to reporters at the Pentagon, the vice chief of naval operations, Admiral William F. Moran, said Commander Benson, along with his second-in-command, Commander Sean Babbitt, and the senior enlisted sailor for the ship, Command Master Chief Brice A. Baldwin, will no longer serve on the ship.

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Sailors who were on watch on the bridge of the USS Fitzgerald at the time of the incident will also be disciplined. Neither Benson nor Babbitt were on the bridge at the time of the collision.

The 20 crew on board the Filipino merchant ship, ACX Crystal, received no injuries during the incident. The ship suffered damage to its port bow.

18 June

The bodies of seven missing US navy sailors have been found in the flooded quarter of the USS Fitzgerald, after their destroyer collided with a merchant ship off the east coast of Japan on Saturday 17 June.

“A number of Sailors that were missing from the collision between USS Fitzgerald (DDG 62) and a merchant ship have been found. ” The US 7th Fleet said in a statement “As search and rescue crews gained access to the spaces that were damaged during the collision this morning, the missing Sailors were located in the flooded berthing compartments. They are currently being transferred to Naval Hospital Yokosuka where they will be identified. The families are being notified and being provided the support they need during this difficult time. The names of the Sailors will be released after all notifications are made.”

USS Fitzgerald collided with ACX Crystal, a merchant vessel registered in the Philippines, at around 2:30 a.m. local time, about 56 nautical miles southwest of Yokosuka, Japan.

Three sailors were injured in the accident, including Commander Bryce Benson, USS Fitzgerald’s commanding officer. He was transferred to U.S. Naval Hospital Yokosuka and is said to be in a stable condition.

USS Dewey and several U.S. Navy aircraft, joined the Japanese Coast Guard and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force helicopters, ships and aircraft to search for the missing sailors.

“U.S. and Japanese support from the Navy, Maritime Self Defense Force and Coast Guard are in the area to ensure that the Sailors on USS Fitzgerald have the resources they need to stabilize their ship. As more information is learned, we will be sure to share to it with the Fitzgerald families and when appropriate the public. Thank you for your well wishes and messages of concern. All of our thoughts and prayers are with the Fitzgerald crew and their families,” said Adm. John Richardson, Chief of Naval Operations.

“Right now we are focused on two things: the safety of the ship and the well-being of the Sailors,” said Adm. Scott Swift, commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet. “We thank our Japanese partners for their assistance.”

It is believed that the 222-metre container ship ACX Crystal, made an unexpected U-turn 25 minutes before the collision with USS Fitzgerald. It’s not been established yet why the ship made the turn.

With the assistance of US Navy tug boats, USS Fitzgerald managed to return to the its base in Yokosura, despite serious starboard side damage during the crash.