URI researchers help solve cargo ship sinking mystery

By: Kainani Stevens

kstevens@abc6.com

The NTSB has released transcripts of the El Faro cargo ship’s black box recordings detailing the sinking of the cargo ship that killed 33 people in 2015.

Researchers at URI played a big part in the recovery of those black boxes.

"It was an exciting moment for me. We had to scramble to come in and download the recordings and make sure the NTSB got all the information that they needed," said Director of the URI Inner Space Center Dwight F. Coleman.

Researchers from URI’s inner space center, playing a small but crucial part in helping bring closure to the family of the El Faro victims.

"The captain seemed to think they would be south of the storm, wind would not be an issue and that the ship’s path should not change," said Coleman.

It was no easy task finding and reviewing the hours of recording but thanks to TelePresence technology provided by URI, investigators were able to speed up parts of the process.

"It was programmed to do a mapping mission where it flys at a high altitude and gathers data. It does a very comprehensive map of the sea floor at a high resolution. That enables us to find targets and go down to get a better look," said Coleman.

The NTSB found the boxes in April, and after retrieving them in August, they have put in over 1100 work hours transcribing and analyzing the 26 hours of recordings as they continue their in depth investigation.

"To have recovered the voice data recorder and transcribe the findings will help them in their investigation and really help to bring closure to the families of the victims who perished that day when the ship sank"

The NTSB released only factual information on Tuesday, and still have long way to go before they provide any analysis on their findings.

©WLNE-TV / ABC6 2016