Navy readies Ehime Maru
for final journey

There will be no ceremony,
but 4 family members of
victims will be present

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By Gregg K. Kakesako
gkakesako@starbulletin.com

Weather permitting on Sunday, four family members of the nine people who died following the collision between the Ehime Maru and the attack submarine USS Greeneville will witness the final relocation of the Japanese fishing vessel.

The Navy plans no ceremony when the Crowley 450-10 barge cuts the carrying straps allowing the 830-ton ship to sink to the bottom 8,000 feet down. The family members will view the operations from the Japanese submarine rescue vessel Chihaya.

The 190-foot Ehime Maru will be laid to rest 12.5 miles off Kalaeloa. A signaling device will be planted on the ship to mark its location and the end of the unprecedented $60 million operation.

The Navy will not say what family members plan to arrive here on Saturday. However, Japanese media reported that those planning to make the final trip are relatives of the two Uwajima Fisheries High School teachers Jun Nakata, 33, and Hiroshi Makizawa, 37.

Also, planning to make another trip to the islands are the parents of students Yusuke Te-rata and Takeshi Mizuguchi, both 17.

Of the nine people who were killed, only the body of Mizuguchi was never recovered. The search was called off Nov. 6 after the Navy spent 333 hours over 20 days scouring the three levels of the ship.

The Terata family has been threatening to sue the federal government because they are not satisfied with the information they have gotten from the Navy on the reason for the collision. Other Japanese claims, including one from Ehime prefecture for a replacement vessel, are also pending.

The Ehime Maru was struck while the 6,000-ton Greeneville was conducting an emergency surfacing maneuver for 16 civilian visitors on Feb. 9.

The Ehime prefectural government is paying for a $65,000 black granite memorial which will be erected in Kakaako Waterfront Park by the first anniversary of the accident.