Associated Press
HONOLULU — The Navy lifted the Japanese fishing vessel sunk by a U.S. submarine eight months ago and began moving it to shallow water on Friday.
Once the 190-foot vessel is in shallower waters, Navy divers will enter the wreck and try to remove the bodies of the nine Japanese men and teen-age boys who went down with the ship.
A heavy-duty ship began lifting the Ehime Maru in the middle of the night from its resting place 2,000 feet down, said Lt. Victor Lopez, a Pacific Fleet spokesman. Then the lifted vessel began its 15-mile journey to 115-foot waters, a trip that was expected to take three or four days.
"It’s going well," said Cmd. David Wray, spokesman for the U.S. Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor. "The wind and sea conditions are favorable and the Ehime Maru appears to be riding well."
An attempt to move the vessel Thursday was frustrated by rough seas and technical problems.
The fishing vessel was being used to train high school students when it was rammed by the USS Greeneville on Feb. 9 during a rapid surfacing drill. The Navy has spent at least $60 million to recover the bodies.
The Navy said earlier this week that the vessel was in better shape than expected.
The vessel will not be brought to the surface; once the dead are removed, the ship will be taken out to sea and sunk.
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