Six bodies found on Japanese ship

The cost of the recovery operation is put at $60m

US Navy divers have recovered six bodies from the wreck of the Japanese fishing boat Ehime Maru, which was accidentally sunk by a US submarine in February.

A Navy spokesman said the remains of the sixth individual - recovered on Saturday - were in such poor condition that a lengthy DNA investigation may be required to identify them.

Five other sets of remains have been identified by dental records.

The 190-foot (38-metre) training vessel sank off the Hawaiian island of Oahu when the USS Greeneville surfaced beneath it during a demonstration of an emergency drill.

The nine victims - two teachers, four 17-year-old students and three crewmen - were from a fisheries high school in Uwajima, Japan. Twenty-six people survived the sinking.

Identified bodies

Toshimichi Furuya, 47, chief engineer

Hirotaka Segawa, 60, chief radio operator

Toshiya Sakashima, 17, student

Katsuya Nomoto, 17, student

Officials have said they do not expect to find more than seven bodies inside the ship.

In the past week the vessel has been towed to 35-metre-deep (115-feet) shallows so divers could enter the vessel - part of a $60m US operation to find the bodies.

Relatives of four of the victims have arrived in Honolulu, with the rest expected in the next few days. There are plans to take them to the recovery site.

The sub's commander, Scott Waddle, has retired

The relatives know roughly whereabouts the men and boys would have been on the boat.

There was a public outcry in Japan over the accident, especially when it emerged that the submarine's commander was performing the surfacing drill for a group of civilian guests. Commander Scott Waddle was reprimanded at a final hearing into the accident and forced to retire.

The search could take up to a month. After that the Ehime Maru will be taken more than 10km (six miles) out to sea and allowed to sink.