US finds sunken Japanese trawler

The remote-controlled submersible operated from a US navy ship

A remotely controlled submersible vehicle has located the wreckage the Japanese training vessel Ehime Maru, which sank last Saturday after colliding with a US submarine.

Investigators believe the wreck of trawler, which was struck by the 7,000 tonne USS Greenville, may contain the bodies of nine students who remain unaccounted for.

A preliminary report into the accident - which has sparked anger among the victims' relatives - is expected to be delivered in the next few days.

Among the key unanswered questions are why the Greenville - which was carrying out an emergency surfacing drill - failed to spot the Ehime Maru, and why civilian guests were sitting at two control positions at the time.

The US Pacific fleet website said the wreck had been located at about 2330 (1030GMT) on Friday lying nearly upright on the seabed at a depth of 2,033 feet (619 metres) about 1,000 yards (914 metres) from the collision site.

Recovery mission

A spokesman for Japanese Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori said the US had informed the Japanese government that the wreck has been found, but said he was unaware whether any bodies have been located within it.

The Super Scorpio II: Steered from the surface via remote control

The unmanned Scorpio II submersible is equipped with two video cameras, sonar, and has a limited recovery capability.

Four high school students, two teachers and three crewmen from the Ehime Maru, a commercial fishing training vessel operated by Uwajima Fisheries High School, are still listed as missing.

Twenty-six people were rescued after the collision.

US regional Consul-General Robert Ludan visited Ehime state governor Moriyuki Kato on Friday to apologise for the incident - but this has not tempered Japanese anger over the accident.

At a news conference held at the University of Hawaii on Friday, some relatives expressed anguish and underlined their demands for a full and thorough investigation.

"It's your responsibility as human beings," said Masumi Terata, mother of 17-year-old Yusuke Terata. "If your blood is red, you'll understand our pain and sorrow."

Unanswered questions

Aside from questions over the role of the civilians, relatives also want to know why the USS Greenville apparently did little to help survivors immediately after the sinking.

Relatives are demanding answers

Navy officials have said rough seas prevented the submarine crew from bringing survivors onboard.

The relatives also re-iterated their plea that officials continue to search for all the missing bodies.

On Friday, the US Navy announced a ban on civilians from submarines during emergency surfacing drills until the outcome of the final enquiry.