Miami, Oct 5 (EFE).– The U.S. Coast Guard said Monday that the cargo ship El Faro most certainly sank after it sailed from Florida last week with 33 people aboard, then suddenly disappeared east of the Bahamas when it entered the area struck by Hurricane Joaquin.

At a press conference in the Miami suburb of Opa-locka, Coast Guard Capt. Mark Fedor said that “we are still looking for survivors or any signs of life,” but added that “we’re not looking for the vessel any longer.”

Up to now, several unidentified human remains have been found, as have some life jackets used by the crew, who sailed into a hurricane with winds of over 200 kph (120 mph).

The families of the 28 Americans and five Polish nationals aboard were informed by Coast Guard authorities about the search for survivors and that pieces of the ship had been found.

The ship sailed early last week from the port of Jacksonville, Florida, en route to San Juan, Puerto Rico, but since last Thursday all contact with the vessel has been lost and the Coast Guard immediately launched a search for possible survivors.

The search centered around Crooked Island east of the Bahamas, the ship’s last known location, from where the crew sent a message that they had lost control of the freighter, which belonged to the TOTE Maritime Puerto Rico company.

After lashing the Bahamas for several days, where it caused massive flooding and severe infrastructure damage, Hurricane Joaquin moved west of Bermuda Sunday night and on Monday was headed for the northeast Atlantic. EFE