Sailors missing after the USS Fitzgerald collided with a container ship off Japan have been found dead, the US Navy and Japanese media says.

Seven sailors were left missing and three injured after Saturday's collision, which the US Navy said almost sank the destroyer.

The US Navy said rescue workers found the bodies on Sunday after gaining access to damaged parts of the ship.

It said they will be taken to a Japanese hospital to be identified.

The incident reportedly took place some 56 nautical miles (104km) south-west of the Japanese port city of Yokosuka, at about 02:30 local time on Saturday (17:30 GMT Friday).

Japanese broadcaster NHK said the collision led to the flooding of the crew's sleeping quarters while they were asleep.

"The damage was significant," 7th Fleet commander Vice-Admiral Joseph P Aucoin said. "There was a big gash under the water." Repairs would take some time to complete, he said.

At a press conference in Japan on Sunday, Vice Adm Aucoin would not confirm how many remains had been found so far. Families of the sailors are being notified, he said.

"This loss is something we all feel," he said.

Marine traffic records suggest the ACX Crystal, a 222-metre (730ft) Filipino-flagged container ship, made a sudden U-turn roughly 25 minutes before the crash. It is not known why it changed course.

Similar records for the USS Fitzgerald are not publicly available.

The Navy ship's starboard side was heavily damaged in the collision, but the vessel later managed to slowly return to its base in Yokosuka, with the assistance of US navy tug boats.

Japan's coastguard said the ACX Crystal had a gross tonnage of just under 30,000, about three times that of the USS Fitzgerald.

It sustained lighter damage to its port bow.

The Associated Press agency said there were no injuries reported among the 20 Filipino crew members on board the ACX Crystal.

It remains at port in Tokyo. </s> In this Saturday, June 17, 2017, photo, the container ship ACX Crystal with its left bow dented and scraped after colliding with the USS Fitzgerald in the waters off the Izu Peninsula earlier in the day, is berthed at the Oi Container Terminal in Tokyo. The search for seven U.S. Navy sailors missing after their destroyer collided with the container ship called off Sunday after several bodies were found in the ship's flooded compartments, including sleeping quarters.

Start the conversation, or Read more at KXAN-TV Austin. </s> The US Navy has announced that about a dozen sailors are to be disciplined after seven crew on the USS Fitzgerald were killed in a collision.

The destroyer collided with a Philippines container ship in Japanese waters in June.

The deputy chief of naval operations, Admiral Bill Moran, said the commanding officer and two other senior crew would no longer serve aboard the ship.

He said the Navy had lost trust and confidence in their ability to lead.

The Filipino-flagged ACX Crystal collided with the USS Fitzgerald in the early hours of 17 June in Tokyo Bay, causing a large gash below the water line of the destroyer and flooding lower decks.

The dead sailors, aged 19 to 37, were later found in their bunks, after divers gained access to damaged areas of the ship.

The commanding officer was trapped in his cabin by the force of the collision and five sailors had to use a sledgehammer to break down the door.

"Even after the door was open, there was a large amount of debris and furniture against the door, preventing anyone from entering or exiting easily," a report into the incident said.

The ACX Crystal sustained lighter damage to its port bow.

There were no injuries among the 20 Filipino crew members on board the container ship.

Marine traffic records suggest that the ACX Crystal made a sudden U-turn roughly 25 minutes before the crash. It is not known why it changed course.

According to maritime rules, vessels are supposed to give way to ships on their starboard side which is where the destroyer sustained damage, sparking questions over whether the US ship could have been at fault. </s> The USS Fitzgerald, an Arleigh-Burke-class destroyer, has sustained heavy damaged today when it collided with a Philippines container ship, the ACX Crystal, just south of the Japanese port of Yokosuka. One US sailor was injured and evacuated from the ship, dna seven more crew members are unaccounted for.

Details of what happened are still not totally clear, but the Fitzgerald is said to have sustained heavy damage to its starboard side, having sustained some flooding from damage below the water line, and is slowly en route back to Yokosuka under limited propulsion.

The Philippine ship appears to have fared better, as while there hasn’t been any official statement, there’ve been no reports of injuries aboard the ship, nor indeed serious damage, with Japan’s NHK network reporting only some scratches along the ship’s bow.

The ACX Crystal was actually a fair bit larger than the Fitzgerald, 70 meters longer, and with over triple the displacement weight. The Navy has promised an investigation into the incident, and has dispatched a medical ship, along with tugboats, to the scene.
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The US Navy has announced that about a dozen sailors are to be disciplined after seven crew on the USS Fitzgerald were killed in a collision.

The destroyer collided with a Philippines container ship in Japanese waters in June.

The deputy chief of naval operations, Admiral Bill Moran, said the commanding officer and two other senior crew would no longer serve aboard the ship.

He said the Navy had lost trust and confidence in their ability to lead.

The Filipino-flagged ACX Crystal collided with the USS Fitzgerald in the early hours of 17 June in Tokyo Bay, causing a large gash below the water line of the destroyer and flooding lower decks.

"The collision was avoidable," the US 7th Fleet said in a statement, adding that "both ships demonstrated poor seamanship".

The dead sailors, aged 19 to 37, were later found in their bunks, after divers gained access to damaged areas of the ship.

The commanding officer was trapped in his cabin by the force of the collision and five sailors had to use a sledgehammer to break down the door.

"Even after the door was open, there was a large amount of debris and furniture against the door, preventing anyone from entering or exiting easily," a report into the incident said.

The ACX Crystal sustained lighter damage to its port bow.

There were no injuries among the 20 Filipino crew members on board the container ship.

USS Fitzgerald crash: In pictures

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption USS Fitzgerald damaged by the crash

Investigations into the cause of the crash continue.

According to maritime rules, vessels are supposed to give way to ships on their starboard side which is where the destroyer sustained damage, sparking questions over whether the US ship could have been at fault. </s> YOKOSUKA, Japan — A U.S. Navy destroyer has collided with a merchant ship off the coast of Japan, the U.S. military said, and there have been injuries.

The nighttime collision off Japan left seven U.S. Navy sailors from USS Fitzgerald missing. Three, including the captain, have been injured.

Nippon Yusen says in a statement it is collaborating with the ship owner and fully cooperating with the investigation by the coast guard. The 29,060-ton ship, four times the size of the destroyer, is Philippine-flagged and all the crew are Filipinos.

Japan’s Kyodo News service says the Japanese coast guard is investigating the incident with the U.S. Navy and plans to question the crew members of the ACX Crystal.

The cause of the collision wasn’t immediately clear.

Live footage shot from a helicopter Saturday morning by Japanese broadcaster NHK showed heavy damage to the mid-right side of the Navy ship, which appeared to be stationary in the water. People were standing on various parts of the deck.

The Navy said that the USS Fitzgerald collided with a merchant ship 56 nautical miles southwest of Yokosuka, Japan, a city south of Tokyo that is home to a U.S. Naval base. A U.S. defense official said there is flooding in three compartments of the Fitzgerald, and there were injuries.

The Navy said in a statement that Cmdr. Bryce Benson, the ship’s commanding officer, was evacuated to the U.S. Naval Hospital in Yokosuka, home base of the 7th Fleet. It says he was in stable condition.

Details on the second injured person being evacuated were not immediately available.

Navy chief Adm. John Richardson says Navy, Japanese maritime defense vessels and the Japanese coast guard are working to stabilize the badly damaged ship. </s> FILE PHOTO : The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Fitzgerald, damaged by colliding with a Philippine-flagged merchant vessel, is seen at the U.S. naval base in Yokosuka,, Japan June 18, 2017. REUTERS/Toru Hanai/File Photo

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - About a dozen U.S. sailors are expected to face punishment for a collision in June between the USS Fitzgerald and a Philippines cargo ship, including the warship's commanding officer and other senior leaders of the ship, the Navy said on Thursday.

Admiral Bill Moran, deputy chief of naval operations, told reporters the ship's commanding officer, executive officer and master chief petty officer would be removed from the vessel because "we've lost trust and confidence in their ability to lead."

Moran said that in total close to a dozen sailors would face administrative punishment and left open the possibility for further action.

Multiple U.S. and Japanese investigations are under way into how the USS Fitzgerald, a guided missile destroyer, and the much larger ACX Crystal container ship collided in clear weather south of Tokyo Bay in the early hours of June 17.

The Navy also released a report that provided new details of the crash and its aftermath.

The collision tore a gash below the Fitzgerald's waterline, killing seven sailors in what was the greatest loss of life on a U.S. Navy vessel since the USS Cole was bombed in Yemen's Aden harbor in 2000.

The report said the collision at 1:30 am local time sent water pouring into the U.S. warship.

"Water on deck," sailors in a berthing started yelling. "Get out," they shouted as mattresses, furniture and even an exercise bicycle began to float.

Within 60 seconds, the berthing was completely flooded. More than two dozen of the 35 sailors in it escaped. The last sailor to be rescued was in the bathroom at the time of the collision.

"Lockers were floating past him... at one point he was pinned between the lockers and the ceiling of Berthing 2, but was able to reach for a pipe in the ceiling to pull himself free," the report said.

Two sailors stayed at the foot of the ladder in the compartment to help others escape.

"The choices made by these two sailors likely saved the lives of at least two of their shipmates," the report says.

The commanding officer was trapped in his cabin, and five sailors used a sledgehammer to break through the door.

"Even after the door was open, there was a large amount of debris and furniture against the door, preventing anyone from entering or exiting easily," the report said.

The sailors tied themselves together with a belt and rescued the commanding officer, who by this point was hanging from the side of the ship. </s> TOKYO: Search and rescue efforts went on after dark for seven U.S. sailors missing after the U.S. Navy destroyer USS Fitzgerald collided with a Philippine-flagged container ship more than three times its size off eastern Japan early on Saturday.

The Fitzgerald, an Aegis guided missile destroyer, collided with the merchant vessel some 56 nautical miles southwest of Yokosuka, the Navy said.

Three aboard the destroyer had been medically evacuated to the U.S. Naval Hospital in Yokosuka, including the ship's commanding officer, Cmdr. Bryce Benson, who was reported to be in stable condition, the Navy said. The other two were being treated for lacerations and bruises, while other injured were being assessed aboard the ship, it said.

The USS Fitzgerald sailed into port on Saturday evening but search and rescue efforts by U.S. and Japanese aircraft and surface vessels were continuing for the seven missing sailors, the Navy said. Their names are being withheld until the families have been notified, it added.

Benson took command of the Fitzgerald on May 13. He had previously commanded a minesweeper based in Sasebo in western Japan.

It was unclear how the collision happened. "Once an investigation is complete then any legal issues can be addressed," a spokesman for the U.S. 7th Fleet said.

The U.S. Navy said the collision happened at about 2:30 a.m. local time (1730 GMT), while the Japanese Coast Guard said it took place at 1:30 a.m. local time.

The Fitzgerald suffered damage on her starboard side above and below the waterline, causing "significant damage" and flooding to two berthing spaces and other areas of the ship, the Navy said.

The flooding was later stabilised, but it was uncertain how long it would take to gain access to those spaces once the ship docked, to continue the search for the missing, it said.

Back in Yokosuka, divers will inspect the damage and develop a plan for repairs, the Navy said.

The ship was able to operate under its own power with limited propulsion, the Navy said. The Japanese Coast Guard said separately the Fitzgerald was towed back to Yokosuka by a tugboat at about 3 knots.

Part of an eight-ship squadron based in Yokosuka, the Fitzgerald had in February completed US$21 million worth of upgrades and repairs.

Japan's Nippon Yusen KK , which charters the container ship, ASX Crystal, said in a statement it would "cooperate fully" with the Coast Guard's investigation of the incident. At around 29,000 tons displacement, the ship dwarfs the 8,315-ton U.S. warship, and was carrying 1,080 containers from the port of Nagoya to Tokyo.

None of the 20 crew members aboard the container ship, all Filipino, were injured, and the ship was not leaking oil, Nippon Yusen said. The ship arrived at Tokyo Bay around 5:00 p.m. (0800 GMT), sailing under its own power, the Coast Guard said.

The waterways approaching Tokyo Bay are busy with commercial vessels sailing to and from Japan’s two biggest container ports in Tokyo and Yokohama.

International maritime rules for collision avoidance do not define right of way for any one vessel, but provide common standards for signalling between ships, as well as regulations on posting lookouts.

Japan's public broadcaster NHK showed aerial footage of the Fitzgerald, which had a large dent on its right, or starboard, side. Images broadcast by NHK showed it had been struck next to its Aegis radar arrays behind the vertical launch tubes.

In May, the U.S. Navy's USS Lake Champlain collided with a South Korean fishing vessel but both ships were able to operate under their own power.

The 7th Fleet commander, Vice Admiral Joseph Aucoin, thanked the Japanese Coast guard in a post on the fleet's Facebook page, adding: "We are committed to ensuring the safe return of the ship to port in Yokosuka." </s> related media assets (image or videos) available. Click to see the gallery.

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Rescue crews searched into the early hours on Sunday for seven American sailors missing after a U.S. destroyer collided with a container ship in the pre-dawn hours off the coast of Japan.

TOKYO: Rescue crews searched into the early hours on Sunday for seven American sailors missing after a U.S. destroyer collided with a container ship in the pre-dawn hours off the coast of Japan.

U.S. 7th Fleet Vice Admiral Joseph P. Aucoin said the search was continuing in a statement released nearly 24 hours after the USS Fitzgerald, an Aegis guided missile destroyer, collided with the much larger Philippine-flagged merchant vessel 56 nautical miles southwest of Yokosuka.

"It's been a tough day for our Navy family. It's hard to imagine what this crew has had to endure, the challenges they've had to overcome," Aucoin said.

U.S. and Japanese aircraft and surface vessels continued the search after the Fitzgerald sailed into the port of Yokosuka south of Tokyo. Three aboard the destroyer were treated at the U.S. Naval Hospital, including ship Commander Bryce Benson.

It was not clear what caused the collision, which the U.S. Navy said occurred at about 2:30 a.m. local time (1730 GMT).

"Thoughts and prayers with the sailors of USS Fitzgerald and their families. Thank you to our Japanese allies for their assistance," U.S. President Donald Trump said in a Twitter post on Saturday.

The Fitzgerald suffered damage on her starboard side above and below the waterline, the Navy said.

Japan's Nippon Yusen KK, which charters the container ship, ASX Crystal, said in a statement it would "cooperate fully" with the Coast Guard's investigation of the incident. At around 29,000 tons displacement, the ship dwarfs the 8,315-ton U.S. warship, and was carrying 1,080 containers from the port of Nagoya to Tokyo.

None of the 20 crew members aboard the container ship, all Filipino, were injured, and the ship was not leaking oil, Nippon Yusen said. The ship arrived at Tokyo Bay later in the day.

The waterways approaching Tokyo Bay are busy with commercial vessels sailing to and from Japan’s two biggest container ports in Tokyo and Yokohama.
The USS Fitzgerald, a United States Navy destroyer, collides with a merchant ship MV ACX Crystal off the coast of Japan at around 2:30 a.m. local time, with seven American sailors reported missing. The ship was taking on water and able to operate at limited propulsion.