SINGAPORE (AP) - The Latest on the collision between the USS John S. McCain and an oil tanker off Singapore (all times local):
9 p.m.
The U.S. Navy says a multinational search has been suspended in the ocean near Singapore for sailors still missing from a collision between a destroyer and an oil tanker, and that it has identified the remains of one victim.
The 7th Fleet said divers will continue to search flooded compartments inside the ship, where some remains have been found. The Navy has not provided specifics.
Ten sailors went missing and five others were injured in the accident, which occurred Monday as the USS John S. McCain was heading to Singapore for a routine port call.
The fleet said it had identified the remains of Electronics Technician 3rd Class Kenneth Aaron Smith, 22, from New Jersey.
The commander of the 7th Fleet was relieved of duty Wednesday following the collision and other accidents this year that raised questions about its operations in the Pacific. Seven sailors died in June when the destroyer USS Fitzgerald collided with a container ship off Japan. Two lesser-known incidents occurred earlier in the year.
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2:15 p.m.
The U.S. Navy’s 7th Fleet says more Marine Corps divers are joining the search of flooded compartments in the USS John S. McCain and multinational search efforts at sea are continuing.
Divers have found remains in the McCain, which is docked at Singapore’s naval base, but the Navy has not provided more specific information.
Separately, relatives have named at least five of the 10 missing sailors.
The fleet said the multinational search of seas east of Singapore continues to expand with aircraft and ships from Malaysia, Australia, Indonesia and Singapore deployed Thursday.
It said four sailors who were injured and evacuated by helicopter to a hospital in Singapore were released on Wednesday.
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1:45 p.m.
The U.S. Navy’s 7th Fleet says a body found at sea by Malaysian forces is not one of the sailors missing after a collision between the USS John S. McCain and an oil tanker.
The fleet says in a statement Thursday that the remains were medically examined and will be returned to Malaysian authorities.
Remains have been found in flooded compartments of the McCain. Relatives have named at least five of the missing sailors.
Several navies continue to search seas east of Singapore where the collision happened early Monday.
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The 1:45 p.m. entry has been corrected to show relatives have named at least five of the missing sailors, not that five bodies have been identified.
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