An amphibious assault vehicle that sank off the coast of San Clemente Island last week during a training exercise has been located, U.S. Marine Corps officials confirmed Tuesday.
An underwater remotely operated video system from the HOS Dominator, a ship that specializes in undersea search and rescue, identified human remains inside the armored vehicle, according to the U.S. Navy’s Undersea Rescue Command.
Navy officials said equipment needed to recover the remains of the seven Marines and a sailor and raise the AAV will be in place at the end of the week.
“A dignified transfer of our Marines and sailor will occur as soon as possible after the conclusion of recovery operations,” officials with 1 Marine Expeditionary Force said in a statement.
The amphibious assault vehicle began taking on water while it was about 1,500 meters off the coast of San Clemente Island near San Diego. It quickly sank to a depth of almost 400 feet, Marine Corps officials said.
The cause of the July 30 incident remains under investigation.
The Commandant of the Marine Corps has suspended waterborne training using the amphibious assault vehicles until the review is complete.
• Mike Glenn can be reached at mglenn@washingtontimes.com.
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