Ehime Maru and USS Greeneville Collision - Salvage and Recovery

Salvage and Recovery

On 16 February, the USN Supervisor of Salvage and Diving (SUPSALV) and Submarine Development Squadron 5 (SUBDEVRON 5), using the Scorpio remotely piloted underwater vehicle (ROV), located Ehime Maru in 2,000 feet (610 m) of water on the ocean bottom (21°04.95′N 157°49.58′W / 21.0825°N 157.82633°W / 21.0825; -157.82633). Over the next two weeks, the USN used the Scorpio and the Deep Drone ROVs to search the ocean bottom around Ehime Maru for the remains of any of her missing crewmembers, without success.

After assessing the technical feasibility and environmental impact of raising Ehime Maru from the ocean bottom, the U.S. government, in June 2001, decided to proceed with recovering the ship from the ocean floor. The USN contracted the Dutch company Smit International and Crowley Maritime Corp., headquartered in Washington state, to salvage the wreck of Ehime Maru. After consultation between the contractors, representatives from the Japanese government, and U.S. government officials, the decision was made not to raise Ehime Maru all the way to the surface but to lift and carry it underwater to shallow water near Oahu. Once there, divers could enter the ship. The operation would be the first to lift something of that size from such a depth. USN Rear Admiral William Klemm directed the recovery operation.

Using the Phoenix III ROV, contractors, beginning on 20 July 2001, first removed Ehime Maru's mast and other items on the ship's decks that could interfere with the lifting operation. Assisted by technical experts from Japan, including one from the company that built Ehime Maru, the Rockwater II contract diving support vessel prepared the ship for lifting beginning the first week of August. After some difficulty, Ehime Maru was lifted off the ocean floor by Rockwater II on 5 October and slowly moved to a location closer to shore. On 14 October the wreck was set down in 115 ft (35 m) of water one statute mile (1.6 km) south of Honolulu International Airport's reef runway.

On 15 October, the first team of divers from Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit ONE (MDSU ONE) began assessing the sunken vessel. Working in low- to zero-visibility conditions, 66 MDSU ONE and 30 Japanese JMSDF divers from the submarine rescue ship JDS Chihaya conducted 526 dives over 29 days, searching the wreck. Ōnishi, relatives of some of the missing crewmembers, and several Japanese government officials observed the operation from the dive support ships. The divers recovered the bodies of eight of the nine missing crewmembers, many personal effects, and several items unique to the ship, such as its nameplate, bell, anchors, and helm.

After the recovery was complete, on 25 November, Ehime Maru was lifted, towed back out to sea suspended about 90 feet (27 m) below the towing barge, and scuttled in 6,000 feet (1,800 m) of water 12 nautical miles (22 km) south of Barbers Point. The event was witnessed by three of Ehime Maru's victims' families on board Chihaya. The total cost of the salvage operations was about $60 million.