Tote Maritime has been hit by a third lawsuit in the wake of the October 1 sinking of the El Faro. Addreisha Jones, the wife of 38-year-old missing crewmember Jacki Jones Junior, claims the owner failed to maintain the boxship and negligently sent it out to sea as Hurricane Joaquin approached.
The claim says that the ship had faulty electrical systems, corroded steel and defective satellite equipment, and so the ship was in violation of both the Death on the High Seas Act and the Jones Act. The suit also claims that the ship was regularly overloaded.
Two other suits have been filed including one seeking $100m in damages. A total of 33 men are thought to have lost their lives when the ship went down off the Bahamas. The US Navy is still trying to locate the ship.
