AmericasOperations

Tote reported to have offered settlements of $500,000 per family of El Faro victims

Tote, owner of the sunken cargo vessel El Faro, has reportedly offered settlement amounts for lost wages of $500,000 each to the families of the crew members lost in the October 1 sinking.

A total of 33 people (28 Americans and 5 Polish citizens) were lost when the Roro ship, en route from Jacksonville, Florida to San Juan, Puerto Rico with a load of cars was caught in the eye of Hurricane Joaquin off the Bahamas. Its final received communications indicated the vessel was without propulsion power.

The main part of the wrecked 790-foot vessel was located on October 31 near Crooked Island at a depth of 15,000 feet.

On Thursday last week (November 5) a judge in the US District Court for the Middle District of Florida set the date of December 21 as the deadline for filing claims against Tote in the El Faro case. In the same ruling damages claims in the case were capped at a maximum of $15.3 million.

Donal Scully

With 28 years experience writing and editing for newspapers in the UK and Hong Kong, Donal is now based in California from where he covers the Americas for Splash as well as ensuring the site is loaded through the Western Hemisphere timezone.
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