El Faro crew member sent final email to mother
A crew member of the El Faro container ship that went missing last week sent her mother one final, heartbreaking email.
34-year-old Danielle Randolph was the second mate of the ship. Before she and 33 other crew members got caught in Hurricane Joaquin last week, she was able to email her mother Laurie one last time saying, "We are heading straight into it, Category 3, last we checked. Winds are super bad. Love to everyone."
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The boat sank in the Bahamas and over the next few days U.S. Coast Guard officials say they found multiple objects floating within the search area and recovered one unidentified body — but on Wednesday officials called off the search.
SEE ALSO: Coast Guard calls off search for missing crew
Randolph's mother says it was painful to hear the search for her daughter had ended but she also knows just how hard the Coast Guard worked.
She told reporters, "You've got to be strong and believe in God and that was what was designated to happen."
The focus is now shifting to finding the El Faro's voyage data recorder or black box which was attached to the ship's bridge. The NTSB has promised to find that recorder and to find out what went wrong.
People mourn the loss of crew mates on El Faro:
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