[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 149 (Friday, October 9, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1459]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      HONORING THE CREW OF EL FARO

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. ANDER CRENSHAW

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, October 9, 2015

  Mr. CRENSHAW. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the crew of 
the El Faro, the 790-foot container ship that recently perished in the 
Atlantic during Hurricane Joaquin. We cannot know the heartache that 
their families and friends are facing in the midst of the unanswered 
questions surrounding this maritime disaster. In their time of need, we 
send them strong prayers of support to help ease their pain.
   The 33 crew members aboard the vessel, 18 from Florida, 12 from my 
hometown of Jacksonville, 10 others from cities and towns across 
America, and five Polish nationals, all faced the toughest of odds from 
a Category 4 hurricane. These brave men and women include: Jacksonville 
residents Roosevelt Clark, Brookie Davis, Frank Hamm, Carey Hatch, Jack 
Jackson, Jackie Jones, Jr., Lonnie Jordan, Roan Lightfoot, James 
Porter, Theodore Quammie, Lashawn Rivera and Anthony Thomas. Florida 
residents Louis Champa of Palm Coast, Keith Griffin of Fort Myers, Joe 
Hargrove of Orange Park, Howard Schoenly of Cape Coral, German Solar-
Cortes of Orlando and Mariette Wright of St. Augustine were also 
aboard.
   Sylvester Crawford Jr. of Lawrenceville, Georgia; Michael Davidson 
of Windham, Maine; Michael Holland of North Wilton, Maine; Mitchell 
Kuflik of Brooklyn, New York; Jeffrey Mathias of Kingston, 
Massachusetts; Dylan Meklin of Rockland, Maine; Richard Pusatere of 
Virginia Beach, Virginia; Danielle Randolph of Rockland, Massachusetts; 
Jeremie Riehm of Camden, Delaware; and Steven Shultz of Roan Mountain, 
Tennessee are also mourned as are Piotr Krause, Marcin Nita, Jan 
Podgorski, Andrzej Truszkowski and Rafal Zdobych of Poland.
   As we learn more about their lives we see the experience and 
professionalism they brought to their careers, their love of family and 
the hope they had for the future. May those closest to them take 
comfort from this diverse collection of stories.
   We also take time to recognize the United States Coast Guard, United 
States Navy, United States Air Force and other maritime assets who 
combined forces in the search for the stricken ship and its members. 
They are to be commended for their full commitment and dedication to 
that mission.
   As we move ahead, investigations are underway by the National 
Transportation Safety Board and the Coast Guard to determine what 
happened and how to prevent another such disaster from happening in the 
future. I have no doubt that those answers will come. In the meantime, 
America's maritime community is a tight one and will rally around those 
who need it the most right now--the loved ones of the El Faro crew. We 
stand with them, ready to meet their needs in whatever way we can, 
today and in all of the tomorrows.

                          ____________________