El Faro sinking testimony: Crew did all it could to hold on

FILE- In this undated file photo made available Tuesday, Aug. 9, 2016, by the NTSB shows the voyage data recorder from the El Faro freighter, seen aboard the USNS Apache in the Atlantic Ocean. The recorder was recovered from El Faro, a cargo ship that sank in the Bahamas during Hurricane Joaquin in October 2015. The former chief engineer of the container ship that sank in a hurricane killing 33 sailors said Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2017, that evidence from the ship's "black box" shows a crew working hard to keep it afloat. (NTSB via AP, File) (The Associated Press)

FILE- This undated file image made from a video by the National Transportation Safety Board shows the stern of the sunken ship El Faro. The former chief engineer of the container ship that sank in a hurricane killing 33 sailors said Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2017, that evidence from the ship's "black box" shows a crew working hard to keep it afloat. (National Transportation Safety Board via AP, File) (The Associated Press)

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The former chief engineer of a container ship that sank in a hurricane killing 33 sailors said evidence from the ship's "black box" shows a crew working hard to keep it afloat.

Mark Gay, who served aboard the El Faro years before its final journey, became emotional at times during testimony Wednesday before a U.S. Coast Guard investigative board as he talked about the ship's lost crew.

The El Faro sank Oct. 1, 2015, after losing propulsion in a hurricane while traveling between Jacksonville and San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Crews recovered the ship's voyage data recorder, which recorded audio of conversations as the ship's engines stopped and water flooded its interior.

Gay said he read the transcript and believes the crew tried everything they could to save the ship.