story here

MOSCOW, Russia (CNN) -- A Russian official said Friday that seven Russian sailors trapped on the Pacific Ocean floor in their deep-sea diving vessel had enough air to last 24 hours, and the government has asked for rescue help from the United States and Japan.

Igor Dygalo, a Russian navy spokesman, made his remarks about the oxygen running out at 2 p.m. Moscow time (6 a.m. EDT).

He made the remarks as efforts were under way to rescue the sailors after their craft became snagged by a fishing net and some sort of cable.

The vessel, called a bathyscaphe -- a kind of mini-submarine -- was at a depth of some 190 meters (623 feet) in the Berezovaya Bay, about 70 kilometers (43 miles) from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Russian news agencies reported.

A camera sent down in the water shows that during a dive, the vessel's propeller became stuck in a fishing net, snagging further when the crew tried to free it, said Dygalo. Some kind of cable or wire was also involved, he said.

Russia has requested a vessel from Japan, he said. It was en route to the scene, along with a Russian vessel.

An official from U.S. Pacific Command said Russia asked the United States to assess what resources it would have available for a rescue.

Military officials are trying to figure out the best way to rescue the crewmen, who cannot leave the vessel because of its depth, Dygalo said.

Dygalo has said crew members have enough food and water for five days.

CNN Producer Nastya Anashkina contributed to this story


------------------------------------------


They neglected to mention that although 5 days of supplies left, onl 24 hours of air.



Although, I must say, the real reason I posted this is the following:


WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Navy has published the first photographs of the damaged nuclear attack submarine USS San Francisco now in dry dock in Guam.

The submarine's front end was severely damaged when the submarine struck an undersea mountain 350 miles south of Guam on January 8.

Machinist Mate 2nd Class Joseph Allen Ashley, 24, of Akron, Ohio, died of injuries suffered in the accident, which occurred when the submarine was en route to Brisbane, Australia.

A Navy official said the submarine went into dry dock on January 26.

Divers cut off the sonar dome from the front end beforehand because it was "hanging," the official said, but otherwise the damage visible on the submarine occurred in the accident.

The pictures show extensive damage to the outer hull of the vessel, whose front end was virtually destroyed.

The inner hull was not penetrated.

The pictures also show a blue tarp covering classified equipment at the sub's front end.

The Navy official said it now appears the undersea mountain was not on the navigation charts the crew was using.

The incident remains under investigation, and the commander has been reassigned pending the outcome of that inquiry.

The Associated Press reported last week that Cmdr. Kevin Mooney was reassigned to a unit in Guam pending the completion of the investigation, citing a statement from the U.S. 7th Fleet.

The USS San Francisco carried a crew of 137, 60 of whom were injured in the accident.








and in followup......


WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The captain of a U.S. submarine that hit an undersea mountain last month in the western Pacific, killing one sailor and injuring 23 others, will be relieved of command, Pentagon officials said Friday.

Navy Cmdr. Kevin Mooney will not be charged with any crime and will not be court-martialed.

He received a nonjudicial punishment, most likely in the form of a letter of reprimand from his commander, this week, officials said. Such punishment typically ends an officer's career.

Mooney was reassigned pending an investigation after the severely damaged the USS San Francisco returned to its home port in Guam. Details of the investigation were not available.

Machinist's Mate 2nd Class Joseph Allen Ashley, 24, of Akron, Ohio, died of injuries suffered in the accident, which occurred when the attack submarine was en route to Brisbane, Australia.

The nuclear-powered submarine's bow was severely damaged when the submarine struck an undersea mountain 350 miles south of Guam on January 8 while traveling at a high speed.

In late January, a Navy official said it appeared the mountain was not on the navigation charts the crew was using.

Although the outer hull was ripped open, the inner hull was not compromised, and water did not get into the working and living quarters.

The USS San Francisco carried a crew of 137.

CNN's Barbara Starr contributed to this report.