Ferry-Drowning Toll: 21 Navy Men -- Search For Missing Man Ends

HAIFA, Israel - Divers today abandoned the search for the last of 21 men who drowned in the sinking of a ferry carrying servicemen on shore leave back to the aircraft carrier Saratoga.

The U.S. Embassy said it was assumed the body would eventually wash ashore. The missing man was identified as Aviation Ordinanceman 3rd Class Anthony J. Fleming, 25, of Buffalo, N.Y.

Ferry service to the Saratoga was suspended after the only available ferry snarled its propeller in a cable early today, the embassy said. With only a limited number of helicopters available for shuttle service, many of the Saratoga's crew who had gone on shore leave were to spend Christmas on land instead of returning to the carrier.

Crewmen bade a tearful farewell to their 21 comrades at a service yesterday aboard the Saratoga. The dead were symbolized by rows of sailors' caps and a petty officer's hat on a table.

``There are no words that can express the heartfelt sorrow of this entire 5,000-man ship,'' said the skipper, Capt. Joseph Mobley.

Among the 1,200 mourners were many of the 81 survivors of the chartered Israeli ferry Tuvia, which capsized and sank Saturday as it carried 102 Saratoga crewmen back from shore leave.

Mobley told reporters that the Navy concluded with ``utmost confidence'' that Fleming had died. ``He was definitely on the ferry at the time of the accident; he was definitely not rescued,'' he said.

Nineteen bodies were recovered Saturday, including six pulled by Israeli divers from the sunken two-deck ferry. Another body was found yesterday.

At the memorial service in one of the Saratoga's huge hangars, men wiped away tears as a choir sang ``America the Beautiful'' and the Navy hymn ``Eternal Father.''

Two sailors dropped a wreath into the Mediterranean in honor of the victims, and a detachment of seven Marines fired a 21-gun salute in three rifle salvos.

``We have suffered a very great tragedy. Every man on this mighty ship has had his heart in his throat, tears in his eyes and a knot in his stomach since that event,'' Mobley said.

The Saratoga and its escort ships had come from the Red Sea where they joined in the naval buildup in the Persian Gulf.

Survivors said water was washing into the 57-foot ferry from waves when it was swamped by two huge swells about 200 yards from the Saratoga. Israeli officials said too many men were in the back of the craft.