Argentine government furious at navy

mar del plata - The Argentinian government only knew after the press had sounded an alarm that the submarine San Juan was missing.

President Mauricio Macri took a hard time yesterday to the Argentinean navy. He initially refused aid from Brazil, Chile and Great Britain in his search for the San Juan. The president announced that he would fire the chief of the navy Marcelo Srur.

Minister of Defense Oscar Aguad only knew 48 hours after the captain of the San Juan had reported that there had been problems aboard the vessel. He also wants to know whether the submarine, which was launched in 1983, was still equipped with its original German batteries.

In the meantime, even the relatives of the 44 crew members have lost hope that their loved ones will still be found alive.

On Thursday it was announced that an explosion had been observed in the area where the submarine was located. Moreover, the vessel, which had given a sign of life ten days ago, only had an oxygen supply for seven days on board.

On Thursday evenings the last relatives left the naval base where they waited for news from their loved ones. 'At the moment I have no hope that they will come back,' said Marias Villareal, the mother of one of the crew members.

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