Transcript for Captain says he gave warning before deadly ship crash

look at that danger. Thank you. Overseas now, that deadly collision involving a U.S. Navy ship off the coast of Japan. The captain report tli saying he tried to give warning, but the "Uss Fitzgerald" failed to respond. ABC's gio Benitez with the latest report. Reporter: Tonight in what may be the first account of the collision that claimed seven American lives attributed to the captain of the cargo ship that struck it. Reuters reporting the skipper told ship's owners that he flashed lights to signal the "Uss Fitzgerald" before the crash. And that he says the destroyer failed to take evasive action, suddenly veering into the ship' S path. There is negligence involved. Two ships are not supposed to hit each other, and if both ships follow the rules the way they are supposed to be followed, they simply will not impact each other. Reporter: ABC news has not independently confirmed Reuter's report of the captain's account. And the Navy tonight is not commenting while it investigates why the ship slammed into the side of the uss Fitzgerald. Slicing through the destroyer's berths where over 100 sailors were sleeping. The crew scrambling to save the ship -- sealing off the flooded area so the ship didn't sink. And Japanese investigators are analyzing the black box from that cargo shippi, looking for evidence showing what may have caused that collision, Tom. Gio Benitez with that new report tonight. Gio, thank you.

This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.