The captain of a luxury Italian cruise ship is being blamed for the accident that capsized the boat, killing at least five passengers, hurting more than 60 others, and leaving more than a dozen still missing.
Francesco Schettino has been arrested on charges of manslaughter and abandoning ship before his vessel, the Costa Concordia, was evacuated Friday night, and Sunday his employer pointed the finger at him, as well. Costa Crociere put out a statement saying that Schettino had made “serious errors of judgment,” by taking the cruise ship too near shore, according to Reuters. The boat hit a large rock, which tore a hole in its side.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/16/us-italy-ship-idUSTRE80D08220120116
Many media reports have compared the tragic accident to the sinking of the Titanic a century ago. Passengers on the Italian ship were eating dinner when it struck the rock, setting off a not very pleasant scene of panic off the west coast of Italy. Evacuation protocols weren’t used. Passengers accused the crew of hogging the lifeboats. There were fights over life preservers.
In some good news, a member of the crew and a honeymooning South Korean couple were rescued Sunday, Reuters reported. But the bodies of two older men, in life jackets, were also discovered.
And worse of all, 11 passengers and six crew members remain missing, according to Reuters.
The ship, which has more than 4,200 passengers — including 126 Americans — remained partially submerged and lying on its side in the port of Giglio, off the coast of Tuscany.