Francesco Schettino, captain of the Italian cruise ship Costa
Concordia, is accused with multiple manslaughter and abandoning his
ship before all of the passengers were evacuated after it crashed on
January 13th. Schettino steered the ship too close to land in an
attempt to do a maneuver known as the “salute,” causing it to crash
into a rock near the Tuscan island of Giglio. The collision caused a
large hole to be made in the hull of the ship, flooding it and causing
it to capsize. Half of the ship now lies underwater, and many are
concerned about the environmental effects of it sinking completely.
Costa Cruises has blamed the crash on Schettino, suspending him and
refusing to pay his legal fees. Costa claims that Schettino delayed
issuing an SOS and evacuating the ship. However, Schettino argues that
Costa told him to do the maneuver for publicity and to please the
tourists on board. He also says that he performs the maneuver
regularly on Costa ships. While officials try to determine who is to
blame for this tragedy, the current death toll has reached 13.
Additionally, the ninth day of search brought the number of passengers
and crew members missing to 21. Sources say that the possibility of
unregistered passengers aboard the ship may raise this number. Only
eight of the dead have been identified so far due to the bodies being
submerged in the water for such an extensive period of time. Four
French, one Italian, one Hungarian, one German, and one Spanish
nationality make up the identified dead. Among the missing are Jerry and
Barbara Heil, a couple from Minnesota. Their family members still
cling to the hope that they will be found soon. This tragic event
caused by a reckless stunt leaves dozens of other families mourning
the loss of their loved ones.
Alexis Brenner
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