Four days after the initial crash, the search for survivors of the Costa Concordia tragedy remains ongoing. On Tuesday, January 17, divers were able to find five more bodies (four men and one woman), which raised the official death toll to eleven. This, however, leaves twenty-four more people who are still unaccounted for – a tragedy that has affected all nationalities as before the five bodies were found, there were fourteen German, five Italian, four French and two American passengers missing, as well as the four crewmembers from Hungary, India, Italy and Peru.
Early Tuesday, rescue teams were able to blast four holes in the side of the ship, allowing them more access to previously unsearched areas. According to the spokesman for the Coast Guard, Filippo Marini (as told to Sky TV 24), "The hope is that the ship is empty and that the people are somewhere else, or if they are inside that they found a safe place to await rescue."
As far as the fate of Capt. Francesco Schettino, the criminal process is ongoing and he has since been placed under house arrest after three hours of interrogation by prosecutors on Tuesday. A judge in Grosseto has since ruled that the captain is to be confined to his home near Naples. This decision arrived with the release of the transcript that occurred between the captain and Italian Coast Guard Capt. Gregorio De Falco.
To listen to the entire conversation, please click here.
In the conversation, Schettino indicated that he had left the ship before all passengers had been evacuated. When Falco ordered him back onto the ship, he initially resisted – arguing that the ship was listing and that it was too dark for him to get back on. At one point, he stated he was coordinating the rescue from lifeboats.
Falco began to get agitated and shout, demanding "And so what? You want to go home, Schettino? It is dark and you want to go home? Get on that prow of the boat using the pilot ladder and tell me what can be done, how many people there are and what their needs are. Now!" Schettino appeared to consent at this point, but it was determined that he never re-boarded the ship and was arrested on land.
For many, the worst part of the Costa Concordia tragedy is the negligence and carelessness that caused it. Allegedly, it has been determined that the reason that ship was so near the coast was because the captain had made the unauthorized decision as a favor to the restaurant boss, Antonello Tievoli, on the ship so that his family on the island could see the ship passing. Tievoli's sister had even posted Facebook statuses about the event.
This led to the ship hitting submerged rock which led to the cruise liner running aground. Many are now reporting that there was even a mutiny amongst second officers who struggled to get passengers aboard rescue vessels before the official orders to evacuate were given by the captain. Not only has this led to lost lives, but experts and analysts are stating it will take up to a month for the almost two million liters of fuel to be safely removed from the ship – a high priority considering that the ship rests in what is considered to be an official maritime sanctuary.
For those who are looking to learn more about the accident or how maritime law could affect their ability to file a claim following this
cruise ship accident, no time should be wasted in contacting a
maritime attorney from Arnold & Itkin LLP. Since being established in 2004, we have been successful in recovering hundreds of millions of dollars on behalf of our clients; $250 million recovered in 2011 alone. We know that when you are attempting to file a claim following a tragedy of this magnitude, you don't just need an attorney – you need an advocate. We are here to be that for you as we fight for your rights.
Contact an offshore injury lawyer from our firm today to learn more about how we can help.
