Cruise Ship Sinks Off Coast Of Italy

The Costa Concordia lies partially submerged just off the coast of Italy, after the cruise ship ran aground Friday and flipped on its side with a 160 foot gash in its hull. Over 15 passengers are still missing from the wreck of the cruise ship that was holding over 4,000 passengers. The ship struck rocks of a reef around 10 p.m. local time on Friday the 13^th. In a shocking turn of events, the captain Francesco Schettino, is now under investigation also for manslaughter. He was seen fleeing the luxury liner before passengers were even evacuated or were told what happened, which carries a sentence of up to 12 years in prison. The owner of the cruise ship issued a statement Sunday saying there was “significant human error” on the part of Schettino.

The death toll for the Costa Concordia has increased to five after divers found two men dead and still in their life jackets earlier today. Passengers were not made aware of what made the ship sink until the ship was on its side and submerged. Crew members denied that anything was wrong for 45 minutes, when it was more than obvious what had happened. When it became clear to passengers that the ship was sinking, many didn’t even know evacuation directions or safety destinations. Confusing directions from the crew and no previous evacuation drills delayed the lowering of boats, making it too late to utilize them because of the tipping of the ship. Some waited for help, while others were jumping off the boat into the sea making the ships sinking look like a scene straight from Titanic.