Tag Archives: Francesco Schettino

Costa Concordia set to be pulled upright

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Costa Concordia set to be pulled upright

By Phil Davies

Costa Concordia set to be pulled uprightA delicate operation to try to pull the shipwrecked Costa Concordia upright is going ahead today.

This morning’s work was delayed by two hours due to an overnight storm.

But the Italian Civil Protection agency said sea and weather conditions were right to start the salvage attempt off the island of Giglio.

Salvage teams are attaching giant metal chains and cables to the ship, which weighs more than 114,000 tonnes and is roughly the length of three football fields.

Head of the operation, Nick Sloane, told AFP news agency that it was now or never for the Costa Concordia, because the hull was gradually weakening and might not survive another winter.

Engineers will try to roll the ship up using cables and the weight of water contained in huge metal boxes welded to the ship’s sides – a process called parbuckling.

Costa Concordia capsized killing 32 people in January 2012 when the vessel hit rocks.

Five people have already been convicted of manslaughter over the disaster, and the ship’s captain, Francesco Schettino, is currently on trial accused of manslaughter and abandoning ship.

Italian judge orders trial for captain of Costa Concordia

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Italian judge orders trial for captain of Costa Concordia

Italian judge orders trial for captain of Costa ConcordiaA judge in Italy has ordered that the captain of the shipwrecked Costa Concordia will stand trial.

Bloomberg reported that the trial of Francesco Schettino will begin on July 9 in Grosseto, Italy.

He faces criminal charges including manslaughter and abandoning the ship before all the 4,200 passengers had been evacuated. 32 people were killed in the disaster.

He is accused of steering the ship too closely to the island as a way of saluting the inhabitants and a veteran captain of the Costa line. Schettino has always denied any wrongdoing, claiming his actions saved lives.

The vessel ran aground near the island of Giglio hours after leaving a port near Rome on January 13 last year.

Last month it emerged Costa Cruises had made a deal with an Italian court to limit its criminal liability for the capsizing of the vessel for a fine of €1 million.

The plea bargain payment means the cruise line will not face any more criminal charges and will now aim to participate in trials as an injured party.

Prosecutors request manslaughter charge against Concordia captain

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Prosecutors request manslaughter charge against Concordia captain

By Phil Davies

Prosecutors request manslaughter charge against Concordia captain Italian prosecutors have formally requested a manslaughter indictment against Costa Concordia captain Francesco Schettino following last year’s disaster in which 32 people died.

Prosecutors in Grosseto, Tuscany, are also seeking the trial of Schettino on charges of causing a shipwreck and abandoning the vessel during the frantic and confused evacuation of passengers and crew.

The prosecutors said Costa Concordia was conducting a publicity stunt off the coast of the island of Giglio on the night of January 13 when the ship ran into a jagged reef, which left a 70-metre-long gash in the hull.

The vessel quickly took on water and capsized, ending up on its side near the island’s port.

Prosecutors also requested the indictment of five other crew members, including two officers who were on the bridge that night.

The proposed charges against them vary, but all are accused of manslaughter, according to theAssociated Press.

Chief prosecutor Francesco Verusio said that after a sophisticated scientific and technological investigation, “the determining cause of the events of the shipwreck, deaths and injuries, is, unfortunately, dramatically due to the human factor”.

Prosecutors said ship owner Costa Crociere has asked for a plea bargain agreement. If accepted, this could see the Italian line pay a €1 million (£877,000) fine. The company has blamed Schettino for the incident.

Schettino has repeatedly claimed it was his clever steering after the collision that allowed the ship to move closer to the port and help save lives. He has also said the reef was not marked on the ship’s navigational charts.