IEyeNews

iLocal News Archives

Missing raised to 29 in Italian cruise disaster

The cruise ship Costa Concordia leans on its side Monday, Jan.16, 2012, after running aground near the tiny Tuscan island of Giglio, Italy, last Friday. The rescue operation was called off mid-afternoon Monday after the Costa Concordia shifted a few inches (centimeters) in rough seas. The fear is that if the ship shifts significantly, some 500,000 gallons of fuel may begin to leak. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

ROME (AP) — Italy’s cruise liner tragedy turned into an environmental crisis Monday, as rough seas battering the stricken mega-ship raised fears that fuel might leak into pristine waters off Tuscany that are part of a protected sanctuary for dolphins, porpoises and whales.

The ship’s Italian operator accused the jailed captain of causing the wreck that left at least six dead and 29 missing, saying he made an “unapproved, unauthorized maneuver” to divert the vessel from its programmed course.

Earlier, authorities had said 16 people were missing. But an Italian Coast Guard official, Marco Brusco, said late Monday that 25 passengers and four crew members were unaccounted for three days after the Costa Concordia struck a reef and capsized off the coast of the tiny island of Giglio.

He didn’t explain the jump, but indicated 10 of the missing are Germans. Two Americans are also among the missing.

Brusco said there was still “a glimmer of hope” there could be survivors on parts of the vast cruise liner that have yet to be searched. The last survivor, a crewman who had broken his leg, was rescued on Sunday.

Rescue operations were suspended for several hours because of the rough seas.

Even before the accident there had been mounting calls from environmentalists to restrict passage of large ships in the area.

LEAVE A RESPONSE

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *