More lives may not have been lost if Consta Concorida cruise ship Captian Francesco Schettino hadn’t waited 73 minutes to sound the cruise ships alarm after running into a rock formation.
Investigators at the crash site on Friday suspended operations as they attempt to determine what delayed the immediate evacuation of the ship which should have been part of normal operating procedures.
According to reports the Concordia was designed to survive a hull breach by filling other hull compartments with water, essentially balancing out the ship and allowing it to stay afloat, however an abrupt turn could shift that water and cause the ship to roll.
Reports state that during the 73 minutes when an evacuation was delayed the ships Captain placed several calls to cruise operator Costa Crociere, a discussion that investigators are still trying to receive information from.
In the meantime an amateur photographer managed to catch a female crew member on the ship urging passengers to stay in their cabins. That crew member goes on to say:
“As soon as we have fixed the electrical problem that we are having, everything will be calm.”
In transcripts obtained from the Coast Guard it turns out ship operators were using the same “electrical problem” excuse to explain the ships problems.
Passengers angry over the company’s handling of the problem have been told that if they want any money from Cost Crociere they will just have to “sue the company” and lawsuits based on recent discoveries are likely what the company will soon face.
Are you surprised by the entire lack of controls that should have been put in place by the cruise operator?