The Costa Concordia has finally been dismantled for scrap five years after it tragically sank, killing 32 people.
The ship hit an underwater rock in January 2012 and capsized in Isola del Giglio, near Tuscany.
The vessel had been carrying 4,252 people and 32 of these tragically drowned when the ship sank. The captain of the ship Francesco Schettino was then sentenced to 16 tears in jail for manslaughter. He had caused outrage as he fled the ship before all of the passengers had escaped safely.
His sentence was increased due to the fact he had given false information to the port authorities. The ship had hit the rocks because he was steering the ship too close to shore in order to impress a friend.
The disaster was the worst maritime incident for Italy since the Second World War.
Captain Schettino later appealed his sentence and claimed that Costa was itself to blame, but this was rejected in court.
The wreck of the ship was removed from the sea last year and has now finally been turned into scrap metal in the port of Genoa.
It’s been said that roughly 70 per cent of the 144,500 tonne wreckage will be recycled during these efforts. It will cost up to £1.2 billion to salvage and scrap the ship meaning that it is one of the most expensive maritime wrecks in history.
Since the disaster, cruise lines have worked to make safety procedures clearer and 73% of guests now think cruising is safer (which you can read about here.) You can also read our timeline about the Costa Concordia tragedy here.
What do you think of the news? Do you think they should have removed and scrapped the wreckage sooner? Did this tragedy affect the way that you cruise? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below…
