Costa Concordia 5 Years On

I am sure most people will remember hearing the news when the Costa Concordia sank.  This January we are 5 years on from this tragedy.  The ship hit an underwater rock and then capsized near Tuscany.  The ship had been carrying 4252 people and unfortunately 32 people drowned when the ship sank.  I can remember it clearly seeing videos and images on the tragedy.  I can’t imagine how these people felt being in this position.  The captain of the ship was sentenced to 16 years in prison for manslaughter.  Francesco Schettino caused outrage for fleeing the ship before all of the passengers had escaped.  He had given false information to the authorities.  He had been sailing too close to shore when they hit the rock.  He claimed that Costa were to blame but this was rejected in court.  The wreck of the ship was removed from the sea last year and now it has finally been dismantled and turned into scrap metal 5 years on.  They have said that about 70% of the wreckage will be recycled.  It was rather expensive to salvage and scrap the ship.  Cruise Lines safety is always the top priority so cruise lines are always working on their safety procedures.  I still can’t believe that this happened and can’t imagine how scary it would have been to be on board the ship.  I have been on a Costa sailing myself  after the disaster and the safety drill wasn’t the easiest I have been through on other ships but this is always down to the different languages on board.  I must say though that I really enjoyed the Costa cruise and the disaster didn’t put me off travelling with them and wouldn’t put me off in the future.  They are really fun ships and the all inclusive drinks package was really worth the money.  Unfortunately disasters do happen but I think that maybe this one could have been prevented.