Rescue work suspended after capsized liner slips in water

Tuesday, 17 January 2012 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

GIGLIO, Italy, Jan 16 (Reuters): Rescue operations on a capsized Italian liner were suspended indefinitely on Monday after the giant ship slipped on its rocky resting place, a firefighters’ spokesman said.

“There was a slippage of nine centimetres vertically and 1.5 centimetres horizontally. We evacuated immediately. This is something we have been worried about,” spokesman Luca Cari said.

“Operations are suspended. We will have to monitor the stability of the ship and we don’t know when we will resume operations,” he said.

The chairman and CEO of Costa Cruises on Monday blamed “human error” by the captain of the capsized cruise ship that ran aground off Italy’s west coast for the accident.

“The company will be close to the captain and will provide him with all the necessary assistance, but we need to acknowledge the facts and we cannot deny human error,” Pier Luigi Foschi told reporters at a press conference in Genoa.