Two Survivors Rescued From Grounded Cruise Ship.Porto Santo Stefano, Italy (AP) - Rescuers have found a young married couple trapped inside a cruise ship with more than 24 hours after it ran aground off a picturesque Italian island, killing three people, injuring 20 and leaving dozens missing.South Korean passengers, 29 each, the researchers heard screaming on the Costa Concordia, Italy ANSA news agency reported early Sunday. They were located in a cab and taken ashore. Shown the video taken to an ambulance waiting.
The ship's captain cursed, which was on its side after the grounding, was arrested Saturday night and was being considered for abandonment and manslaughter, said a local prosecutor.
With perhaps as many as 50 people missing, divers suspended their efforts to dark, with plans to resume the search in the azure waters of the island of Giglio, at the dawn of Sunday.
Accounts of the chaos of the 3200 passengers were more reminiscent of a maritime disaster 100 years ago this April - the loss of RMS Titanic.
"For me, the worst part of the whole ordeal" was when a crew rescue said to those boarding it was "women and children first," said passenger Benji Smith, of Boston.
Francesco Schettino, captain of the Costa Concordia, is taken into custody Saturday.
Francesco Schettino, captain of the Costa Concordia, is taken into custody Saturday.
"All these families who clung to each other had to be separated," Smith told CNN.
Some passengers fell into the cold water during the rescue, ANSA reported.
Questions abound: Why the huge ship was so close to the shore? How long was it moving? The extent to which crew members react? According to many passengers, the evacuation was disorganized and no one seemed to care.
"Every crew member who passed shouted instructions, but the instructions contradicted each other," said Smith.
Captain of Concordia University, Francesco Schettino, was interviewed earlier on Saturday what happened when the vessel struck rocks in shallow water off the evening in Italy Friday west coast, said the agent Emilio Del Santo coastal authorities of Livorno. Local fishermen say the coast of the island of Giglio is known for its rocky seabed.
Schettino said, "That rock was not indicated on the map," according to ANSA. "Me and the crew, we were the last to abandon ship," he said.
The ship was 2.5 miles of the road when it struck the rocky sand.
"There are rocks, they are on the cards," said Capt. Cosimo Nicastro of the Italian Coast Guard. "What we do know is that the vessel was very close to the rocks. ... We do not know why. "
The ship began taking on water Friday night and the crew continued because they believed the ship could not normally keep sailing, Nicastro said. Realizing there was a significant safety issue, the commander led the Costa Concordia closer to the port.
The authorities were also looking at why the boat did not hail a mayday in the accident.
"At the moment we cannot exclude that the ship was some sort of technical problem, and therefore moved to the side to save the passengers, crew and vessel. But they did not send a message distress. The ship has come in contact with us after the evacuation procedures were already underway, "said Del Santo before the announcement of the arrest of the captain.
Giuseppe Orsini, a spokesman for local civil protection agency said 43 to 51 people were missing, but authorities consider passenger lists to confirm the exact number.
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"These people could be still on the island of Giglio, in private homes or in hospitals," said Orsini.
Two French tourists and a crew member were killed in Peru, the port of Leghorn said. One victim was a woman of 65 who died of a heart attack, officials said.
Nautilus International, a maritime employee union, called the incident a "wake-up call" to regulators.
"Nautilus is concerned about the recent rapid increase in the size of passenger ships - with the average tonnage to double over the past decade," said the general secretary Mark Dickinson of Nautilus in a statement. "Many ships are now effectively small cities at sea, and the large number of persons on board raises serious questions about the evacuation."
Gianni Onorato, President of Genoa-based Costa Cruises, expressed "regret for the terrible tragedy" but said the cruise was unable to answer any questions that the authorities are investigating.
The ship, plying the waters of Civitavecchia in Savona, Italy, struck a submerged rock, Onorato said in a statement before the announcement of the arrest of the captain.
"Captain Schettino, who was on deck at the time, immediately understood the gravity of the situation and began a maneuver, designed to protect customers and crew members, and launched security procedures to prepare a possible evacuation of the ship, "he said." Unfortunately, this operation was complicated by a sudden tilting of the ship that made the landing difficult, "said Onorato.
Rosalyn Rincon, a staff member of the cruise ship, said the captain told the passengers there was an "electrical problem".
Concordia was carrying about 3200 passengers and 1000 crew members when it went aground.
"I'm not surprised that it (the ship) would end up switching like this," said Neil Gallagher, a professor of naval architecture at Webb Institute on Long Island, New York. "Something had to go wrong with either controls or navigation to get to this condition.”
Chris B. McKesson, assistant professor of naval architecture at the School of Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering at the University of New Orleans, said, "From the size of the cut, it must have been steamed at a rate good enough. "
The fear and panic on board the vessel constrained
Panic spread as people scrambled to find the lifeboats in the dark as soon as the ship heeled to one side Friday night. Access to some of the lifeboats was hampered by the tilt of the ship in the water.
With stairs flooded the ship, Smith and others have made rope ladders to climb on the bridge outside the fourth to the third. They were eventually rescued more than three hours later by a lifeboat that had returned from falling down passengers.
At least three lifeboats, each with a capacity of over 100 people, apparently malfunctioned due to a technical error or crew, said Smith. "Those who held these boats were just cooks and merchants," said Smith.
Cmdr. Buddy Reams, head of the U.S. Coast Guard Cruise Ship National Center of Expertise, said, "when it comes to cruise ships, emergency cabin stewards, or other security roles have" , he said.
The Coast Guard inspects cruise ships flying foreign flags in U.S. waters twice a year, the study of the competence of the crew during the fire and abandon ship drills, Rames said.
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Many passengers have asked why they had not yet received a safety briefing required when the disaster struck for lunch, just hours into their journey. The schedule of briefings and exercises safety mobilize depend on the length of the cruise, Rames told CNN.
Many people assisted in the early hours were taken to the small churches and other buildings around the island to safety. Some were still wearing pajamas and slippers they had on the ship sank.
Vivian Shafer, a passenger of Maryland, told CNN that there was no initial announcement after the ship began tilting. Others have reported being unable to clearly hear the instructions.
Once ashore, the crew not helped, said Shafer. Rather, it was up island.
"He did not seem to be someone in charge," she said.
Costa Cruises, owned by parent company Carnival Corp., said it was focusing on the final stages of the emergency operation and help the passengers and crew return.
"It's a tragedy that deeply affects our society. Our first thoughts are with the victims and we express our condolences and our proximity to their families and friends," the line on its website.
The Concordia, built in 2006, was on a Mediterranean cruise from Rome with stops in Savona, Marseille, Barcelona, Palma de Mallorca, Cagliari and Palermo.
Most of the passengers were Italian. CNN affiliate Noticias America, Peru, said a group of 32 Peruvians were also on board. Brazilian state-run Agencia Brasil said 53 Brazilians were on the cruise ship. An estimated 126 Americans were also on board, according to the U.S. State Department. There were no reports of American casualties if the U.S. embassy in Rome said he was unable to account for all U.S. citizens believed to be aboard the vessel at the time of the accident.
Another Costa ship was involved in a fatal accident in 2010 when the Costa Europa hit a pier in Sharm el-Sheikh Egypt in stormy weather, killing three crew members.
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