Princess Chatter

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/interactive-graphics/9018076/Concordia-How-the-disaster-unfolded.html

"A British woman has told how she escaped the Costa Concordia after it ran aground, and lost her husband's ashes in the struggle to a lifeboat.

Sandra Rodgers, formerly of Flintshire, was separated from her daughter and twin granddaughters in the "completely chaotic" rush to leave the cruise ship.

She had planned to scatter the ashes of her husband Barry at Monaco."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-north-east-wales-16648829

"As passengers who escaped from the listing vessel prepared legal action against Costa Crociere, one British passenger said she was suing after losing the ashes of her late husband during the evacuation.

Sandra Rodgers, 62, said she had been planning to scatter the ashes of her husband, Barry, when the cruise reached Monaco because he had dreamed of seeing the Monaco Grand Prix."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/jan/20/call-costa-concordia-chained-down?newsfeed=true

"Italian prosecutors allege the captain, who is married, may have been distracted from his duties by trying to impress the dancer.

An Italian passenger claimed he witnessed the captain enjoying a dinner of prawn cocktail, shrimp pasta and grilled fish, accompanied with a decanter of red wine, in the ship's finest restaurant, the Concordia Club, on the night of the disaster.

Passenger Angelo Fabbri said: "Schettino, in a dark suit, was sitting in front of the woman. She seemed young. At first, we thought it was his daughter.

"A pretty woman, 35 or 40 years old, slim, with shoulder-length blonde hair, with a black dress with open arms.

"They were laughing. There was trust ... great happiness. There is no doubt they were drinking at least a whole decanter. The last drop was poured into the captain's glass.

Capt Schettino this week told a magistrate he was a non-drinker."

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/world/speculation-swirls-around-mystery-woman-reportedly-seen-with-captain-of-doomed-ship/story-e6frf7lf-1226249788351



“[Capt. Schettino] is one of the best captains in the company. He is very skillful and experienced when it comes to manoeuvring the ship in enclosed spaces, like harbours,” Ms. Cemortan told the Telegraph."

http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/01/20/costa-concordia-captain-cried-like-a-baby-after-the-crash-rescue-operations-suspended-amid-choppy-seas/

"An abrupt turn, though, could cause water in the compartments, which often transect the hull, to shift to one side, potentially causing a vessel of that size to roll, the naval engineer said, emphasizing it was too early to determine what caused the Concordia to list. The engineer said the 70-meter gash in the hull could have compromised three compartments, enough to have potentially sunk the ship.

Mr. Schettino has also said he lowered the ship's anchors as part of his efforts to get the ship closer to shore. Prosecutors have ordered police divers to inspect the anchors to determine their position and possibly corroborate this narrative, people familiar with the matter said.

As water rushed in, Mr. Schettino had at least three phone calls with Costa Crociere officials in the port city of Genoa, including Roberto Ferrarini, the company's head of marine operations, said people familiar with the investigation. It wasn't clear what was discussed or who placed the calls."

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204616504577172531834270956.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

"Domnica Cemortan told Moldovan TV: “I was with (Capt. Francesco) Schettino. I saw that the captain lost his temper. There were two hours of hell.”

http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/1117928--concordia-captain-with-dancer-on-bridge-as-cruise-ship-hit-rocks

"The Costa Concordia cruise ship that ran aground on Italy’s Giglio island is at “high risk” of sinking, threatening Europe’s biggest marine park as a storm heads toward the area.

“It very much depends on the change in weather conditions,” Environment Minister Corrado Clini said in Parliament in Rome. The government plans to declare a state of emergency for the area at a Cabinet meeting tomorrow, as well as approve a measure that would restrict cruise ships from access to sensitive coastal regions."

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-01-19/concordia-at-high-risk-of-sinking-italian-minister-says.html