Italy marks the 10th anniversary of the Costa Concordia cruise ship disaster on Thursday. The day-long commemoration ends with a candlelight vigil marking the moment the ship hit a reef and then capsized off the Tuscan island of Giglio.
The bells rang as a memorial mass began in Giglio Church to honor the 32 people who died in the January 13, 2012 shipwreck. This is the same church that opened and welcomed hundreds of survivors per that freezing night, offering them shelter as they come ashore in lifeboats.
“I invite you to have the courage to look forward,” Bishop of Grosseto Giovanni Roncari told relatives of the dead, survivors and Coast Guard officials who helped coordinate the rescue that night. Hope does not cancel tragedy and pain, but it teaches us to look beyond the present moment without forgetting it. “
In glorious sunshine, survivors and their loved ones then planned to lay a wreath in the water where the towering liner eventually came to rest on its side off the coast of Giglio. Concordia captain Francesco Schettino is serving a 16-year prison sentence for ordering the crew to swerve the ship closer to the island to greet residents. He then delayed an evacuation order and abandoned ship before all passengers and crew were evacuated.
The 10th anniversary also recalls how the people of Giglio took in the 4,200 passengers and crew, giving them food, blankets and a place to rest, then lived with the Concordia’s wreckage for another two years until until it is straightened and evacuated.
These residents warmly welcomed Kevin Rebello, whose brother Russel Rebello, a Concordia waiter, was the last person missing until his remains were discovered during the ship’s dismantling in 2014 at a Genoa shipyard.
Kevin Rebello had become close to many Giglio residents during the months when divers were looking for his brother. On Thursday, as he arrived at the church for the memorial mass, he received an award from the Civil Protection Agency.
“It’s for him,” Kevin Rebello told reporters, holding the plaque. He would be proud of it. “
A commemoration in the context of a pandemic
The anniversary comes as the cruise ship industry, shut down in much of the world for months due to the pandemic, is back in the spotlight as COVID-19 cases threaten passenger safety. . Last month, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warned against taking cruises, regardless of passenger vaccination status, due to infection risks.
For Costa Concordia survivors, COVID-19 infections on cruise ships are just the latest evidence that passenger safety is still not a top priority for the industry. They had been largely left on their own to find functional life jackets and lifeboats after the captain delayed an evacuation order until it was too late. Many lifeboats were unable to lower into the water because the ship was listing too much.
Passenger Ester Percossi recalled being thrown to the ground in the dining room by the initial impact of the reef slashing the hull, which she said looked like “an earthquake”. The lights went out and bottles, glasses and plates were stolen from tables and off the floor.
“We got up and with a lot of effort we went out on deck and there we got the life jackets, the ones we could find, because everyone was snatching them from each other, to save themselves, she remembers. There was no law. Just survival and that’s it. “
Costa Cruises did not respond to emails seeking comment on the anniversary.
Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), the world’s largest cruise industry trade association, stressed in a statement to The Associated Press that the safety of passengers and crew is the industry’s top priority. and that cruising remains one of the safest vacation experiences available.
“Our thoughts continue to be with the victims of the Concordia tragedy and their families on this sad anniversary,” said CLIA, which says it has worked for the past 10 years with the International Maritime Organization and the shipping industry. to “develop a safety culture based on continuous improvement”.