Costa Concordia: search operations suspended as 20 still missing

The new head of the operation, who was given an over-arching coordinating role
after the Italian cabinet on Friday declared the capsized ship a state of
emergency, has asked experts to determine whether it might be possible to
carry out the search operation and the fuel removal at the same time.

A scientific and technical committee is expected to give an answer to Franco
Gabrielli, the head of the Civil Protection Authority, on Sunday evening.

Small quantities of light oil and chemicals have started seeping out of the
stricken liner, but officials said that was normal for such a huge vessel.

Its kitchens and laundries contain cooking oil and cleaning products, while
chemicals from its air conditioning system will also be leaking into the
sea.

“We must not forget that on that ship there are oils, solvents, detergents,
everything that a city of 4,000 people needs,” Mr Gabrielli said on
Saturday.

Divers recovered a 12th body from the wreck on Saturday. The victim, a woman,
was wearing a life jacket and was found underwater on deck four, near a
passenger muster station.

Coast guard divers were able to access the area where she was found after navy
frogmen used underwater explosive charges to blast holes in the hull.

The woman was not identified, but among missing female passengers are a
Peruvian bartender and several adult female passengers.

Passengers were trapped inside the ship in the chaotic hour after the ship
tore a hole in its hull, with the captain harshly criticised for issuing a
may-day signal and the order to abandon ship too late.

Police divers, acting on specific orders from prosecutors, retrieved the safe
from the cabin of Capt Francesco Schettino’s cabin, as well as two of his
suitcases, his passport and one of his uniforms.

They believe the safe may contain documents or other evidence which could help
the investigation.

Capt Schettino has been accused of abandoning the liner hours before hundreds
of passengers and crew after it smashed into a rocky outcrop close to the
shore of Giglio, an island off the coast of Tuscany.

Relatives of some of the missing appealed to survivors to come forward with
any information which might help divers pinpoint where to search for bodies.

“We are asking the 4,000 persons who were on board to give any information
they can about any of the persons still missing,” said Alain Litzler, a
Frenchman who is the father of missing passenger Mylene Litzler. “We need
precise information to help the search and rescue teams find them.”

Other relatives were taken close to the beached liner on Saturday in boats and
threw bouquets of flowers into the sea.

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