Tweet
Porto Santo Stefano, Italy (CNN) -- The 3,200 passengers aboard the Costa Concordia cruise liner were enjoying a night of entertainment and relaxation off Italy's Mediterranean coast.
Then, at about dinnertime, the lights went out, an ominous scraping sound moaned through the hull, and the ship tilted to one side.
The 1,500-cabin luxury vessel, which was also carrying about 1,000 crew, ran aground on a rocky sandbar off the tiny island of Giglio.
Chaos overwhelmed passengers and crew alike when, as the ship listed and water rose as if it were a scene from "Titanic," everyone realized that only one side of the ship's lifeboats and rafts were reachable.
Amid screams, no one seemed in charge, and at times, the crew appeared helpless, said one passenger who had to make a ladder of rope to save himself and his wife.
"It was the Marx brothers watching these guys trying to figure out how to work the boat," said Benji Smith, who with his wife, Emily, were on the Concordia for their honeymoon. The couple live in Boston.
"I felt like the disaster itself was manageable," Smith added, referring to the grounding and tilting of the ship, "but I felt like the crew was going to kill us."
The worst part came when a lifeboat crew member told everyone, "Women and children first," Smith said. "All these families who were clinging to each other had to be separated," he added.
After helping passengers, some crew members jumped overboard and swam ashore.
rest here
Then, at about dinnertime, the lights went out, an ominous scraping sound moaned through the hull, and the ship tilted to one side.
The 1,500-cabin luxury vessel, which was also carrying about 1,000 crew, ran aground on a rocky sandbar off the tiny island of Giglio.
Chaos overwhelmed passengers and crew alike when, as the ship listed and water rose as if it were a scene from "Titanic," everyone realized that only one side of the ship's lifeboats and rafts were reachable.
Amid screams, no one seemed in charge, and at times, the crew appeared helpless, said one passenger who had to make a ladder of rope to save himself and his wife.
"It was the Marx brothers watching these guys trying to figure out how to work the boat," said Benji Smith, who with his wife, Emily, were on the Concordia for their honeymoon. The couple live in Boston.
"I felt like the disaster itself was manageable," Smith added, referring to the grounding and tilting of the ship, "but I felt like the crew was going to kill us."
The worst part came when a lifeboat crew member told everyone, "Women and children first," Smith said. "All these families who were clinging to each other had to be separated," he added.
After helping passengers, some crew members jumped overboard and swam ashore.
rest here
seh mi nuh waan go pan nuh cruise as one was being discussed fi dis year....dis confirmeth it 
dem gwine cheap now...
Comment