(Image Source: CNN)
BY CHRISTINA HARTMAN
Critics are calling him Captain Coward.
Investigators say newly-released audio suggests the captain of a wrecked Italian cruise ship fled before all his passengers made it off the ship.
The Telegraph has the audio. You can hear an Italian Coast Guard Commander ordering Captain Francesco Schettino to get back on the ship.
Captain Schettino is heard resisting the order, saying he was coordinating rescue efforts from a lifeboat. And according to multiple reports Coast Guard officials don’t think he ever did go back to the ship. The ladies of CBS’ “The Talk” are none too impressed, handing down this verdict:
“Italian men are lovers, not fighters. A wimp. You spineless man. I feel like he should be tried for murder. (He should be!)”
The Associated Press reports Schettino has worked for the owner of the ship for the last 11 years. But according to Inside Edition, passengers say the behavior on board the ship was unprofessional even before the incident.
“Crewmembers dance and sing with passengers. It’s one giant party at sea. According to reports the married captain was wining and dining a female companion when the ship hit the rocky reef. As he was sinking, he demanded drinks and dessert for his date.”
According to Bloomberg, Schettino could face manslaughter and charges for abandoning ship. On Tuesday a judge is expected to decide whether he should stay in jail. WRC reports the latest.
“His attorney says he saved hundreds if not thousands of lives. Meanwhile today, crews found five more victims on that sinking shift. 11 people are now confirmed dead.”
And The BBC has more on his defense.
“...during a court hearing on Tuesday, the captain said he could not get on board the vessel because it was lying on its side. He argued that after hitting rocks he had executed a difficult manoeuvre that had saved many people's lives.”
The chairman of Costa Cruises has apologized for the tragedy. The criminal investigation is ongoing. (SOC)
