Costa Concordia captain: Crash was "destiny"

In this frame grab taken from video and released by Italian media conglomerate Mediaset on Tuesday, July 10, 2012, Francesco Schettino, the captain of the Costa Concordia cruise ship is seen during an exclusive interview to the "Quinta Colonna" programme that was broadcast, Tuesday, July 10, 2012, on Mediaset Channel 5. / HOEP,AP Photo/Mediaset

(AP) ROME - The captain of the shipwrecked Costa Concordia said in an interview broadcast Tuesday that he was distracted by a phone conversation shortly before the cruise liner crashed into a reef off an Italian island and capsized, killing 32 people.

Francesco Schettino described the collision to private Italian TV channel Canale 5 as a "banal accident" in which "destiny" played a role.

An Italian judge last week lifted Schettino's house arrest order, but said he must remain in his hometown near Naples during a criminal investigation in which he is accused of manslaughter, causing a shipwreck and abandoning the liner while many passengers and crew were still aboard.

Prosecutors have alleged that the Concordia cruised too close to the island in a publicity stunt, and shortly before it rammed the reef Schettino was on the phone with a retired sea captain on Giglio.

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"I blame myself for being distracted," Schettino said when asked about the phone call.

Schettino on Tuesday appeared to want to lessen his role, insisting that another official, and not he, was at the helm of the ship at the moment it rammed the reef.

"At that moment, I went up to the bridge. I ordered the navigation to be manual, and I didn't have the command. The navigation was being directed by a (lower) official," Schettino said

"This is a banal accident in which destiny found space right in the interaction among human beings," Schettino added, apparently referring to the various officials on the bridge involved in the maneuver.

He said that for a captain of a ship, "there is no measure of sorrow" for losing a vessel. However, he said "it's much less" painful than losing a child - a reference to a young Italian girl who was among the dead.

82 Photos

Luxury cruise ship runs aground

A court hearing later this month in Tuscany on evidence in the case, including information from the ship's "black box" data recorder, could shed light on what went wrong and on who or what is to blame, and likely will figure in a judge's decision on whether Schettino should be ordered to stand trial.

Schettino called the events in the accident "complex," saying "everyone has his own truth," about what happened.

In the interview, Schettino again insisted that by guiding the stricken ship to shallower waters near Giglio's port instead of immediately ordering an evacuation he potentially saved lives.

Passengers described a confused and delayed evacuation, with many of the life boats unable to be lowered after the boat listed to one side. Some of the 4,200 aboard jumped into the Mediterranean and swam to the island, while others had to be plucked from the vessel by rescue helicopters hours after the collision.

Some passengers said they were shocked to see that the captain was already ashore when they were being evacuated. Schettino claims he helped direct the evacuation from the island after leaving the ship.

Work has begun to remove the tons of rocky reef embedded into the Concordia's hull, a first step in plans to eventually tow the wreck away from the island.

The whole removal process could take as long as a year.

A small dinghy sails past the stranded Costa Concordia cruise ship near the harbor of Giglio Porto June 25, 2012, in Italy.

/ AFP/Getty Images

[55minus5]

Sleazy excuses.

[bobnjersey]

[An Italian judge last week lifted Schettino's house arrest order, but said he must remain in his hometown near Naples during a criminal investigation in which he is accused of manslaughter, ]
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maybe they can pin this on amanda knox and whatever guy she was seen with just before the ship hit the rocks.

[55minus5]

Bob? Ahem.

[Jim1900]

The Republicans abandoned ship after they wrecked the economy, and now want to direct the rescue effort from shore.

[ralphing]

He has told practically every lie that is possible to tell. What does this make, excuse number 215?

And since when does a captain actually takes the helm? Never. A helmsman does that. You never saw Captain Kirk or Picard every steer or navigate the ship, he gives orders for whatever he needs done. He set the course, and the crew did exactly what he wanted. Talking on the phone had nothing to do with running his ship aground. The ship was steered exactly where he wanted it, which was to its doom.

[enlightenu]

nah, I've seen Picard take the helm in high risk situations. Never saw Kirk do it however.

[TheIrascibleOne]

Well, "Captain" Schitthead, if you want to see how a real man bravely overcomes "destiny" in the service of his fellow humans, do a web-search on Captain Chesley 'Sully' Sullenberger, US Airways and compare your shamefully pathetic performance in the face of adversity with his.

Confronted with a challenge that you could not even comprehend, Captain Sullenberger successfully guided his crippled jetliner to a nearly perfect waterlanding in the NYC river (widely hailed as "The Miracle on the Hudson"). He then stood at his post to direct the evacuation of his passengers and crew. And then alone, through freezing knee-deep water, Captain Sullenberger slogged the entire length of his sinking airliner to ensure that every person had fled to safety.

Then and only then did "Captain Sully" leave his ship. Through his amazing piloting skills, his simple, straight-forward courage and his total devotion to the safety of the human beings entrusted to his care Chesley Sullenberger demonstrated to the entire world that he is truly worthy of the title "Captain".

And you, sir, are not fit to lick his boots.

[Jaylah54200]

The moral of the story: leave the cell phone turned off when driving.

[FormerUSMCSergeant]

Which proves that spineless cowards can make captain....

[imnho]

The primary duties of a ship captain is not to run aground and not to hit another ship. All the other duties are secondary. When that happens then the capain has commited an unpardonable breath of faith

[violist47]

I presume you meant "breach" of faith, and you're absolutely right.

[vissionquest]

His whole attitude shows he was not qualified; "distracted just prior" this accident was set up more than 1/2 an hour previous, the lack of life boat drills, the lack of training of the crew, the lack of protocol. Being a captain does not mean standing at the helm of a ship, it is the responsibility for all aspects of the operation. There is no doubt that the entire crew was poorly trained, and no doubt who was at fault. Where in the story is the girl friend that was on the bridge, where are the charting tracks, where are documentation of what went on that day? This man is guilty of murder by depraved indifference.

[bcaka]

As US President Harry Truman said, "The buck stops here".

Excuses are irrelevant. He was the Captain of the ship, therefore the ship, its crew and passengers, were ultimately his responsibility. End of story.

Loss of life may have been inevitable, but if he had behaved responsibly, he could today be hailed as a hero instead of a jerk.