It’s been nearly a year since the Costa Concordia cruise ship struck a rock and sank off the coast of Italy, leaving 32 passengers and crew dead. The captain’s been charged with manslaughter, and now the biggest salvage operation in history—of the largest Italian ship ever built—is under way. And this Friday on the fifth estate, watch the world exclusive, first in-depth television interview with Captain Francesco Schettino, as he tells his version of the story of what happened that fateful night. Bob McKeown sheds new light on the disaster, with black box recordings and never-before-made-public coast guard radio communications, detailing events unfolding on the doomed ship before, during and after the crash.
Costa Concordia: The Captain’s Tale airs on CBC News’ the fifth estate, Friday, Dec. 7 at 9 p.m. (9:30 NT) on CBC-TV.
Why did the captain not tell everyone to immediately abandon ship? Why did he leave the vessel before everyone else was safely off? And how are the Italians dealing with the wrecked Costa Concordia off the Tuscan coast? “We were forced to go. Otherwise we would have died,” says Schettino. On the fifth estate, hear the first-hand account from the captain about why he did what he did, and updates from the scene of the wreckage.
Last season, the fifth estate presented a minute-by-minute reconstruction of The Wreck of the Costa Concordia, featuring first-hand accounts of the disaster along with never-before-seen footage. Now, the fifth estate tells the inside story of how it happened and why so many people died in one of the most shocking marine accidents in modern memory.
In advance of the broadcast, watch Costa: Concordia: The Captain’s Tale online, for review purposes only, by contacting Corey Black (corey.black@cbc.ca) for the link and password. CBC News Network rebroadcasts the fifth estate on Saturdays at 8 p.m. ET and Sundays at 7 p.m. ET. For more information on the fifth estate, visit our website at www.cbc.ca/fifth, join us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. Executive producer of the fifth estate is Jim Williamson.
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For further information, or to request interviews, contact:
Corey Black, News and Current Affairs Publicist, CBC
o) 416-205-8710
c) 647-221-4133
