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Navy divers search for 2 missing after cruise ship sinks in Aegean Sea
Published in Saudi Press Agency on 06 - 04 - 2007


Navy divers searched the sunken
wreckage of a cruise ship on Friday for the bodies of a
Frenchman and his daughter who disappeared after the vessel
foundered on a volcanic reef _ the only two people missing
despite what passengers described as a chaotic evacuation
in the Aegean Sea.
Nearly 1,600 people were retrieved from the sinking ship
in a three-hour rescue operation, but some passengers
complained of an insufficient supply of life vests, little
guidance from crew members and being forced into a steep
climb down rope-ladders to safety, according to AP
«The crew members were more scared than we were,» said
Lizbeth Mata, a 15-year-old from the Dominican Republic who
was vacationing with her parents and brother. Mata said
some crew members left before the passengers: «They were
yelling and screaming _ didn't know what to do.»
The 143-meter (469-foot) Sea Diamond struck rocks Thursday
in the sea-filled crater formed by a massive volcanic
eruption 3,500 years ago off the island of Santorini.
Tourists gathered on clifftops to watch the rescue effort
at the reef, which is marked with warning lights and
clearly indicated on navigation charts. The ship sank about
half a kilometer (quarter-mile) off the island's coast, in
waters of uneven depth, a few minutes before it was to
dock.
The ship's operator, Louis Cruise Lines, said the
Frenchman and his teenage daughter were the only passengers
missing, and insisted the 21-year-old vessel had been well
maintained.
«The vessel maintained the highest level of safety
standards and was equipped with the latest navigation
systems,» spokesman Giorgos Stathopoulos said.
The captain and five officers were summoned to appear at a
public prosecutor's office on the island of Naxos to make a
formal declaration of their version of events, which is
standard procedure in such incidents. No charges have yet
been filed, as it remains very early in the investigation.
State-run NET television said that investigators believed
most of the damage to the ship's hull was done before the
captain issued the distress signal, when he was trying to
maneuver the ship away from the rocks.
Earlier, private vessels siphoned oil from the stricken
ship in order to prevent further fuel leakage after a small
oil slick appeared.
«The evacuation was orderly and successful. Every
decision was taken in a way that would not endanger
lives,» Merchant Marine Minister Manolis Kefaloyannis
said.
The missing French passengers were identified as
Jean-Christophe Allain, 45, and his 16-year-old daughter,
Maud, from Doue-la-Fontaine in western France.
Divers inspected the sunken ship in search of their
bodies.
Minister Fanny Palli Petralia, who spoke with Allain's
wife, said the family's cabin filled with water when the
ship struck the reef.
«She was not sure whether her husband and daughter made
it out because things happened so suddenly ... in a few
seconds. Her other child was up on deck and was evacuated
safely.»
Thursday's evacuation was the largest Greek rescue
operation since the September 2000 Express Samina ferry
disaster, which killed 80 people near the holiday island of
Paros when the ferry struck rocks and sank.
«We realized there was a serious problem ... we exited
our cabin and it was tough to be able to walk out of the
ship. A lot of people were very emotional over it, upset,
very frightened,» said Stephen Johnson, a Canadian tourist
who was among the 1,547 passengers and crew rescued.
Passengers on the cruise were mostly American, and also
included groups from Canada and Spain, France and the
Dominican Republic.
Some of those rescued said they had confused the grinding
sound when the ship first hit the rocks with the ship's
dropping anchor. Australian passenger Katie Sumner said the
early stages of the rescue were chaotic.
«We heard a big shudder and then the whole boat started
to tilt,» Sumner said.
«All of our glasses were sliding everywhere and our
warning that the ship was sinking was some of the staff
running down the corridor screaming out 'life jackets' and
banging on doors, so we got no time to, sort of, get ready
or anything, we just left as we were.»
-- SPA


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