New audio tape of cruise ship disaster emerges

Italian television on Thursday released audio of what they said was the first radio call between the stricken Costa Concordia and the coast guard.

According to Italian media, passengers on board the cruise liner had contacted police on land after the ship began experiencing problems.

In the conversation, the coast guard officer can be heard telling the crew member the police had been alerted by relatives of the passengers and that the passengers had said they had already been told to wear life vests.

“We have a blackout and we are checking the conditions on board,” the crew member can be heard repeating.

Six days after the 114,500 tonne Costa Concordia capsized off the Tuscan coast, hopes of finding anyone alive on the partially submerged hulk have all but disappeared and the cold waters around the ship have become noticeably rougher.

Eleven people are known to have died and 21 people are still unaccounted for out of more than 4,200 passengers and crew aboard when the ship struck a rock just metres from the shoreline, tearing a large gash in the side of the hull.

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