More shipwreck survivors sue Carnival, Costa

Photo caption: A satellite image captured by Digital Globe of the Costa Concordia, a luxury cruise ship that ran aground in the Tuscan waters off of Giglio.

Reuters reports: Dozens of additional survivors of the Costa Concordia shipwreck off Italy have joined a Florida lawsuit that accuses the ship's owners of gross negligence and fraud, and asks for at least $528 million in damages.

An amended lawsuit was filed yesterday in the state circuit court in Miami against Carnival Corp, which is incorporated in Panama and headquartered in Miami, and several of its subsidiaries, including Florida-based Costa Cruise Lines and Costa Crociere, which is based in Italy and operated the ill-fated ship.

Thirty-three more surviving passengers were added to the six in the original lawsuit filed in January, bringing the total number of plaintiffs to 39.

Carnival declined to comment, saying it does not typically comment on litigation matters.

The lawsuit alleges that the company acted with gross negligence and careless disregard during the cruise that ended on January 13 when the Costa Concordia hit a reef and capsized off the coast of Italy. The ship carried 4,200 passengers and crew, and 32 were killed.

The suit alleges that the crew failed to conduct safety drills, that the ship was off course when it hit the reef, that the captain waited too long before giving the order to evacuate, that the crew performed badly during the evacuation and that the cruise line inflicted emotional distress and failed to provide prompt and adequate aid to survivors.

More here.

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