"A captain," he wrote, "can take the time required to evaluate the emergency without creating panic. Only he is responsible, first before God, and then before men."

He said that no-one advised him that they were off the ship's predetermined route and it was only when he saw "white foam" to his left that he realised how close to the rocks they were sailing.

"That was the sign that led me to give the order to steer starboard, by pure instinct. In that moment a divine hand no doubt rested upon my head. If I had continued on that path we would have hit the rocks with the bow. It would have been a catastrophe."

"That was the sign that led me to give the order to steer starboard, by pure instinct. In that moment a divine hand no doubt rested upon my head. If I had continued on that path we would have hit the rocks with the bow. It would have been a catastrophe."

B.B.C. Article
Costa Concordia salvage to go ahead
A daring attempt to pull the shipwrecked Costa Concordia upright will go ahead on Monday, Italian officials have confirmed.
The Civil Protection agency said the sea and weather conditions were right for the salvage attempt.
Engineers have never tried to move such a huge ship so close to land.
Thirty-two people died when the cruise ship hit rocks off the Tuscan island of Giglio in January 2012. It has been lying on its side ever since.

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B.B.C. Article
Costa Concordia in Italy freed from rocks
Engineering officials in Italy say they have succeeded in lifting the cruise ship Costa Concordia free of rocks, 20 months after it ran aground.
Efforts to right the ship, one of the largest and most daunting salvage operations ever undertaken, are expected to last up to 12 hours.
The ship has been detached from rocks and moved on to a platform constructed on the sea bed, officials said.
Thirty-two people died when the ship ran aground off the Tuscan coast.
The bodies of two of those killed in the January 2012 disaster, by the island of Giglio, have never been found. There are hopes that they may be located during the operation, although officials said on Monday there was no sign of them so far.
Engineers have never tried to lift such a huge ship - over 951 feet long (290m) - so close to land.
Officials have said the first phase of the salvage operation will take another four to six hours to complete.

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