Eight casualties retrieved from the stricken vessel
Divers have discovered more bodies in the Costa Concordia, just over a month after it capsized off the coast of Isola del Giglio, Italy.
After an initial morning search on Wednesday only four bodies were recovered, but Italian civil protection officers later confirmed to the BBC that four more bodies had been located in the afternoon from the submerged part of the liner, including that of a five-year old girl.
A total of 32 are said to have been killed on the ship, but at current only 21 bodies have been found.
One Italian diver told AFP news agency, “The bodies are in a state of decomposition after all this time in the water”.
Royal Navy diver, Lieutenant Commander Kevin Stockton, has flown to Rome to join the investigation and offer his advice on recovering bodes from the water.
The captain, Francesco Schettino, is currently under house arrest and being investigated on counts of manslaughter and abandoning ship. Seven more staff have been added to the list to be investigated.
Work has now begun 2,400 tonnes of fuel from the liner’s tanks in an attempt to avert any environmental damage to the surrounding coastline.
