Here's The Ingenious $400 Million Plan To Deal With The Wrecked Costa Concordia (Dial up warning)
In January, the cruise ship Costa Concordia struck a rock of the shore of Isola del Giglio, in the Mediterranean.
30 people on board the largest passenger wreck of all time lost their lives; two are still missing. Nearly a year later, the wreck is still sitting off the Italian coast, mostly submerged.
Because the Costa Concordia is in a nationally protected marine park and coral reef, it must be removed from the area before it can be dismantled, posing countless difficulties.
In a report on the efforts to remove the wreck, 60 Minutes' Leslie Stahl visited the site and recounted the remarkable salvage operation, which has a $400 million price tag.
Not only is it the riskiest, most complicated, and most expensive salvage plan ever undertaken, but no one is sure if it will work.
The ship weighs 60,000 tons and is filled with seawater.
It is sitting on two underwater mountain peaks. 65 percent of it is below the surface.
The wreck is an official crime scene.
The operation, which will cost about $400 million, is being paid for by insurance companies.
The plan is to rotate the ship upright, and onto an underwater platform.
Then it will float up, leaving more of its structure above the surface.
http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/50cf4ce769bedd2b67000001-900/then-it-will-float-up-
And it can be towed away.
Before getting on the inclined ship, workers must take a 4-day mountain climbing course.
See 14 more pictures at: http://www.businessinsider.com/plan-to-salvage-costa-concordia-wreck-2012-12?op=1#ixzz2HqHC3sdw
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