Costa Concordia salvage

In September 2013, the cruise ship Costa Concordia was pried loose from the rocks near Giglio island on which it had run aground off the coast of Italy on Jan. 13, 2012.

Using pulleys and counterweight systems, it took about 18 hours to rotate the ship upright, though it’s not floating yet. The plan is to, in spring 2014, refloat the ship using welded-on flotation devices filled with air and tow it to a scrap yard to disassemble it. 

Thirty-two people lost their lives in the disaster. The captain of the ship is being tried in Italy’s criminal courts for manslaughter, causing a shipwreck and abandoning ship. If found guilty, he faces up to 20 years in prison.