The effort to right, refloat and tow away the gigantic Costa Concordia, the cruise ship that foundered last year off Italy's Giglio Island, has begun. Live streaming of the event, courtesy of The Telegraph, is here
The ship, which is longer and twice as heavy as the Titanic, struck a reef when its captain was not paying attention (and who subsequently fled the ship ahead of almost everybody else).
Night is currently (9 a.m. Pacific Daylight time) descending on Italy's west coast. The Concordia has already shifted considerably, as can be seen by the rusty waterline now visible on the ship's starboard side, now exposed to the air for the first time in more than a year. One hopes floodlights will illuminate the scene once darkness has fallen completely
The ship, once freed, will be towed away and scrapped.