Channel 4 (UK) Documentaries

Terror at Sea: The Sinking of the Concordia (2012x6)

Air date: Jan 31, 2012

The £400 million cruise ship - which got off to a bad start when the champagne bottle failed to break on its launch - fell prey to the omens when it sank on Friday 13 January 2012 off the Italian coast. This programme pieces together the mistakes that led to the disaster. With a capacity of 3780 passengers and at an impressive 290m long and 31m high, the ship was a palace of the ocean. So how did this boat, hailed as a glorious example of modern technology, sink? And why do some critics say the design of these mega-cruisers is dangerous? These are just some of the questions this programme examines as it tries to understand how, after a century of safety measures and technological advances since the Titanic, a ship with so many passengers can sink. Using CGI and testimonial, it recreates a minute-by-minute account of the timeline to tragedy, featuring exclusive interviews with survivors, rescuers and world-renowned experts.