Murder Charges in Greek Ferry Tragedy

A T H E N S, Greece, Sept. 28, 2000 -- The captain of a Greek passenger ferry and his three crew members have been charged with multiple counts of murder after their ship sank on Tuesday, killing at least 66 people.

Greek prosecutors want to know why the Samina Express, which was carrying more than 500 people, struck a rocky outcrop marked by a light beacon that could be seen for 7 miles.

Investigators were focusing on reports that the ship was apparently on automatic pilot minutes before the crash, bolstering accounts by survivors that crew members were watching a European Champions League soccer match on television when the ship sank two miles from shore.

A fierce gale has stopped all boat traffic to and from the area, hampering efforts by navy divers and rescue crews to find at least eight missing people.

That number could rise as it is not known exactly how many children under 5 — who did not need a ticket — were on board. Rescue teams said there could be up to 14 missing.

Additional Allegations

Although the ship had just passed an inspection, a prosecutor was investigating accusations the 34-year-old Express Samina had propulsion and steering problems. Described as a “rusting hulk” by the Greek Merchant Marine Mechanics Union, the ferry was to be decommissioned next year.

Survivors have also accused the crew of panicking and failing to organize the evacuation of the ship, saying life boats were not quickly deployed. After the crash, according to some survivors, people panicked and the crew ignored the custom of evacuating women and children first.

Many attributed their rescue to the proximity of the shore, and a small fleet of fishing boats that sped to the sinking vessel.

But a crew member insisted that the evacuation was orderly.

“There was time enough for all of us to get out, including thepeople in the cabins. We got them all out,” StephanosPapadopoulos, a ship’s officer, told Athens’ Antenna television.

The coast guard was also investigating why it took the crew nearly 20 minutes to inform the coast guard that the ship, which was carrying 447 passengers and 64 crew members, was sinking, Coast Guard Chief Andreas Sirigos said.

Crash Causes a Stir

This is Greece’s worst ferry sinking in 35 years, and it has dealt a serious blow to a nation that prides itself on a maritime a tradition dating back more than 2,000 years. In 1965, 217 people died in the sinking of the passenger ship Iraklion.

Premier Costas Simitis held an emergency Cabinet meeting todiscuss the shipwreck. Government officials said no mercy would beshown to those found responsible for the sinking.

“Criminals, a blind course on autopilot” screamed a bannerheadline in the normally staid daily Eleftherotypia. “Murderers,”ran another headline in the daily Eleftheros Typos.

Ship’s captain Vassilis Yannakis, his deputy, AnastasiosPsychoyos, and two crewmen were charged with four felonies,regional prosecutor Dimitrios Dadinopoulos said.

The charges include multiple counts of homicide withpossible malice, causing serious bodily injuries with possiblemalice, violating maritime regulations, violating internationalregulations on avoiding an accident, and sinking a ship, Dadinopoulos said.

Officials plan to transfer the men to the island of Syros, theadministrative capital of the Cyclades island chain, to bequestioned by an investigating magistrate.

Ship’s owner Costas Klironomos also blamed his own crew, saying“all the indications point to human error and that there aremembers of the crew who have shown criminal negligence.”

Initial Reports Bode Ill Results of a preliminary investigation indicated the captain was not on the bridge and that his second in command took the helm when the ship was just 200 yards from the Portes rock outcroppings, which are clearly marked on navigational charts and have a light beaconvisible for seven miles.

According to a transcript published in Eleftherotypia, Psychyos told investigators he saw the rocks at the last minute and ordered the helmsman to turn the ship.

“When I saw the ship was headed for the two rocks, I personally grabbed the wheel and turned hard left. The bad thing happened though. It is my fault,” he was quoted as saying.

But officials say it remains unclear why the ship rammed the rocks if claims are true that at least one crew member, the helmsman, was on the bridge.

“It’s a rock with a light on it … in a frequently traveled area that has been passed thousands of times … my question is, ‘Why did this happen?’” asked Sirigos.

Dealing With the Dead

A funeral service was held on Paros island for one of the dead, port authority official Dimitris Malamas, 43. He died of a heart attack when he heard news of the sinking. Hundreds of islanders gathered in the main cathedral as ships in harbor blew their horns.

Most of the dead were transferred by helicopter to a morgue in Athens, where relatives have been identifying the remains.

The ship left Athens’ port of Piraeus about two hours before sunset on Tuesday afternoon and headed for Paros, the first of six stops that would eventually bring it to the tiny Lipsis islands near the Turkish coast. About 10 p.m., the 345-foot, 4,407-ton ferry rammed into the Portes islet.

There were 72 foreigners on the boat, from Albania, Australia,Belgium, Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, SouthAfrica, Ukraine, and two from the United States.

ABCNEWS’ John Cooley in Athens, Sue Masterman in Vienna, and Lucrezia Cuen in London, ABCNEWS.com’s Ed Mazza, The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.