LAKE WACCAMAW, NC (WECT) -
Watching news coverage of the Costa Concordia off of the Italian coast hits too
close to home for some North Carolina residents.
Ben Douglas was aboard the
Concordia in 2008, and he and 4,000 others were on the ship when it wrecked. At
that time, the captain, Francesco Schettino, the same man who was captaining
the boat in the Jan. 13 disaster, was said to have accidentally hit a dock.
Fortunately for Douglas
and others, the experience wasn't as tragic as the crash that happened last
week. Douglas said the damage took about 12 hours to fix, which delayed his arrival in Rome.
Still, for
Donna and Grant Egley, seeing international news stories about the Concordia is
pretty eerie.
Four years ago, the couple was on that
same boat at the same time as Douglas.
The trip was part of an adult course
they were taking at Southeastern Community College in Whiteville.
Over the years, they've always thought
the accident that happened when they were on board was simply arbitrary, and
not a common happening.
However, now, reports and criticism
from recent passengers on the same exact boat claim Capt. Schettino was
reckless when the crash took place, and that has the Egleys reconsidering what
happened on their trip.
As the most recent Concordia tragedy continues to make
headlines, the Egleys say they're praying for the lives lost and are grateful
they lived to talk share their experience.
They also say they hope the
recent incident reminds people how important it is to pay attention when crew
members are discussing safety precautions to passengers.
Copyright 2012 WECT. All rights reserved.
The Costa Concordia in 2008. (Source: Ben Douglas)
Donna and Grant Egley now wonder about the crash they endured in 2008 on the Concordia.
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