Costa Concordia fuel removal stalled due to rough seas
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Jan. 27: Italian firefighters approach the grounded cruise ship Costa Concordia off the Tuscan island of Giglio, Italy. (AP2012)
Rough seas off Italy's Tuscan coast have forced a delay in the start of the operation to pump out half a million gallons of fuel from the grounded cruise liner Costa Concordia.
The choppy waters also partially dislodged a barge owned by Dutch salvage firm Smit that was hitched to the Concordia's hull to serve as a staging platform for the fuel removal operation.
Smit had intended to start pumping fuel out Saturday amid concerns that a leak could wreak havoc on the protected marine sanctuary. It isn't clear when the operation will now begin.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Paola Pagliara from Italy's civil protection forecast center says weather conditions off the island of Giglio, where the Concordia ran aground Jan. 13, are likely to remain rough through the weekend.