tears and hugs this afternoon former employees of the jane addams hull house say goodbye to each other and to the charitable organization that the of that have worked for decades. employees are sad to be leaping at the same time angry at management how will it was handled at the regular staff did not get the message until this week matter of a few days to why did the program is dow >>, at two rooms upstairs at the offices shows how quickly added that had to be shut down. furniture is scattered everywhere. employees had not given notice until this week giving them hardly at the time to notify the hundreds of families that rely rely on it services hundreds out of a job >> finding out that my insurance they took it out of my payroll no insurance until the end of the month. at another bill and on top of not getting service pay eight weeks of vacation days >> founded 1889 by chicago most famous but let the best jane addams hull house provided all kinds of social services and click foster care job training and domestic violence counseling to tens of thousands of people employees say upset th

one of the boulders, in fact, is now imbedded in the side of the hull. it was an awful harrowing night on the water. a scramble for the lifeboats as it tipped to one side. some knotted together bed sheets. some passengers were forced to jump. thankfully, it was close to shore. in plain english, the costa concordia shouldn't have been anywhere near the rocks. while some didn't make it, some are still missing, a lot of passengers are very lucky to be alive and on dry land. of the 4,200 souls on board, six are dead, 29 still missing. that number includes two americans. we have this story covered from italy tonight. before we get to nbc's harry smith, we begin tonight with michelle kosinski. michelle, good evening. >> reporter: good evening, brian. rescue efforts have been relentless and dangerous. now we know according to the company what caused this disaster was human error. the captain's decision to go off course, bring the ship closer to shore. now there is desperate hope that any of the more than two dozen still missing might yet be found alive. rescuer

it tore a big hole in the hull, the base of the ship.e killed in the accident. thousands of passengers and crew had to be rescued. last hour, we learned italian coast guard divers are checking out the area around and inside the ship. as for the number of missing people, it's unknown if they are missing or if there's a discrepancy in the ship's log. just to bring you up, the passengers didn't know where to go because the cruise just left port. they hadn't done their first drill to know where to go for life rafts in the event of an emergency. >>> it is 44 minutes past the hour. pardons this week in mississippi have legislatures there and other states considering major changes to state law. among the people pardoned by outgoing governor, haley barbour were inmates convicted in killings. a judge halted the release. five already got out. the state found almost all of them, 32 states give the governor full power to do this. eight states, the governor and advisory board share the authority. in ten states, the governor has no hand in granting pa

. >> taking the top spot for the most shocking breakups, kim kardashian and kris hull 40s. she ended her marriage after 72 days. the televised wedding special was one of the most watched ceremonies of the century. the drama continues to unravel on cort any and kym take new york. >> there are more kardashians to keep us entertain in 2012 perhaps. >> keep milking it, i'm sure. >>> coming up, health concerns over the paper towels that you find in a lot of public bathrooms. >> that's an

hull took the test. he didn't take the test. >> with his first line of defense shot down, higgins pivots to explain ziggy's actions. >> richie, how many times have you been up for parole in the last 18 years? >> twice. >> what's happened each of those times? >> they've continued me because of something i've done. >> why would you purposely try to ditch your parole? >> because i'm scared of getting out. >> you've been at the program before? >> yes, sir. >> if you didn't want to make parole, could you say, i don't want to go? >> i don't know if you would understand, but a convict saying that he's not ready to get out, i'd feel like i would be ostracized. >> is that it? >> yes, sir. >> the lieutenant's decision comes swiftly. >> guilty of the charge of refusal, attempt to alter a drug screen, recommend five days penal segregation, assess a fee of $25, $4 fine. recommend a job drop. you want to appeal this? >> yes, sir. >> yes, sir, i don't think the $25 is appropriate. >> i can suspend that. i will suspend

this time, they got very close, too close, scraping that huge hole along the hull. we went out there. frankly, you'd have to be mad to take a ship that size that close to the shore. it's very close indeed. i can't really imagine what they were thinking. there would have been alarms going off on the bridge and visual alarms and navigation screens, telling them to bear away, but they didn't. >> do we know how deep the water is there, dan? >> reporter: well, it's more than 100 meters if you stay outside the rocks, but there is a reef there that comes out from the peninsula there are a string of rocks at the surface. we were in an inflightabatable and you can see the rocks and a huge chunk in the hull of the ship and gives you an idea of the size that ripped the size of a car off still inside the hull. >> from what you know of these situations, is it likely at this point this is just more of a recovery effort than really a rescue effort or could there still be people inside the ship above the water somewhere? >> there still could be people locked into compartments when

you can see the gash in the side of the hull.w far down that one person is to the base of the hull. these are people who have no idea if there are lifeboats anywhere to be seen or if rescuers are going to make it to them. but it is remarkable to see how many of the 4,000 passengers on board that ship were at least able to scramble to the upper side of the hull. >> it's really tough for the relatives, i would imagine, to take a look at that. we have some shocking transcripts showing the conversation between the port authority and the captain. so this is from the italian newspaper. and this is after the captain reports just two to three hundred people are on board. port authority says how come so few people? are you on board? schettino, who is the captain, says no. i'm not on board because the ship is keeling. we have abandoned it. >> port authority says what? you've abandoned the ship? schettino replies no? what? abandoned? i'm here. >> also new this morning, the italian navy is blasting a hole into the hull of the ship to allow s

not enough money to stay open and the association will file for bankruptcy on friday the jane addams hullouse has been around for more than 122 years provedided daycare foster care domestic violence counseling and job-training to about 60,000 people every year employees and clients are now left scrambling to make other plans ... >>just this morning a deal was worked out to transition about 1 1/3 children from to head start programs run by the jane addams hull house to another program >>there will be fewer restaurants at this year's taste of chicago and some will only be around for one day at a time. the taste is being scaled back from 10 days to five and a number of restaurants will drop by about one-third restaurants will still have to fork over $3,000 to operate at the taste festival and they will have to pay the city bigger share of gross sales the biggest change will be the addition of several popup restaurants that will vary each day of that festival it is all part of the mayor's plan to make a taste of chicago more profitable and the final plans for the north grant park reykjavikren

this is the view that one driver had of the gash in the hull.he lead driver told me that tables and chairs were floating around him inside the ship. >> it seemed like a movie. >> many argue it should never have come to this. >> it is under control. please remain calm. >> hundreds of passengers were ready to leave after the ship struck land. the first person to arrive and help with the rescue was the deputy mayor of the island. did you get the impression on board that the officials were in control? >> no, absolutely not. they were unprofessional. >> we headed out to the rocky outcrop the ship hit. the captain says it was not marked on his map. the expert says he should have been further away. what was he thinking? we found police divers gathering evidence and photographs of what prosecutors believe is a crime scene. the ship hit the rocks down there. the captain continued in the same direction doing a big u- turn when he realized he was in trouble. it came to rest where it has now capsized. why so near? last year, the village asked the cruise com

it would lay against the hull of the ship, therefore, not able to be lowered. >> reporter: and in the best conditions, trying to evacuate 4,200 people takes time you may not have. >> that's a lot of people trying to get off in an emergency situation. but if it's done and it's practiced and the crew's well-trained, it can be done. >> reporter: recovery efforts are expected to continue in the morning. but life goes on in these waters. the "costa sarina" set sail today. and it passed by the ship in the start of its journey. >> so many angles to this tragic story. and you can see many of them on the "20/20" hour-long special friday night, "cruise ship confidential." lots of new information emerging from the accident. >>> just ahead, the promise of full medical checkups with just the simple prick of a finger. [ male announcer ] lately, there's been a seismic shift in what passes for common sense. used to be we socked money away and expected it to grow. then the world changed... and the common sense of retirement planning became anything but common. fortunately, td ameritrade's investment c

the impact tore a 160-foot gash in the hull and an eight-day mediterranean cruise turned into what some passengers described as scenes from the movie "titanic." with water pouring in, the costaa "concordia" began to list. the lucas family from girdwood, alaska knew it was time to go. >> when tiffs listing, you thought, there's water coming on board. there's something wrong if it's tipping like that. we went to the high side. that was chaotic. in the hallways, people had lifejackets on. the power was out. ( screaming ). >> reporter: at least they were on the side of the ship where they could get off. but the only way down was a rope ladder. >> people were panicking and yelling and pushing. they wanted to be the first on the life boats. we didn't get on the first life boats and they were gone and there we stood. >> reporter: the ship appears to have struck a reef. some passengers decided their only chance was to jump into the dark, freezing cold sea. mark and his wife, sarah, and brother justin baines were among them. >> the ship started moving very fast so we knew we were going to be und

a loud blast midday was not an accident but the fastest way inside the concordia's hull. this video was shot by divers this afternoon, urgently making their way through holes they punched. then deep inside, the murky silence. friday night was the start of a vacation. they hammer their way through the dim maze of rooms, through 30 feet of water searching for victims. today they found them, four men and a woman beneath the water, all wearing life vests. the number missing, still more than 20 including jerry and barbara from minnesota. their family says they put four kids through college, retired and finally had the means to see the world. beyond excited about their dream mediterranean cruise that lasted only three hours. as the search continued, the ship's captain francessco schettino was in court, charged with manslaughter, causing a wreck and abandoning ship. which an audio recording now reveals, in a heated phone conversation off the ship friday night, a few hours after the accident with furious port authority captain. >> reporter: schettino gives several reasons why he

the impact tore a 160-foot gash in the hull and an eight-day mediterranean cruz turned into what someassengers described as scenes from the titanic. with water pouring in, the costa concordia began to sink. >> there was water coming onboard. there was something wrong if it's tipping like that. so we went to the high side. and that was chaotic in the hallways. people with lifejackets on, the power was out. brct crowd screaming ] >> reporter: at least they were on the side of the life boats, but there was a lot of panic. >> we didn't get on the first life boats, and they were gone, and there we stood. >> reporter: the ship appeared to have struck a reef. some passengers decided their only chance of survival was to jump into the cold sea. these three were among them. >> the ship was moving very fast, so we knew we would be under water quick. there were 200 people that jumped and swam 100 meters to the rocks. >> reporter: >> we had beacons on our life vests that were blinking. we waited and waited. >> reporter: most of the passengers ended up in a nearby port. the operation to bring passe

a boulder still lodged in the ripped hull, the ship now lying on a rocky bed more than 100 feet deep, at an angle, in danger of sliding. an a state of emergency declared over worries that half a million gallons of fuel could be leaking. still emerging video shows how a vacation three hours in deinvolved into a desperate push to escape. >> people were passing out. people were getting nervous. people were having chest pains. i was having chest pains. i was having anxiety because i don't know how to swim. >> reporter: video shows people inching down the exposed hull in the in the dark. costa cruises called this the result of human error, blaming the captain for making an unauthorized decision to steer off course closer to an island. he's also under suspicion of abandoning ship while passengers still scrambled for their lives. and the company said this course change may have all been for show. >> he wanted to show the ship and to nearby this island. and so he decided to change the course of the ship. >> reporter: the captain has defended his being as claiming charts showed a clear route.

a 150-foot gash torn deep into the hull. the ship lying on its side. leaving desperate passengers to swim to safety. tonight we've learned the ship's captain is detained. he's in jail. he faces serious charges, manslaughter and abandoning ship before the passengers were off themselves. tonight the latest toll. 3 dead and 40 unaccounted for. and lamb lama hasan is there th even. >> we're standing on port where many escaped that harrowing ordeal and tonight that underwater search for survivors while it's abandoned because it's too dark and too dangerous but will resume first thing in the morning. now we know there were 126 american vacationers on board. as of now, none have been injured. it was a frantic rescue operation, divers looking for anyone left inside. you can clearly see what they were up against. a gash running 160 feet along the side of the hull. water surging threw the gaping scar. for passengers it was a race against time to escape a scene they describe as utter chaos. >> everybody was screaming, all of the passengers running up and down. >>

this time they got very close, too close, scraping that huge hole along the hull. we went out there. i mean, frankly, you would have to be mad to take a ship that size that close to the shore. it's very close indeed. i just can't really imagine what they were thinking. there wow been alarms going on on the bridge and screens on their navigation screens, telling them to bear away, but they didn't. >> do we know how deep the water is there, dan? >> well, it's more than 100 meters if you stay outside the rocks. but there is a reef there that k078s out from a peninsula. we were out there in an inflatable boat. you can see the rocks. it's not very deep at all. and as i say, you know, there's a huge thunk of rock embedded in the held of the ship. that gives you an idea of the force with which it hit those rocks. it ripped a piece of rock off the size of the car, which is stuck in the hull. >> from what you know of these situation, is it likely at this point that this is just more of a recofferry effort than really a rescue effort? or could there still be people inside th

they were able to blast another small hole into the hull.hey have been going 30 feet under water trying to get to the first officer's room where they suspect they may find bodies of victims. while this is going on, the ship's captain was arraigned on criminal charges -- manslaughter, causing the wreck, abandoning ship. the company said he went off course too close to show the ship off to villagers, many of whom helped save his passengers. after days in jail the concordia's captain gets one in court. accused of causing this disaster, going off course, attempting to deliver the island a great view. this recent video of the concordia shows it had been done before but francesco schettino ended up hitting rock. then turned to beach the ship, the italian press is reporting it may have been a stunt so the head waiter to see his hometown. there is a recording. an angry phone exchange hours after the accident happened. captain, this is an order. get back on that ship. there are already casualties. schettino asked, how many. the port replies, you shou

a 160-foot gash torn deep into the hull. the crippled ship lying almost flat on its side, leaving desperate passengers to swim to safety. tonight we've learned the ship's captain is detained. he's in jail. he faces serious charges, manslaughter and abandoning ship before all of the passengers were off themselves. tonight the latest toll. at least three people known dead. 40 others still unaccounted for. and abc's lama hasan is there in italy. tonight at the scene. good evening. >> reporter: good evening, david. we're standing in the port where many lucky survivors came and tonight a miraculous find. more than 30 hours after the cruise ship ran aground, there was a man and woman found alive, communicating with them but they're not out yet. more than 40 paussengers still unaccounted for. the under water search continues in the morning. as for the 126 american vacationers on board, none have been injured. it was a frantic rescue operation. authorities having to crawl through the listing slip and divers searching underwater sect

crashing into the rocks and tearing a hole 160 feet long in the hull of the ship. new indications today that he might have veered on purpose to show off the impressive ship. the sister of a waiter on the ship posted on facebook -- "in a short period of time, the concordia ship will pass very close. a big greeting to my brother who finally gets to have a holiday." [ screaming ] stunning images from inside the sinking cruise ship show the chaos of terrified passengers scrambling to escape on lifeboats. you can hear the announcements. >> but at this time -- proceed to your -- [ speaking in portuguese ] >> reporter: -- telling passengers it's an electrical problem, to be calm. as the boat capsized, passengers can be seen swinging in lifeboats. some rafts reportedly getting stuck on the side of the ship. >> one of the boats was full of 200 people, went down and caught on the railing and the lifeboat tipped sideways and then fell and swung and everybody was screaming. >> reporter: some passengers ignored crew member instructions by jumping into 100 feet deep waters with

it's what tore a 160-foot gash in its hull. and the ship has come in close before. this amateur video shot a few weeks ago shows it doing what is known locally as sailing by the horn. showing off by coming close and blowing the ship's horn to impress passengers. the c.e.o. of the cruise company blamed the captain. >> we believe it's human error here on the captain. he did not follow the authorized route. ( screaming) >> reporter: when the ship finally ran aground, passengers were frantic. the evacuation drill has never been run. the lucas family from alaska knew they were on their own. >> so we grabbed a few things, mostly our pajamas. >> reporter: they made their way to a lifeboat station. >> people were panicking and yelling and pushing. they wanted to be the first on the lifeboat and we were up close. we didn't get on the first lifeboat and then they were gone and there we stood. >> reporter: the only way down to other life rafts were the rope ladders that are still hanging over the side. >> coming down the latter was definitely the scariest part. we hoped in and

a 150-foot gash torn deep into the hull. the crippled ship lying almost flat on its side, leaving desperate passengers to swim to safety. tonight we've learned the ship's captain is detained. he's in jail. he faces serious charges, manslaughter and abandoning ship before the passengers were off themselves. tonight the latest toll. at least 3 people known dead. 40 others still unaccounted for. and abc's lama hasan is there in italy. good evening. >> reporter: good evening, david. we're standing in the port where many lucky survivors escaped that harrowing ordeal. and tonight that underwater search for survivors while it's abandoned because it's too dark and too dangerous but will resume first thing in the morning. now we know there were 126 american vacationers on board. as of now, none have been injured. it was a frantic rescue operation. authorities having to crawl through the listing slip and divers searching underwater sections for everyone left inside. you can clearly see what they were up against. a gash running 160 fee

. >> in the hull of the boat. we don't know what the cause of this accident was. >> right. obviously, that's a grave concern is a number of people trapped under the hull as you say. we spoke to a woman who was on the boat, on the ship, a short time ago. she said that passengers were actually told to return to their cabins. and it wasn't until what seemed about 45 moneys that they were given the order to abandon ship. were rescue crews able to get there quickly, especially since mayday wasn't issued until after the evacuation began? >> that's right. the italian coast guard confirmed they were not notified until the evacuation process began and one of the dreadful things about this accident is by maritime laws you do not have to have the safety procedure drills, within 24 hours of setting sail. this ship had not yet gone through the safety procedures so a lot of people who weren't accustomed to cruise ships wouldn't know known what to do. but they were not -- from the passengers i talked to, they did not make the call to the muster stations as they're called where you're desi

it's teetering on a ledge in the sea and water in the hull and impact damage and by now, a total losse vessels are taken to be broken down. as remarkable as this looks, nowhere close to that with concordia and knowing whether it can be refloated. tom looked into the dangers and joins me now. >> first, you have to get past the human tragedy. once that happens, the first thing that happens with naval architects, divers, the whole salvage team, they come in here and want to see how much damage was done and if this ship is seaworthy. they must assess the danger of working this close to shore and potentially heavy surf and decide if they can tow it out of these shallow waters and if they can get it afloat again. ant importantly, is it worth it? this is something you have to consider. this is a ship that has enormous fancy rooms in it, casino, restaurants, fancy staterooms, all going on, on board the ship and a question whether they would want to salvage it afterwards because it would be hugely expensive. >> and operating in what's potentially a crime scene. >> that's what makes it complex.

it gauged that massive hole down the port side of a hull. the ship started taking on water. they then came around here and kind of performed a u-turn. and then as we heard from the passengers, there seemed to be quite some time where they initially tried to sort of suggest that it was a sort of technical problem and they were going to fix it. but now we know that water was pouring into the hull and gradually the ship started listing over until it went right over and effectively sort of capsized. and those dramatic scenes as people were scrambling for their lives to get out. >> and so, dan, there have been questions as to whether the captain or someone made the call for that ship to go on the wrong side of the island, that it didn't follow the regular route that this boat takes, some 52 weeks out of the year. >> well, yeah, i mean, that's not clear because we talked to some people here who suggested that, you know, the ship this particular ship did come this side of the island quite regularly but not as close as it did this time, clearly. but it did come past here, that they

some of them just clinging on to the side of the hull for their life.aptain doesn't appear to be fully across the extent of the catastrophe that's unfolded on his ship. if you listen to a part of the conversation, it seems that he's already abandoned the ship, even though there are many, many passengers left behind. it prompted the coast guard to order him to get back on board and to take control. take a listen. >> you go on board. it is in order. you cannot make any other evaluations. you have declared abandoning ships. now i'm in charge. you get on board! is it clear? >> commandant. >> are you not listening to me? >> i'm going. >> call me immediately when you get on board. our rescue is officer there. >> where is your rescue officer? >> my rescue officer is at the stem. go! >> okay. >> there are already bodies, schettino. >> how many dead bodies are there? >> i don't know. i know of one. i've heard of one. you are the one to tell me how many there. christ! >> so, obviously, a very frustrated coast guard there, talking to a captain who appeared a littl

. >>> the ship is tipped on its side almost halfway submerged with a gash in the hull that's longer than half a football field. dan rivers took a boat from the island out to the ship and gives us some of the closest images yet of the destruction. >> reporter: with an open gash running the length of her portside, the costa concordia looks like it's been gutted by a giant fisherman's blade. the cruiseliner is lying forlornly on the shore dwarfing the town behind it. we were taken on a tour of the wreck by a local diver and shown a reef he thinks the costa hit, one he swears is on every chart. >> there's not one rock over here that's not on the chart. >> every rock here is on the chart. >> every one. that's why i think it should be all the pocket should be only that one. >> reporter: he's planning to dive to see if there are traces of paint on the reef from the ship's hull. but the ships a captain, who could face criminal charges h insists he wasn't too close. >> translator: the nautical chart, it was marked just as water at some 100 to 150 meters from the rocks and we were about 300 meters

but the fastest way inside the "concordia's" hull.y divers this afternoon, urgently making their way through holes they punched. then deep inside, the murky silence that friday night was the start of a vacation. they hammer their way through the dim maze of rooms, under 30 feet of water at times, searching for victims. today, they found them. four men and a woman beneath the water, all wearing life vests. the number of missing still more than 20, including jerry and barbara heil from minnesota. their family says they put four kids through college, retired, and finally had the means to see the world. beyond excited about their dream mediterranean cruise that lasted only three hours. as the search continued, the ship's captain, francesco schettino was in court, charged with manslaughter and abandoning the ship. which an audio recording now reveals. in a heated conversation with a furious port authority captain. >> schettino gave several reasons why he says he's staying put near the ship, quote, coordinating. >> reporter: schettino claim

obviously, with such a big hole in its hull. harris. >> harris: those are interesting details coming out of this investigation, it's early, greg, we want to point that out. they found victims, some alive and some survivors, and also some bodies. what are chances of finding more people this that boat? >> well, they've been pretty honest about that. the good news today italian, after 36 hours he had a broken leg and taken out, but quite frankly they're starting to go upped neat the water line and admitting it's going to be very, very difficult as the toll stands right now five dead, 15 unaccounted for, among those 15, two americans. there may be some hope though that they'll find them elsewhere. today there was also a group of japanese who showed up in rome and they took off. didn't tell anyone they had. and hoping some other people may have slipped through the cracks, harris. >> harris: among the stories of confusion and nightmarish details and chaos, there are some stories of heroism tonight? >> yeah, there are. some nice things