Within the context of preparation of the vessel for the safe entry of the court appointed surveyors and the technical experts on 11 and 12 June 2015, the process of unlocking the stern doors/ramps of the vessel has now been finalized and the stern garage doors are now open.

Lawyers from our office are since 21/05/2015 in Bari, Italy and attend, on behalf of the passengers and families of missing passengers of NORMAN ATLANTIC represented by our office, the process of official appointment of the technical experts of the Italian investigation authorities who will perform the autopsy and investigation on the causes and circumstances of the marine casualty as well as of appointment of our technical advisers on behalf of our clients. Simultaneously there are meetings and discussions with the Prosecutor of Bari and the competent Italian investigating authorities on the next steps regarding the process of entering the ship and investigating the causes of the fire and the maritime tragedy.

 The Port Authorities of Bari provided the list of vehicles which are in the lower garage decks (levels 1 & 2), most of which have been reported as not having been damaged by the fire (the list is available here NORMAN ATLANTIC – VEHICLES – PONTE 1 & 2 Capitaneria Di Porto Di Bari – NORMAN ATLANTIC VEHICLES). These vehicles are expected to be moved out of NORMAN ATLANTIC after the investigators enter the upper garage decks and most likely after the burnt and destroyed vehicles have been removed from the other decks. In order to ensure that our clients’ rights are fully protected, before the initiation of any proceedings for the receipt and delivery of their vehicles, special technical advisors appointed by us will examine our clients’ vehicles for possible latent damages from the accident and their long stay on the carcass of the ship. Most vehicles at the upper garage decks of the ship (levels 3, 4 and 5), as it has already been revealed, are regarded as total loss.

Criminal complaints have been filed before the competent Public Prosecutors of Piraeus and of Bari, Italy, on behalf of rescued passengers and the families of missing passengers whom we are representing requesting criminal charges to be brought against the master and the first officer of the ship NORMAN ATLANTIC, as well as against the legal representatives and members the board of directors of the Italian shipping company VISEMAR DI NAVIGAZIONE SRL and the Consortium ANEK – SUPERFAST ENDEKA HELLAS INC. & Co. and against any other person that might be found responsible for the fire on board NORMAN ATLANTIC. The victims of the maritime disaster accuse the aforementioned persons as liable for breach of fundamental national, european and international regulations set for the safety of ships and passengers, including fire detection and extinguishing systems and equipment, fire safety measures, lifesaving equipment and procedures, crew training and capacity etc..

The technical investigation on the causes and circumstances of the accident has not yet started in Bari. The aft port of the ship has not yet been opened and entry is still not allowed to technical experts. There is no valid and verified information on passenger vehicles yet, neither for those that have most certainly been burnt and completely destroyed, nor for those located in the lower garages of the vessel, which, according to unofficial and unverified information, may not be a total loss. Unfortunately there are no further news in relation to the missing passengers. So far only two corpses have been recovered from the ship; the necessary tests are being conducted in hope that a positive identification is achieved, but still there are no results. We are monitoring this issue very closely.

In response to a parliamentary question submitted on 20/01/2015 by the independent MEP Professor Notis Marias and eleven Italians MEPs asking the Commission to investigate the circumstances of the fire tragedy of Norman Atlantic on December 29, 2014 as well as whether the vessel complied with the respective EU safety legislation [E-000687-15], Commissioner Violeta Bulc on 03/10/2015 replied:

“1. A safety investigation of the incident is ongoing. It is too early to conclude how the incident occurred or to what extent the minor deficiencies identified during the port state control inspection in Patras were relevant, as they were not considered to be serious enough to prevent the vessel departing the port. An interim investigation report should be published within 12 months from the incident. The periodic assessments the Commission carries out with the help of EMSA’s fact finding inspections have not revealed any systemic problems with the recognised organisation (RO) undertaking statutory and class tasks for this ship. Italy, as flag State, has to take the measures it deems appropriate to ensure that the ship in question complies with the applicable international rules and regulations. This also implies monitoring/reporting obligation of their authorised EU ROs, which is now subject to pre-infringement proceedings. Italy underwent an IMO audit in 2007, and its maritime authorities currently hold a valid quality management certificate.

2. EMSA contributes to reducing the risk of maritime accidents. The Agency carries out visits to Member States helping the Commission to assess the effective implementation of relevant Union law. There are no plans currently to give the agency more control powers with respect to inspection procedures.

3. The Commission and EMSA are at the disposal of the competent authorities for any assistance. Lessons from this accident need to be taken into account to improve passenger ship safety regulations both at EU and international level. The Commission is currently undertaking a Fitness Check of the EU legislation on passenger ship safety to assess if the current legislative framework is fit for purpose.”

On Saturday, February 14, 2015, NORMAN ATLANTIC was towed from Brindisi to the port of Bari. Within the next few days fire experts and other technical experts and forensics will enter the ship in order to begin the investigation on the causes of the fire and the maritime tragedy. Independent technical experts and advisors appointed on our part will participate in the investigation process in order to ensure that all details with regards to the fire and the causes of the disaster come to light and that the rights of our clients, rescued passengers and families of the missing passengers, are protected and pursued in the best possible way.