Italy rescuers say search suspended as cruise ship shifts
Rescuers looking for the 20 people still missing from the stricken cruise liner Costa Concordia on Wednesday suspended their search as the vessel shifted, a spokesman said.
"Instruments indicated the ship had moved, we are in the process of evaluating if it has found a new resting point to allow us to resume. For the moment we cannot even go near it," spokesman Luca Cari said.
The rescue teams had stopped work at 8:00 am (0700 GMT) after having searched all night for survivors, he added. So far they have recovered 11 bodies, five of which have still to be identified.
"We have practically finished checks on the part that is out of the water," Cari said.
Two teams of Italian navy divers had at dawn resumed their exploration of the submerged parts of the vessel, blowing holes in the hull with small explosive charges.
The search was focussed on a part of the vessel that was 18 metres (60 feet) under water on the fourth deck of the vessel where divers found five bodies on Tuesday. All were wearing life jackets.
With the death toll at 11 and some 20 people still missing following Friday night's accident, the captain of the Costa Concordia, Francesco Schettino, has been put under house arrest and faces charges of multiple manslaughter.
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