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The responsibility for the Norman Atlantic tragedy is being lobbed between Greece and Italy like a ball.

Bari's deputy-attorney general Ettore Cardinali has accused Greece of presenting the unreliable list of passengers, which caused so much confusion about the number of those missing. Earlier on, the ship master accused ΑΝΕΚ, Norman Atlantic’s owner, of its overloading.

"The official number of people missing may only be disclosed when Greece decides to give us an accurate passenger list," said Cardinali and accused the Greek authorities of being sluggish.

Cardinali spoke after his first inspection of the ship, which was towed to Brindisi, and emphasized that by "the most optimistic projection" the missing passengers were 10, and by the most pessimistic – 15.

He confirmed other bodies could still be found on board the ship, especially in the car section where the fire broke out. The ferry’s black box was also found, and it might shed more light on the causes of the tragedy.

On the Greek side, the Ministry of Shipping, Maritime Affairs and the Aegean published the electronic correspondence whereby it sent to the Italian SAR Country Contact (MRCC/ROME) the passenger and crew lists on time – in the same form as they were received from the authorised person of the company (Designated Person Ashore / DPA) responsible for the ship’s safety procedures.

The detailed history of the actions of the Coast Guard’s rescue coordination centre was also published, from the time, when the centre was informed of the fire on the Norman Atlantic, until the first communication with its captain.

Parallel investigations

Parallel investigations are being conducted by the prosecution offices of Greece and Italy into the causes of the tragedy.

Security measures on board are being analysed by both the Greek and the Italian authorities. Within the preliminary investigation, the Piraeus prosecution has requested information from the port authorities on the ferry’s condition.

The prosecution office is exploring two possible types of crimes: security infringements and arson.

In Italy, the media published information about four persons who will be indicted. The Bari prosecution accuses the ΑΝΕΚ representative in Italy (his name was not mentioned), the company’s employee Pavlos Fandakis, the 45-year-old deck officer Luigi Iovine and the 56-year-old engineer Francesco Romano.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Shipping announced that the identity of the third Greek victim had been determined, namely Gerasimos Kazandzidis, who has been identified in Bari by family members.