Costa Concordia set to be pulled upright
A delicate operation to try to pull the shipwrecked Costa Concordia upright is going ahead today.
This morning's work was delayed by two hours due to an overnight storm.
But the Italian Civil Protection agency said sea and weather conditions were right to start the salvage attempt off the island of Giglio.
Salvage teams are attaching giant metal chains and cables to the ship, which weighs more than 114,000 tonnes and is roughly the length of three football fields.
Head of the operation, Nick Sloane, told AFP news agency that it was now or never for the Costa Concordia, because the hull was gradually weakening and might not survive another winter.
Engineers will try to roll the ship up using cables and the weight of water contained in huge metal boxes welded to the ship's sides - a process called parbuckling.
Costa Concordia capsized killing 32 people in January 2012 when the vessel hit rocks.
Five people have already been convicted of manslaughter over the disaster, and the ship's captain, Francesco Schettino, is currently on trial accused of manslaughter and abandoning ship.
