US Media Reports on Estonia Disaster
On National Public Radio this morning (usually pretty reliable), there
was a report that the company that owns the ferry line had recently
(?) replaced the highly-skilled Swedish crew with cheaper and less
well-trained Estonian sailors in an effort to save money.
According the the journalist, very few of the Estonian sailors spoke
either Swedish or English (languages used by most of the passengers),
and there was speculation that emergency instructions were not
communicated properly. Has anyone else heard anything like this?
The report also said that quite a few tour groups were on board, which
means that some small villages have lost huge portions of their
population. Senior citizens' groups were specifically mentioned, as
was a group of police officers.
The world mourns with you in this tragic moment.