Costa Concordia luxury ship carrying 4,000 passengers and crewmen ran aground off the Italian Coast Friday.

The ship left the Civitavecchia port near Romeport Friday at around 7:00pm on a 7-Day Cruise off the Mideterranean and is due to dock in Marseille after calling at ports in Sicily, Sardinia and Spain.

Costa Concordia reportedly hit a sandbar on Friday evening near the island of Giglio and listed about 20 degrees. The passengers were saying they heard a big bang and immediately after that incident the lights went off, rolling the ship to one side and people started to panic. Some passengers described what they heard like a loud noise, that of the keel being dragged over something. Sounds of smashed glasses and dishes were heard.

Chaos was all over the ship. The captain onboard came on and comforted the passengers and crew saying there's nothing to be alarmed, it's just an electrical fault but the situation went worst so the passengers were instructed to put on their life jackets and make their way to where the life boats were getting ready for abandonship. The lifeboats were already launched by the crew, ready for boarding.

According to reports, some passengers complained that the crew failed to give instructions on how to evacuate and once the emergency became clear, delayed lowering the lifeboats until the ship was listing too heavily for many of them to be released. The evacuation drill was only scheduled for Saturday afternoon, even though some passengers had already been on board for several days. One passenger said it was so unorganized, the evacuation drill was scheduled for 5pm. They had joked what if something had happened today.'

Three people are confirmed dead, two French passengers and 1 Peruvian crewman and dozens are still missing so far while thousand passengers and crewman were safely sailed by lifeboats and others swam ashore.

The six years old Costa Concordia is a 13 decked cruiseship with 1500 cabins and 4 swimming pools created a 160ft. gash in the hull. Coast guards are scooping water on the ship while others are searching for passengers in the submerged decks.

Dancer Rose Metcalf from Dorset told how she had to cling on to a fire hose strung to some railings to stop her from falling overboard. She had thought about leaping into the sea but was rescued at the last minute by a helicopter and is not injured. She has lost all of her possessions.

The passengers had to crawl up the hallway in the dark (because the light went off after the ship struck a rock) with only the light from the life vest strobe flashing. They all endured dark red bruises on their knees after that desperate crawing for life trying to get to the life boats.

The Captains Arrest :

The local prosecutors announced on Saturday the arrest of Francesco Schettino (Ship's Captain ) and Ciro Ambrosio (1st Officer) a day after the ship's sinking. Italian media reported they could face charges of multiple homicide and having abandoned ship before all passengers were rescued.

At least 42 are injured, including a woman with a blow to the head and a man struck in the spine.

Medical sources said most had suffered broken limbs and hypothermia.

Coastguards said divers had recovered the ship's "black box" which should contain records of the precise route and conversations among the crew. The search for survivors was suspended late on Saturday.