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All Russians from sunken liner given papers to get back home

The Russian consulate in Rome concluded issuing with temporary documents all Russian tourists who were on board the Costa Concordia liner

MOSCOW, January 16 (Itar-Tass) —— The Russian consulate in Rome concluded issuing with temporary documents all Russian tourists who were on board the Costa Concordia liner that sank off the Italian coast, Valery Korovkin, the chief of the international cooperation department of the Russian Federal Agency for Tourism (Rostourism), told Itar-Tass.

“The consulate informed us that it has concluded issuing with documents all tourists who happened to be without their documents and belongings after the catastrophe,” the agency’s representative said. “This morning, the embassy officials supplied the last group of Russian tourists with the necessary documents so they should fly home unhindered,” he said.

Korovkin said Rostourism tries to see to it that the tourists should have no problems, also about the flights. He said tour operators were most helpful. Their representatives in Rome help tourists get to the airports.

The chief of Rostourism’s international cooperation department is certain that all those wishing to return home will be back in a few days.

According to Rostourism, there were 108 Russian tourists and three Russian citizens as crew members on board the Costa Concordia liner that sank off the Italian coast on January 13.

Russian tourists from Costa Concordia are expected to arrive at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport by two flights from Rome on Monday. Airport officials could not say how many tourists from the sunken liner would arrive by the Monday flights.