A teenager from the West Midlands today told how he led a dramatic rescue of terrified passengers as chaos gripped the stricken Costa Concordia cruise liner.
Dancer James Thomas acted as a human climbing frame to help 16 passengers into lifeboats after the luxury liner ran aground off the Italian coast, before toppling on to its side in shallow waters.
The 19-year-old hero also led dozens to the lifeboat decks, only abandoning ship when a passenger forced him to leave with them.
(READ the story in the Express and Star)