Austin, Texas gay couple Blake Miller and Steve Garcia were two of the lucky survivors of Carnival Cruse Lines Costa Concordia’s disastrous cruise from Rome which resulted in five deaths and the latest estimate of 17 missing passengers.

The Costa Concordia hit submerged rocks near the island of Giglio in the Tyrrhenian Sea. Many of the survivors spoke of the panic on board when the ship began listing,

On board the vessels were 3200 passengers and a crew of 1000. International maritime laws stipulate that a mandatory lifeboat drill must take place within 24 hours of departing the port of embarkation and, as is quite common in this industry, Concordia’s was scheduled the following morning.

The ship’s captain has been arrested and accused of manslaughter, abandoning the vessel and causing the shipwreck.

Garcia and Miller described what the the hellish event at one point breaking into tears while talking with NBC’s Lester Holt Sunday morning on the Today Show.