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Latest update: 16/01/2012
- accident - Italy - tourism
'Errors' behind cruise ship disaster, company says
The captain of the Costa Concordia, a cruise ship that ran aground off the coast of Italy on Friday killing at least six people, made errors of judgment leading to the disaster, the company's CEO confirmed on Monday.
By News Wires (text)
AP - The chief executive of Italian owner of the cruise ship that capsized off Tuscany on Monday blamed “human error” on the part of the captain for the grounding of the vessel.
Costa Crociere chairman and CEO Pier Luigi Foschi’s comments came after authorities said a sixth body had been discovered in the wreckage of the liner, which had carried some 4,200 people.
Foschi told reporters the liner had passed all safety and technical tests in its 2011 evaluation. He added that the company’s main concern was the safety and well-being of the passengers and crew, as well as to ensure fuel doesn’t leak out from the upended hull into the pristine waters off the island of Giglio.
The Costa Concordia ran into a reef Friday night and capsized into the port area of Giglio, sparking a frantic evacuation of those onboard. Coast Guard officials have expressed concern that the ship might slip off the rocks where it is currently perched.
Costa Crociere is a subsidiary of Carnival Cruise lines. In a statement on Sunday, the company said that the captain, Francesco Schettino, “appears to have not followed standard Costa procedures.”
“The route of the vessel appears to have been too close to the shore,” it said.
Carnival PLC, the owner of the capsized boat, saw its share price plummet by around a fifth.
Authorities were holding Schettino for suspected manslaughter and a prosecutor confirmed Sunday they were also investigating allegations the captain abandoned the stricken liner before all the passengers had escaped. According to the Italian navigation code, a captain who abandons a ship in danger can face up to 12 years in prison.
Schettino insisted he didn’t leave the liner early, telling Mediaset television that he had done everything he could to save lives. "We were the last ones to leave the ship," he said.
Questions have been swirling about why the ship had navigated so close to the dangerous reefs and rocks that jut off Giglio’s eastern coast, amid suspicions the captain may have ventured too close while carrying out a maneuver to entertain tourists on the island.
Residents of Giglio said they had never seen the Costa come so close to the dangerous “Le Scole” reef area.
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Comments (7)
Costa Concordia
I've always considered Lifeboat drill somewhat of a disposition when i'm trying to unpack and get orientated. However seeing a man on TV saying that they didn't get information about a lifeboat drill until the first evening, when it was scheduled for that afternoon. If this is true, it was a recipe for disaster. I have travelled with Celebrity, Norwegian Cruise line and Fred Olsen. With all these three, safety was a priority for both passengers and crew.
am sorry to every one...
ma sorry about this disaster that harping in
Italy........
Costa Concordia
Too many ill informed statements are being made. This is a tragedy of major proportions and its not over yet. The authorities should immediately put adequate booms around the vessel start removing the fuel from her.
Re the evacuation and despite the superfluous comments about Italians and WW2 etc, it should be noted that the captain did have the sense to beach the vessel in shallow waters to ensure maximum time to evacuate the ship. That it hit bottom on the port side and flipped over is a twist of fate. The fact remains that more than 4000 persons were evacuated safely, all lifeboats were deployed and all this could not have been done by the passengers. Clearly the crew were well trained and did a great job here. Handling 3000+ panic-stricken passengers cannot be an easy task.
The gash in the ships port side is reported to be some 50m long. That is a huge breach of the hull. it would not take long for the vessel to sink with such a breach.
My question is where were the officers on watch? off-course alarms, depth alarms, radars, trained officers all should have contributed towards avoiding this tragedy. But it diddn;t. The root cause needs to be identified and you will find this is likely to be linked to the standard of Officers training and certification.
Cruise Ships
Was Thinking About A Cruise This Year,After This Catatrophe,I`ll Just Visit Hastings ,By Bus !!
It's not homicide common... It's negligence
There are people to blame, but nobody killed in purpose
See articles on www.ariesost.com
Shipping
Pretty obvious if you are not thick like our broadcasters,if they knew anything about navigation,they have charts relating to the dept of the seas and oceans near Land masses.Human error is responsible for most disasters .Air ,sea,or Land.
Questions you should ask about Costa Concordia Ship Wreck
Why wasn't the lighthouse working? Why hasn't PRime Minister Monti addressed the nation? Were psychologists deployed by the government to help the traumatized; especially the children? Why did the crew try to divide families by saying, "Women and children first?" This is archaic. What will happen to people with no food, no lodging, no clothes, and no documents? Why did Carnival Cruise Management company only make a short statement saying, "We are deeply sorrowed by the tragedy and our hearts go out to the passengers"? Shouldn't they be better prepared and provide more assistance to help all of their ships deal with crises at every point of their journey? How will they salvage the ship?
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