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Originally posted by petede:
News stories like this make my blood boil!
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/most-popu lar/2012/01/14/costa-cruise-ship-company-has-long-record-of-accidents-and-scandal-115875-23699140/

Let not forget that almost 5,000 people were saved by an island who's population is only 1,500! That port is tiny and can barely fit a ferry. Assuming the accident happened farther out from where she sunk, it would then appear that the captain made a decision to head for the nearest port because the damage was tremendous in order to save his passengers. Hopefully we will find out more in a few days and the truth will stop the media slandering and innuendo going on before the facts come in. If I hear titanic one more time, I'll scream!

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This is the Daily Mirror, gutter tabloid press as they call it..... what ever they write should not be taken serious at all.

There was a Dutch woman who was interviewed, she was in the theatre when it crash happened and the ship started to shake and to list. She told the journalist that at first they initially thought it was part of the show...........

I can't really figure out from the different news sources what has happened. Did they hit the rocks because it was not on the charts. Or did they hit a rock as there was an electrical problem which caused the steering gear to fail.
I also read that nowadays it seems to be very difficult to evacuate over 4000 people and safety rules should be adjusted to that.

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Almost as if the ship was in a sharp turn and sideswiped the island.[/QB]

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Yes, it seems she was making a starboard turn when she hit whatever she hit.

Best,

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Originally posted by oslo dutch:
[...]
I can't really figure out from the different news sources what has happened. Did they hit the rocks because it was not on the charts. Or did they hit a rock as there was an electrical problem which caused the steering gear to fail.
I also read that nowadays it seems to be very difficult to evacuate over 4000 people and safety rules should be adjusted to that.

Just wait and see....

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Exactly. However, sofar all reports I read say that the ship hit something and then lost power afterwards.

I may summarize the interview with the major of one of Austria's provincial capitals who happened to be aboard since I consider him to be a credible source in this context:

He also reported that there was a 'bang' and shaking and that lights went out afterwards. He said that at first passengers were told that thee is a power outage
(maybe that is where these rumors are coming from?) and that evacuation has been started afterwards. First everything went smooth and calm but later people started to panic. He reported that people jumped ship at muster stations where the boats could not be lowered anymore due to the list. According to him most of those in the water were rescued immediately. He also said that he saw three dead persons himself.

While I think that these descriptions of the major of Salzburg are accurate and credible I am not sure whether his statement that fatalities could have been avoided if evacuation started earlier is accurate. He also said that he had the impression that the evacuation was started only in the very last moment. However, I may pass this on as that is what he said in the same interview.

Personally I think that one must not jump to conclusions about whether the evacuation has been executed appropriately based on passengers reporting it to be chaotic since such severe events are inherently chaotic.

[ 01-14-2012: Message edited by: Ernst ]

http://www.seanews.com.tr/article/ACCIDENTS/74284/Costa-Concordia-accident-navigational-error/

"Rome (CNN) -- The Italian captain of the cruise ship that ran aground -- killing three person and injuring 20 more -- was arrested late Saturday and is being investigated for manslaughter and abandoning ship, said a local prosecutor in Grosetto, Italy.

The captain, Francesco Schettino, had been earlier interviewed by investigators in Porto Santo Stefano about what happened when the 4,200-passenger Costa Concordia struck rocks in shallow water off Italy's western coast, said officer Emilio Del Santo of the Coastal Authorities of Livorno."

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Originally posted by eroller:
According to this news report the ship had a heading directly between two small land/rock masses very close to shore. If its valid it seems likely that sailing between these rock masses caused the damage to the ship. If its true the question remains why?

http://www.seanews.com.tr/article/ACCIDENTS/74284/Costa-Concordia-accident-navig ational-error/

Ernie

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Originally posted by dmwnc1:
another map of its course prior to the accident

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This route doesn't make sense at all........ why was she heading directly to the Island instead of heading North?

somebody wrote a comment in the UK Telegrapgh...interesting to read, don't know if it make sense though

[ 01-14-2012: Message edited by: dmwnc1 ]

Why did she roll on to her starboard side if her port side was where the damage is? It is totally counterintuitive that she rolled away from the damage. Unless of course the damage goes much lower and across the double bottom or something.

Also what does it mean for the stability certification of the entire class? Could her sister ships and even those over at Carnival have a similar design issue that places them in harms way in certain circumstances as well? Is there just too little margin for error to maintain stability on this class with all the top weight Carnival/Costa keeps adding?

Someone said shortest route to save fuel. She was running with empty tanks as well and not ballasting to maintain stability in an effort to reduce weight and fuel consumption?

[ 01-14-2012: Message edited by: dmwnc1 ]

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Originally posted by SSTRAVELER:
Think STABILITY folks and ask why was it undermined so quickly?

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A 90 m long leak?

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Originally posted by SSTRAVELER:
[...] Her stability was undermined early in the evacuation process evidenced by the number of lifeboats they could not launch.

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This is not true. Numerous reports indicate that the list increased to a degree where some boats were too late to be lowered only hours after the crash. As one can clearly see in numerous photos obviously most (not all) of the boats were in fact lowered.

However, I may point out that it is indeed possible to sink a ship - even a modern ship of that size - within minutes. This is not 'recent knowledge' and I am a bit surprised how many people thought that this could not happen.

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Originally posted by SSTRAVELER:

Also what does it mean for the stability certification of the entire class?

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Statements like that are simply scaremongering.
Frankly, I find it a bit strange that some people try to build a case based on a design flaws etc. where there clearly is an LARGE HOLE (!!!) in the ship.

[ 01-14-2012: Message edited by: Ernst ]

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Originally posted by Atlcruiser:
This was posted on another board of the Concordia buzzing the island of Giglio back in August. This was not a port stop for her.

http://video.corriere.it/nave-concordia-al-giglio-/9dfa5ea6-3e9b-11e1-8b52-5f77182bc574

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On January 13, 2012, Costa Cruises’ vessel, the Costa Concordia, departed from Civitavecchia, Italy with approximately 3,200 passengers and 1,000 crew members on a seven-day voyage. At approximately 10:00pm CET, the vessel struck rock off the coast of Isola del Giglio, Italy and sustained significant damage causing the ship to list severely. The order was given to abandon ship and deploy the lifeboats.

Tragically, there are reports of some deaths and injuries. This is a terrible tragedy and we are deeply saddened. Carnival Corporation & plc offers our sympathies and heartfelt condolences to all of the Costa Concordia guests, crew members and their families. Carnival Corporation & plc and Costa Cruises are committing our full resources to provide assistance and ensure that all guests and crew are looked after.

We want to express our deep gratitude to the Italian Coast Guard and local authorities and community members who have gone to extraordinary lengths to assist in the evacuation of the ship and provide support for our guests and crew.

We are working to fully understand the cause of what occurred. The safety of our guests and crew members remains the number one priority of Carnival Corporation & plc and all of our cruise lines.

Costa Concordia was sailing on a Mediterranean cruise from Civitavecchia (Rome) with scheduled calls at Savona, Italy; Marseille, France; Barcelona, Spain; Palma de Mallorca; Cagliari and Palermo, Italy.

Friends and family members may use the following country-specific contact numbers to reach Costa Cruises: Italy: 848505050: U.S.: 800-462-6782; Austria: 00438109006565; Germany: +4940570121314; France: +33155475554; Spain: +34934875685; Portugal: +34914185951; and the UK: 08453510552.

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Originally posted by DAMBROSI2:
It's still so incredible to see this.....now for those who are arguing, please STOP IT...This has been a horrible thing to hear and read about and all you want to do is cross swords with each other. This is a disaster, may I remind you if you have a heart; please have respect for one another. If you want to argue, use the other posting area for it.

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Well said, Deb. Go fight somewhere else, boys.

This is a very sad situation and you are acting like children with your bickering back and forth.
e-mail each other if you want to argue, but don't use this forum for your bickering.

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Originally posted by jsea:
[...]
I imagine that very soon we'll see changes to muster drills; including mandatory muster before a ship departs her initial port.

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[ 01-14-2012: Message edited by: joe at travelpage ]

..."For me, the worst part of the whole ordeal" was when a lifeboat crew member told those boarding that it was "women and children first," said passenger Benji Smith of Boston.

"All these families who were clinging to each other had to be separated," Smith told CNN...