Costa Concordia, an absurdity and dramatic shipwreck



Dispersed dead six and 16 are the terrible updated budget this morning of a tragedy, that of the shipwreck of the Costa Concordia cruise ship of the company cost Cruises, than - second the first reconstructions of the event - he would be attributable to a human error.

The ship, left from Civitavecchia with on board 4,234 people of which about 3.200 passengers and thousand members of the crew, it was carrying out a cruise in the western Mediterranean when past saturday has hit roughly a group of stumbling blocks called "the Scole" in proximity of the Tuscany island of the Lily. The impact has determined the opening of a gash along some ten of meters on the left flank of the ship, that it has a tonnage of 112.000 tons, and in a very short time Costa Concordia has tilted itself sinking on the stumbling blocks. The operations of desertion of a ship are hindered by the important sideslip of the ship.

The first investigations attribute the incident to a human error, leaned to the commander or another official of the ship that would have decided to make to journey Costa Concordia too much close of the coast in order to carry the salute of the ship to the inhabitants of the island. The unit would have reached single 150 meters from the river crossing - the Chief Prosecutor of Grosseto has asserted, Francesco Verusio - a feature of very dangerous sea because it anticipate emerging cliffs. The investigations will have to establish because Costa Concordia has hit the stumbling block, that he has left a cliff piece which drove in the flank, and as the operations of desertion of a ship are managed, than - second asserted how much from some passengers - would be activated behind schedule and they would have been carried out in chaotic way. The ministry of Infrastructures and the Transports has confirmed the start of a ministerial investigation in order to assess dynamics, the causes, and eventual responsibilities of the sinking of the ship.

In the first declarations after the disaster the general manager of Costa Crociere, Gianni Onorato, has explained that the company is able to not to give to answer to all the questions because - it has specified - the competent authorities with our effective collaboration are trying to assess the reasons of this incident. On the base of the first assessments, still preliminary - it has specified - the Costa Concordia ship, to the command of commander Francesco Schettino, was carrying out regulating navigation from Civitavecchia to Savona when suddenly the ship has hit a stumbling block. The commander, that she was on the bridge of the ship in that moment, resosi account of the gravity of the situation, has immediately carried out a maneuver in order to put in safety the passengers and the crew and has activated the emergency procedures in order to prepare himself for an eventual desertion of a ship". "Unfortunately - it has added Honored - this operation has complicated because of an inclination repentina of the ship that has hindered the disembarkation operations. Thanks to the engagement of all the forces coordinated from Guard Costiera, from then on ulteriorly are strengthened the rescue operations. From the first moment the company has mobilized all its resources of edge and earth putting in existence all the efforts in order to assist our hosts and members of the crew in this situation and to prevent possible environmental consequences".

With a diffuse note last night, in which the crocieristica company has restated "its deeper pain for this terrible incident that has hit its dearer affections: its hosts, employee its, an own ship" and "excuse for the suffering and the uneasiness that these people quickly and porge have felt condolences to the families of the assessed victims", Costa Crociere - also with the due cautions - has confirmed reserves on the acts of the commander of the ship. "Commander Francesco Schettino, that he was to the command of Costa Concordia - law in the note - has entered in Costa Crociere in 2002 as official in charge of safety and promoted commander in 2006, after to be it are second in command. As all the commanders of the fleet he have participated to a continuous program of update and training and have exceeded positively all the verifications of previewed suitabilities. As already announced, the magistracy, with which Costa Crociere it is collaborating, has arranged the arrest warrant of the commander, towards which accusations have been serious movements. He seems that the commander has store clerk judgment errors that have had most serious consequences: the route continuation from the ship has turned out too much near the coast, and seems that its decisions in the management of the emergency have not followed the procedures of Costa Crociere that are online and, in some cases go beyond, the international standards".

The company, moreover, has confirmed the ability to own crews to answer to the emergency situations. "Costa Crociere - he has evidenced the shipowning society - work in the full respect of all the relative norms to safety and is proud of the engagement that employee its dedicate to the management of safety of the hosts. All the members of crew have of a certificate BST (Basic Safety Training), are formed and trained to the management of emergencies and to assist the hosts in case of abandonment ship through numerous practices. Roles, responsibilities and tasks clearly are defined and assigned in order to allow the management of a so important situation.
All the members of the crew make a abandonment practice ship every two weeks. For all the hosts in cruise are previewed a practice within 24 hours from the day of the boarding, as demanded from the law. Costa Crociere has a computerized system that he allows to verify that all the hosts have participated to the practice and to place you remedy consequently. The preparation of the members of the Costa Crociere crews comes periodically verified from the Coastgards and the independent agencies of classification online with regarding requirement specified in the system SMS (Safety Systems Management)".

"On board of Costa Concordia and all the ships Coast - it has still specified the company - are available nozzle, life jackets and raft in advanced number to the maximum of the people who can be accommodated from the ship. In nozzles they are you anticipate safety equipments, as reserves of water and medicinal food, cassettes and instruments of signalling and communication, that they allow to wait for in safety the arrival of the aids. The nozzles are moreover object of scrupulous periodic verifications by the staff of the ship and the organisms of certification. All the Costa Crociere ships are certifyd by the RINA and are constructed second the most elevated standard and technologies".

The company has concluded evidencing that "as a result of the incident, Costa Crociere is taken part immediately in order to prevent a potential environmental impact and until from the day of saturday leader to the world in the field, Smit & Salvage is making use of the society, with which a plan of participations is elaborating; the immediate actions in the short term are consistite in realizing a barrier of control around the hull. The magistracy has subordinate to seizure the ship and the VDR - the so-called "black box". Costa Crociere can therefore approach the ship of the authorities only under license".

Micky Arison, president and managing director of Carnival Corporation, the group leader of Costa Crociere, have expressed own pain for the outcome of the tragic incident. The crocieristico group American has announced that the company has a insurance cover for the damages to the ship with an exemption of about 30 million dollars and a insurance cover for damages to the people with an additional exemption of about 10 million dollars for this incident. Moreover the company is assured against the losses determined from the lacked employment the ship.

Carnival Corporation has explained that it is currently in course an appraisal of the damages endured by Costa Concordia to the aim to determine for how much time the ship will remain service outside. The group has specified that the unit will not be sure available at least for the remaining part of the current fiscal year and that the impact caused from the lacked employment Costa Concordia on the profit of the fiscal year, that will finish next 30 November, will be pairs to about 85-95 million dollars (0,11-0,12 dollars per.share).