Costa Concordia (Titanic 2012)

[Tidewaiter2]

It's perhaps interesting to note that it was the coast guard who called the captain and not the other way round. The coast guard had been alerted by a relative of a passenger who had called by cell phone.

Yep, the blessing & curse of the mobile phone- you prang a ship with 4000 souls o/b, so you phone HO, then a Friend, engaging Career Damage Limitation drive rather than into Damage Control mode & VHF the CG.

Your career's shot anyway, best be remembered for at least getting the evac right- but no;
'Fera la bella figura' then lose it just when your team need the Gov most.

 

[Seajet]

I should think it a safe bet someone wishes he'd stayed chatting up crumpet in the bar now...even in jail I expect they'll make him stand in a corner wearing the pointy hat.

As others have mentioned, you have to be better than good to get to command a ship like this, but we've all seen anomalies in professions; to take an example at a relatively microscopic level, when I worked on a 128' Hotel Barge the skipper knew nothing about boats, engines or maintenance etc, but was red hot on wines and chatting with the guests...

 

[janeczku]

"Police divers found the zone of grounding, eight metres down at the Scola piccola, the tiny most seaward exposed rock. There were also two pieces of the ship’s hull, conclusive proof of a violent impact."
Source

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

From the captain himself an apparent admission what happened http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16620807

 

[Cruiser2B]

If it's accepted that the only damage on the starboard side is due to the final grounding, then it's quite possible the roll to starboard was caused either by free surface water sloshing around, or the crew filling ballast tanks to counter the ingress to port.

There has been the suggestion that the ship was deliberately flooded down to starboard due to the shelf there compared to the deep water to port; if that turns out to be true, whoever did that was extraordinarily quick thinking and cool in the crisis.

I think with a 160-ft long gash it is unlikely that all the compartments opened had no longitudinal bulkheads. While free-surfacing would be a factor in any space that spanned the breadth of the ship, it would also slosh back to the port-side. The port-side cofferdams, void spaces and any small compartments at the gash should have filled with water and acted as ballast to keep the port-side down. Water doesn't flow uphill.

As to filling the ballast tanks - (1) ballast tanks are relatively small, so are unlikely to overcome massive flooding; (2) the service pumps used to fill ballast tanks are typically small, so it is also unlikely that they would have completely flooded all the tanks prior to grounding; (3) the 2nd officer, on reporting the flooding stated that the pumps (likely bilge pumps) were not operational - if they didn't have power for emergency pumps, how would they have power for service pumps?; and (4) there was clearly no direction from command, and it took the crew an awful long time to take it upon themselves to abandon ship - how likely is it that one of them decided to deliberately flood the starboard tanks/compartments?

 

[VicS]

E=1/2 mv2 = 1/2 * 100,000,000*(225-36)*1852=17501,400,000,000 J or about 17000 GJ.

Assuming the ship slowed down from 15 to 6 knots (squared 225-36), 1852 is mile to meter.

But haven't you taken an approximate figure for the gross registered tonnage. You need to know the actual weight ( mass strictly) or displacement!

 

[Twister_Ken]

From the captain himself an apparent admission what happened http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16620807

An additional irony is that he sailed close to Giglio to 'salute' a former captain who lived there: that former captain apparently wasn't on the island at the time.

 

[Bajansailor]

The poor Concordias of this world dont seem to be having a happy time - the Canadian tall ship Concordia capsized and sank two years ago in a squall off Brazil (probably a similar sort of situation that caused the Pride of Baltimore and the Marques to capsize?).

A bit more about the sailing Concordia's capsize here - http://digitaljournal.com/article/287825

And Wiki should be back on line again soon hopefully - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concordia_(ship)

 

[Roberto]

An impressive document

If anyone can read italian, the official minute-by-minute account of the operation room events


http://www.unita.it/polopoly_fs/1.372963.1326913087!/menu/standard/file/concordia Brogliaccio.pdf


2206: they receive a phone call from Carabinieri in Prato (mainland 100km from the sea), who say they have received a call from the mother of a passenger of a cruising ship saying they have put lifejackets on. They investigate to find the name of the ship.
2212: AIS check, they find the position of the CC
2214: contact with CC, who declares "only technical accident"
2217: operation room doubts about the real conditions aboard, first rescue boat sent towards CC
2226: second contact with CC, the captain indicates a breach in the hull, requests tow
2228: the operation room requests all vessels to divert towards CC for assistance
...

 

[Observer]

Dear Sir,

In placing the steamer ******* temporarily under your command, we desire to direct your attention to the Company's regulations for the safe and efficient navigation of its vessels and also to impress upon you, in the most forcible manner, the paramount and vital importance of exercising the utmost caution in the navigation of the ships and that the safety of the passengers and crew weighs with us above and before all other considerations.

<snip>

Whilst we have confidence in your sobriety of habit and demeanor we extort you to use your best endeavours to imbue your officers and all those about you with a due sense of the advantage which will accrue not only to the Company but to themselves by being strictly temperate, as this quality will weigh with us in an especial degree when giving promotion.

<snip>

We request your co-operation in achieving those satisfactory results which can only be obtained by unremitting care and prudence at all times, whether in the presence of danger or when by its absence you may be lured into a false sense of security; where there is least apparent peril the greatest danger often exists, a well-founded truism which cannot be too prominently borne in mind.

We are,
Yours Truly.

(Issued to White Star Line masters, circa 1912)

Delightfully archaic style of prose. Was it copy typed or cut and pasted? There's a meaning of "extort" (emboldened) that escapes me - or should it be "exhort"?

 

[Wansworth]

The poor Concordias of this world dont seem to be having a happy time - the Canadian tall ship Concordia capsized and sank two years ago in a squall off Brazil (probably a similar sort of situation that caused the Pride of Baltimore and the Marques to capsize?).

A bit more about the sailing Concordia's capsize here - http://digitaljournal.com/article/287825

And Wiki should be back on line again soon hopefully - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concordia_(ship)

There was a film made called "White Squall" about a school sailing ship that was overcome by a squall,based on fact.I think it was in the1950/60 that the event took place

 

[Seajet]

I must say I'm very impressed by the Italian authorities actions in all this; sending the first rescue boat on the message from a passengers' relative - despite the Captain saying 'merely a tech snag' - and the CG ordering him to get back on board; 10/10.

I almost wonder if they already knew this Captain was an accident waiting to happen...

 

[SailorBill]

There was a film made called "White Squall" about a school sailing ship that was overcome by a squall,based on fact.I think it was in the1950/60 that the event took place

Although some scenes make for very difficult viewing I thought White Squall was an otherwise excellent film.

 

[SailorBill]

I must say I'm very impressed by the Italian authorities actions in all this; sending the first rescue boat on the message from a passengers' relative - despite the Captain saying 'merely a tech snag' - and the CG ordering him to get back on board; 10/10.

I almost wonder if they already knew this Captain was an accident waiting to happen...

I also think the Italian authorities reacted well to this, given the lack of information from the captain of the Costa Concordia.

I also get the feeling there were warning signs that this captain did not have the right stuff but nothing was done about it.

 

[Kukri]

Delightfully archaic style of prose. Was it copy typed or cut and pasted? There's a meaning of "extort" (emboldened) that escapes me - or should it be "exhort"?

It was copy typed - there was another typo but I found that one...

 

[Kukri]

I must say I'm very impressed by the Italian authorities actions in all this; sending the first rescue boat on the message from a passengers' relative - despite the Captain saying 'merely a tech snag' - and the CG ordering him to get back on board; 10/10.

I almost wonder if they already knew this Captain was an accident waiting to happen...

So am I.

I doubt very much if they knew who the Captain was - I think they were acting prudently:

A call from a passenger's relative saying that lifejackets had been put on - first thought - lifeboat drill? Second thought - not at nine o'clock at night - find the ship's details - YE GODS it's a big cruise ship WHERE IS SHE - log onto AIS and at the same time call the vessel - "only a technical problem" - the important word is PROBLEM - better safe than sorry - launch all available lifeboats and scramble all available helicopters...

Well done the Italian Coast Guard and other authorities.

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

Delightfully archaic style of prose. Was it copy typed or cut and pasted? There's a meaning of "extort" (emboldened) that escapes me - or should it be "exhort"?

Not really. Its typical of literal Italian to English translations done by Italians who can speak good English but not quite well enough to know the idiomatic nuances of our language. I see it regularly in business documents I receive from my suppliers in Italy. Its easy to poke fun but then I remember that my own Italian is limited to a few basic words and phrases

 

[Searush]

Some interesting comments in that lot thanks. "Technical problem" & "Requesting a tow" suggest that the captain didn't really expect to sink. It must have been only when the 2nd Officer came back from damage assessment to say the the water was already "up to his neck" that the realisation started to filter thro.

 

[AuntyRinum]

Not really. Its typical of literal Italian to English translations done by Italians who can speak good English but not quite well enough to know the idiomatic nuances of our language.....

The clue is at the bottom "(Issued to White Star Line masters, circa 1912)"

 

[jonjo]

Some interesting comments in that lot thanks. "Technical problem" & "Requesting a tow" suggest that the captain didn't really expect to sink.

Nonsense.

By the time of that CG conversation the captain was not capable of rational thought, he was lost in his own world of denial compounded by the personality disorder which motivated his risk taking. No2. recognized that fact hence the mutiny on the bridge and No2. ordering the abandon ship.