Costa Concordia - 2012
The Incident
On January 13, 2012, the Concordia left Civitavecchia, Italy, at approximately 7:18 PM. On board were 1,023 crew members and 3,206 passengers.
As the Concordia approached Giglio Island several hours later, it deviated from its standard course, moving closer to the small Tuscan island for a maritime “salute”.
Rocks were spotted and the captain ordered a change in course, but due to language issues, the helmsman steered the ship in the opposite direction. It reportedly took 13 seconds to correct the manoeuvre.
The ship’s bow swung clear, but the stern collided with the reef at approximately 9:45 PM. Confusion on the bridge resulted in conflicting orders, the Concordia’s port side had suffered a 174-foot (53-metre) tear.
An assessment of the damage revealed that five compartments, including the engine room, were flooding, and the ship soon lost power. In addition, with neither the engines nor rudder functioning, the ship could not be steered. However, the wind and the stuck position of the rudder caused the Concordia to turn back toward the island. While the change in direction made the later rescue easier, it caused the ship to start listing to the starboard side. The drifting Concordia eventually ran aground near the shore.
10:14 PM The Italian coast guard called the Concordia and were advised that the ship had suffered a blackout.
10:24 PM The coast guard contacted the ship again, and at this time the crew admitted that the vessel was taking on water.
10:39 PM The first rescue vessel arrived.
10:55 PM Order to abandon ship.
11:33 PM the last crew member departed the bridge, even though approximately 300 people were still on the ailing vessel.
12:00 AM on January 14, the Concordia had a severe list, making the lowering of lifeboats difficult and forcing many to use ladders.
06:00 AM By this time 4,194 people had been evacuated from the Concordia and taken to Giglio Island.
At 6:17 AM on January 14 search efforts were temporarily suspended, but the following day divers rescued three more from inside the Concordia. They were the remaining survivors. Thirty-two people died in the disaster, and the last body was not recovered until November 2014.
In July 2013 four crew members and Costa Crociere’s crisis coordinator pled guilty to various charges, including manslaughter. They received sentences of less than three years. The Captain was charged with manslaughter as well as causing the wreck and abandoning ship. In February 2015 the Captain was convicted on all charges and sentenced to more than 16 years in prison.
September 2013 the Concordia was finally righted.
July 2014 the Concordia was towed to Genoa, Italy, where it was dismantled for scrap.
The financial costs of this incident were substantial for the owners, P and I clubs, insurers and governmental agencies as well as the incalculable loss for the friends and families of all those affected.
Findings
The vessel had deviated from course previously to perform a “salute”.
The severity of the damage was not immediately realised.
The chain of command did not function properly and therefore the mitigation of and response to the incident was delayed.
The captain and crew were prosecuted and convicted in a court of law for negligence.
BOQA
Previous deviations from course and the compromising of SOPs (Safe Operating Procedures) can be spotted and reported by BOQA.
Data from the vessel will trigger “Events” in BOQA prior to and during an incident, depending on your configuration.
Because the data is live it can be viewed onshore and reviewed even if the chain of command on the vessel breaks down.
Data from the vessel is instantly available to provide factual evidence to support the crew and owners.
All Costa Concordia images courtesy and copyright property of Roberto Vongher and used under Creative Commons Licence. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
Roberto many thanks from us for their use.