Could the Costa Concordia disaster been prevented?

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The Costa Concordia was one of Costa's newest ships, and one of the newest ships in the passenger cruising world.

Could the Costa Concordia disaster been prevented? 

Having had the privilege and the honor to have the opportunity to visit the "bridge" - place where the captain and crew direct the ship, one really is stunned.  One has to ask oneself, how can this have happened?  Something went very wrong.  Was it mechanical, or was there intent?

The ships alfloat today have amazing equipment on board that enable the officers on board directing the ship and driving it, what is around it, under it, and over it.  Sophisticated, state-of-the-art equipment that can measure the depth of the water.  Sonar, that can detect objects in the vicinity.  Radar for weather and more.  Satelites and radios for communication. 

Most of the equipment on board the ships are there to prevent such disasters as that of the Titanic, and now the Costa Concordia.

During one visit to the bridge, we had the opportunity to walk around, look around and not touch the equipment, ask questions, meet the captain, and take an eagle's eye or captain's perspective of the shps surroundings.  What an interesting visit!  It does lead to a lot of questions regarding the recent incident.

What we saw during our visit - the equipment:

On a table was a printed and detailed nautical map of the path, course, and direction the ship was to take.  With precise measurements as to position in latitude and longitude.  Land masses and more.

One officer was constantly monitoring screen to watch for oncoming traffic of other ships in the area.  He could determine how far the ship was from the one he was on.  Monitor what direction or course the other ship  was taking.  It stated that this piece of equipment could detect what was around the ship in the way of land masses and more.

Another piece of equipment was measuring the seas.  Monitoring and measuring swells in the ocean.  Detecting ripples and waves not visible to the human eye.

Radar was constantly bringing up to the moment weather conditions.  Temperature of the air, temperature of the water, wind speed, and more.

The driver or steering wheel, was like a large joystick.  Very sensitive, and quick acting to the touch.

There is equipment that will enable the ship to sail and drive itself without the aid of a human, or the need of continuous monitoring.

Summary:

Based on what was learned, what was said, and what was said, one has to wonder what happened that went so wrong that the ship hit the rocks in the first place.  Was there no one monitoring the depth of the water?  Was there no one watching by both human eye and the use of the sophisticated equipment on board how close they were to the rocks and land?

As I was not there firsthand at the time of the accident on board the Costa Concordia, I cannot say if there was a malfunction in systems or verbal orders given to the captain to ignore the warnings.  Ongoing investigations will be going on to determine whether there was a malfunction in equipment, or as all reports indicate - human error.  Poor decision making and direction on the part of the captain.

Please keep in mind that cruising is a very safe means of travel, and that an incident such as this is very rare.

What is your perspective of this situation? 

Linda Kolanko

Cruise Planners - Cruise Pros Plus