Key dates in Costa Concordia shipwreck, trial and cleanup

Table Of Content

• years later, Costa Concordia disaster is still vivid for survivors
• SeaBreeze – 2000
• How many people have died as a result of a cruise ship sinking?
• The 50 best Hollywood books of all time
• dead, 7 missing after Japanese navy helicopters crash in Pacific Ocean during training
• 'We all suffer from PTSD': 10 years after the Costa Concordia cruise disaster, memories remain

A waiter from New Delhi tells me that his contract is six months and three weeks long. After a cruise ends, he says, “in a few hours, we start again for the next cruise.” At the end of the half a year at sea, he is allowed a two-to-three-month stay at home with his family. As of 2019, the median income for crew members was somewhere in the vicinity of $20,000, according to a major business publication. Royal Caribbean would not share the current median salary for its crew members, but I am certain that it amounts to a fraction of the cost of a Royal Bling gold-plated, zirconia-studded chalice. Almost immediately questions were raised concerning the conduct of Schettino and other crew officers. In July 2013 four crew members and Costa Crociere’s crisis coordinator pled guilty to various charges, including manslaughter.

years later, Costa Concordia disaster is still vivid for survivors

Ultimately the ship’s Captain was blamed and jailed, although it came to light that the sea charts for the area were inaccurate and the reef the ship struck was 131 metres from shore, not 57 metres as marked on the charts. Over 1,000 passengers and crew were rescued but two French passengers went missing and were never found, presumed dead. It wasn’t enough and the Empress of Ireland sank when struck, causing the deaths of 1,012 people, a mix of passengers and crew. This was the worst maritime disaster in Canada’s history. The last time a cruise ship sank with passengers on board was a Chinese river cruise ship in 2015, which hit an unexpected and severe storm that capsized the boat.

SeaBreeze – 2000

Royal Caribbean passenger dies after excursion boat sinks on way to private island in Bahamas - NBC 6 South Florida

Royal Caribbean passenger dies after excursion boat sinks on way to private island in Bahamas.

Posted: Wed, 15 Nov 2023 08:00:00 GMT [source]

But when it deviated from its planned path to sail closer to the island of Giglio, the ship struck a reef known as the Scole Rocks. The impact damaged the ship, allowing water to seep in and putting the 4,229 people on board in danger. Due to the size of the explosion and the speed of listing, only six lifeboats could be launched, and in total 1,198 passengers and crew lost their lives, with 764 survivors.

How many people have died as a result of a cruise ship sinking?

There are multiple reasons for her sinking – the weather was extremely stormy, and the ship was way over capacity, with twice the expected load onboard. As passengers stood on the starboard side to view the storm, a freak wave combined with the weight of the passengers to capsize the ship. Almost 500 people died and only 8 survivors were accounted for. Of the 1,066 people on board, 1,036 made it into lifeboats or the water and were rescued. Arguably the most famous cruise ship sinking in history and also one of the worst in terms of deaths, the Titanic sunk on her maiden voyage across the Atlantic Ocean after colliding with an iceberg. So, let’s sate that interest (or quell those fears) with a guide on the cruise ships that have sunk in recent times.

How Many Cruise Ships Have Sunk?

In 2021, 54 large vessels either sank, ran aground or went up in flames and these behemoths are more likely to cause catastrophe when things go wrong. The Dutch salvage firm Smit brought a barge alongside the ship and divers installed external tanks to collect the diesel. More than 2,200 tonnes of fuel was eventually extracted, but the engineers were unable to remove all of it from some of the most inaccessible tanks. Other details emerged at pre-trial hearings, including excerpts of the frantic conversations between the Captain and his crew in the aftermath of the accident, captured by the ship's "black box" voice recorder.

Disney’S Largest Cruise Ship: The Disney Wish

We glance at it with pity, because it is by definition a smaller ship than our own. This is a large, multichandeliered room where I attended my safety training (I was shown how to put on a flotation vest; it is a very simple procedure). But the maître d’ politely refuses me entry in an English that seems to verge on another language. “I’m sorry, this is only for pendejos,” he seems to be saying. Meanwhile elderly passengers stream right past, powered by their limbs, walkers, and electric wheelchairs.

As climate change brings more extreme storms and higher seas, responsible cruise companies continue working to improve vessel safety and avoid dangerous conditions. Schettino argued that he fell into a lifeboat because of how the ship was listing to one side, but this argument proved unconvincing. In 2015, a court found Schettino guilty of manslaughter, causing a shipwreck, abandoning ship before passengers and crew were evacuated and lying to authorities about the disaster. The Concordia was supposed to take passengers on a seven-day Italian cruise from Civitavecchia to Savona.

dead, 7 missing after Japanese navy helicopters crash in Pacific Ocean during training

Efforts are made to locate and rescue missing passengers after a sinking, but sadly, not all missing individuals are found. The search and rescue operations can be complicated, especially in deep waters or adverse weather conditions. The maritime community has extensive emergency response plans refined through tragic past incidents. Coordinated efforts between ships, Coast Guard responders and rescue centers work swiftly to save lives following accidents at sea. A little more than an hour after impact, the crew began to evacuate the ship.

'We all suffer from PTSD': 10 years after the Costa Concordia cruise disaster, memories remain

But this would be catastrophic for the fragile coral ecosystem beneath the wreck. After 10 days, the ship’s fractures threaten to split the wreck. The team of hundreds of engineers, crane operators, firefighters, labourers, divers and architects, must move quickly. The mission transitions from salvage operation to wreck removal and the real work begins.

The Icon of the Seas is the Linda Loman of cruise ships, exclaiming that attention must be paid. If you have ever wondered how many cruise ships have sunk in history, we have the answers you are looking for. Today, we are going to take a look at these rare yet tragic events. We will cover some of the most famous sinkings in the cruise industry’s history and explain how frequent these events are in the modern era. Only 11 ocean cruise ships have sunk while on a cruise in the last 50 years. Assuming an average of 100 sailings per ship per year, and an average of 150 cruise ships in that time, that is odds of 1 in 68,000.

As a coddled passenger with a suite, I feel like I am starting to understand what it means to have a rank and be constantly reminded of it. There are many espresso makers, I think as I look across the expanse of my officer-grade quarters before closing my eyes, but this one is mine. And now I understand what the maître d’ was saying to me on the first day of my cruise. He wasn’t saying “pendejo.” He was saying “Pinnacle.” The dining room was for Pinnacles only, all those older people rolling in like the tide on their motorized scooters.

The tube then flops you down headfirst into a trough of water, a Royal Caribbean baptism. In preparation for sailing, I have “priced in,” as they say on Wall Street, the possibility that I may come from a somewhat different monde than many of the other cruisers. Without falling into stereotypes or preconceptions, I prepare myself for a friendly outspokenness on the part of my fellow seafarers that may not comply with modern DEI standards. My wife recommended that I bring one of my many T-shirts featuring Snoopy and the Peanuts gang, as all Americans love the beagle and his friends.

Two months after the ship ran aground, no trace remains of the MS Seascape in the ocean – but the work continues. Even with a well managed wreck such as the MS Seascape, some spillage is unavoidable. Divers, aided by remotely operated underwater vehicles, locate lost cars and other metal debris, feeding this information to a barge fitted with underwater magnets and mechanical grabbers.

An investigation focused on shortcomings in the procedures followed by Costa Concordia's crew and the actions of her captain, Francesco Schettino, who left the ship prematurely. He left about 300 passengers on board the sinking vessel, most of whom were rescued by helicopter or motorboats in the area. Schettino was found guilty of manslaughter and sentenced to 16 years in prison. Despite receiving its own share of criticism, Costa Cruises and its parent company, Carnival Corporation, did not face criminal charges.

Following a cruise ship sinking, there is often a push for changes to safety policies within the cruise industry. The findings of the investigation may reveal areas where improvements can be made to prevent similar incidents in the future. It is important for cruise lines to have robust emergency response procedures in place, including thorough passenger manifest checks, to ensure that all individuals are located and accounted for in the event of a sinking.