Costa Concordia: What We Can Learn

It is sadly ironic that in 2012 – the 100-year anniversary of the Titanic disaster, the news is dominated by the Costa Concordia tragedy – both, unfortunately, resulting from what appears to be human error. 

While Concordia is the worst incident in recent memory, maritime experts stress it could have been far worse – Concordia carried 4,200 passengers and crew – the equivalent of 20 Boeing 737’s  – had this been an aviation disaster, the loss of so few would have been remarkable.

Yes – as with any form of travel, there is some element of danger on cruise ships.  After all, you are out in the middle of water!  For this reason, cruise lines conduct “muster drills” instructing passengers on the proper use of life jackets, and how and where to gather in an emergency – and, while the safety team makes every effort to get passengers to pay attention – many, generally those unfamiliar with cruising, choose not to –considering them a waste of time.  After all, “nothing’s going to go wrong – it’s just a cruise – besides I want to get back to the bar.”

Lorraine jokingly refers to these musters as “dreaded” – not so in reality – even after many, many cruises she still pays attention to the safety instructions.  Oddly, enough, “seasoned” cruisers understand that things can and do happen.

Should the Concordia event deter you from cruising?  Not at all!  Overall, the cruise industry has an incredible safety record.  Last year, over 19 million passengers cruised on some 26 lines, and that number is expected to increase exponentially as more and more people discover the cruise experience. When a plane goes down, how many people stop flying?