On Friday night, I began to hear reports of the Costa Concordia running aground in Italy and leaning to its side.  At that point, it has appeared to run directly into the pier.  I assumed that it was similar to the MSC Poesia situation just over a week ago, where it ran aground in water which was too shallow and destroyed a reef.  Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined the images I would awake to on Saturday morning. Of course, now we know that the Costa Concordia had, indeed, hit a rock and began to take on water, eventually sinking and lying on its side off the coast of the Island of Giglio.  

   Most passengers and crew were evacuated, even though the lifeboats weren't launched in a timely matter with new evidence suggesting that the crew may have even begun to prepare the lifeboats without the Captain's permission.  Several are still missing and at least 6 are dead.  Captain Schettino is in custody, and apprers to be bearing the brunt of the blame, with good reason.  His actions of bringing the ship close to the island in order to "salute" a former boss resulted in hitting the rock, and his inaction in evacuating the passengers and crew in a more timely and organized manner probably resulted in multiple deaths. That the Captain left the ship before the evacuation had been completed further weakens his defence and credibility.
  
   What will this mean for Costa and the cruise industry in general?  An admittedly unscientific poll on foxnews suggests that 30 percent of Americans have been turned off to cruising, due to this incident.  Since it happened over the weekend and involved an Italian cruise line rather than an American one, it probably did not receive as much publicity and air play as it could have.  I know personally, that I tuned into Headline News all day on Saturday, and only saw fleeting reports, with more emphasis being put on Republican debates than this accident.  So, a large segment of Americans may never even come across this story.  Veteran cruisers will likely not be deterred from cruising since they already enjoy cruising and have a better understanding of cruise ship safety than a novice.  I think that this incident will be more likely to affect future new cruisers, and I believe that it is more likely to be a knee-jerk reaction that makes little sense.  "Oh, I heard about that accident; I don't think I'll be booking a cruise anytime soon."   I do believe that this reaction will be short-lived, and that as people continue to look for an excellent vacation value, cruising will continue to prove itself as a great choice.  In the meantime, I will continue to extol the virtues of cruising as a wonderful travel opportunity, and will continue to provide as much information as I can to help cruisers do their research and have a great vacation. 

  According to the AFP out of Rome, the Captain of the Costa Concordia was arrested and is being questioned regarding shipwreck, disaster and manslaughter. The Italian media has also indicated that another member of the ship's crew has been arrested as well.
  Witnesses claim that the evacuation did not occur until two hours after the initial accident, that they received little information and that they were lied to with regards to what had actually taken place.
  The captain was questioned for several hours on Saturday, and has stated that the ship struck a rock not indicated on the navigational maps.  In an interview, the captain said "As we were sailing to cruising speed, collided with a rock. According to the chart, he should have been enough water under us."  
   We will keep you updated as the story continues to unfold.

Here is the current official statement from Costa Cruise Lines.
“We at Costa Cruises are deeply saddened by this tragedy, and our hearts and prayers go out to everyone affected.

Over the past 48 hours, more than 1,100 Costa employees have been working tirelessly in the wake of this terrible event. We are working closely with the authorities to support ongoing search-and-rescue operations, and are focusing on ensuring that all guests and crewmembers return home safely.

Our immediate priority is to account for all passengers and crew, and to secure the vessel to ensure that there are no environmental impacts. We have engaged the services of a top specialized salvage company to develop an action plan and help establish a protection perimeter around the ship. It should be noted that the Prosecutor has seized the ship and the DVR — the so-called “black box” containing all navigation data — and the vessel can be accessed by Costa only with permission from the authorities.

We are working with investigators to find out precisely what went wrong aboard the Costa Concordia. While the investigation is ongoing, preliminary indications are that there may have been significant human error on the part of the ship’s master, Captain Francesco Schettino, which resulted in these grave consequences. The route of the vessel appears to have been too close to the shore, and in handling the emergency the captain appears not to have followed standard Costa procedures. We are aware that the lead Prosecutor has leveled serious accusations against the ship’s captain, who joinedCosta Crociere in 2002 as a safety officer and was appointed captain in 2006.

In light of these accusations and the continuing investigation, it would be inappropriate for us to comment further at this time.

As we are learning more about the event and the evacuation, however, it is becoming clear that the crew of the Costa Concordia acted bravely and swiftly to help evacuate more than 4,000 individuals during a very challenging situation. We are very grateful for all they have done.

Costa is committed to ensuring that no such incident ever occurs again. Our number-one priority is always the safety and security of our guests and crew, and we comply with all safety regulations. (See background on Costa safety below).

Background on Costa’s Commitment to Safety
Costa complies very strictly with all safety regulations and our personnel are committed, first and foremost, to guest safety and security.

All crewmembers hold a BST (Basic Safety Training) certificate and are trained and prepared in emergency management and to assist passengers abandoning the ship with numerous drills. Roles, responsibilities and duties are clearly assigned to all crewmembers. Every two weeks all crewmembers perform a ship evacuation simulation. A lifeboat and evacuation drill for all guests is conducted within 24 hours of embarking, as required by law. Costa has a computerized system that ensures all passengers undergo this drill.

The skills of Costa crew are periodically tested by Coast Guard authorities and an independent classification organization, per SMS (Safety Management Systems) requirements.

There are lifeboats and jackets on board in excess of the number required for all passengers and crew. Lifeboats are equipped with food and water supplies, first-aid kits and communication and signaling equipment. All life-saving appliances meet international standards and are subject to close, regular inspection by shipboard personnel and certification authorities. All Costa ships are certified by RINA and have been built to the highest standards and technologies.


A previous statement
HOLLYWOOD, Fla. (Jan. 14, 2012, 12:30 p.m. EST) — This is the latest statement issued regarding Costa Concordia by Costa Crociere’s Corporate Communications Department. According to Costa, this is the last statement that will be issued today, though updates will follow.

"I want to express our deep sorrow for this terrible tragedy,” said Gianni Onorato, President of Costa Crociere. “I am only now able to speak on behalf of Costa because, as you will understand, I have been at Isola del Giglio to be close to the rescue operations.

“First, I would like to thank all the authorities, law enforcement and volunteers who provided assistance to our guests and crew involved in this terrible event.

“We are not at this time able to answer all questions because the authorities are trying, with our cooperation, to understand the reasons for this incident.

“On the basis of the initial evidence — still preliminary — Costa Concordia, under the command of Master Francesco Schettino, was sailing its regularly scheduled itinerary from Civitavecchia to Savona, Italy, when the ship struck a submerged rock.

“Captain Schettino, who was on the bridge at the time, immediately understood the severity of the situation and performed a maneuver intended to protect both guests and crew, and initiated security procedures to prepare for an eventual ship evacuation.

“Unfortunately, that operation was complicated by a sudden tilting of the ship that made disembarkation difficult.

“Thanks to the commitment of the agencies coordinated by the Coast Guard, rescue operations have been continuing.

“From the moment we were alerted, Costa mobilized all its resources ashore to assist our guests and crewmembers, and to prevent potential environmental impacts.”

For information, friends and families members can contact the U.S. call center at 800-462-6782.

   Update: Costa Cruise Line has released some official statements:

Saturday, January 14th 

Time 5.00 am
It is a tragedy that deeply affects our company. Our first thoughts go to the victims and we would like to express our condolences and our closeness to their families and friends. In this moment all our efforts are focused on the completion of the last emergency operations, besides providing assistance to the guests and the crew who were onboard in order to have them going back home as soon as possible. The emergency procedures started promptly to evacuate the ship. The slope, gradually taken over by the ship, made the evacuation extremely difficult. We would like to express our profound gratitude to the Coast Guard and all the forces co-ordinated by the Coast Guard, including the authorities and citizens of the island “Isola del Giglio”, who have been involved in the rescue and assistance to guests and crew members. The company will fully co-operate with the relevant Authorities in order to determine the causes of what happened.

Time 1.00 am
Costa Cruises confirms the evacuation of about 3,200 passengers and 1,000 crew members on board of the Costa Concordia. An incident occured near the island 'Isola del Giglio' of the coast of Italy. The evacuation started promptly, but the position of the ship has worsened, making it more complicated to complete the last part of the evacuation. At this moment, the cause of the incident cannot yet be confirmed. The Company is currently working with the highest commitment to provide all the needed assistance. The Costa Concordia was sailing across the Mediterranean Sea, starting from Civitavecchia with scheduled calls to Savona, Marseille, Barcelona, Palma de Mallorca, Cagliari and Palermo. About 1.000 passengers of Italian nationality were onboard, as well as more of 500 Germans, about 160 French and about 1.000 crew members. 

The Guests had to embark today in Savona and in subsequent ports will be contacted directly by Costa Cruises. 


    We at Cruize Cast have been watching the developing story of the Costa Concordia running aground and listing on a pier since news first broke last night. I thought it best to link you to all the best stories on the subject I have found.

   For passenger accounts, this MSNBC story http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45996523/ns/travel/ tells of a mishandled passenger evacuation and ship negligence in conducting the boat drill.  It raises questions in my mind about why the Costa crew was so hesitant to admit there was a serious problem and evacuate the ship before it became as dire as this account suggests.

   For a detailed timeline, another MSNBC story http://overheadbin.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/13/10152446-cruise-ship-runs-aground-off-italy-deaths-reported gives a better idea of what actually happened, including reports of the what the Captain may have been trying to do by steering the ship closer to port after it was hit by something which ripped a 160 foot gash into the ship.

   Fox News has a slide-show which shows the ship's progress into the water on one side as it apprears to be sinking. http://www.foxnews.com/slideshow/world/2012/01/14/luxury-ship-runs-aground-off-italy-bodies-found/#slide=1 
One wonders if the ship is, indeed, in shallow enough water that it will sink no further, and if the ship is salvagable. The Fox News article is pretty much a combination of all the information in previous articles, with a few new stories from passengers.  http://www.foxnews.com/world/2012/01/13/cruise-ship-reportedly-runs-aground-off-coast-italy-at-least-3-dead/?test=latestnews
 
  We will continue to follow this story and will post updates, but our first impressions are that this is terrible for the cruise industry, especially with all the comparisons to Titanic.  The biggest problem I see is the lack of safety drill and the reticence of the captain to actually recognize the emergency and call for evacuation until it was practically too late.  Future cruisers should know that a postponed saftety drill is simply not an option on American owned cruise lines, with the drill always conducted before the ship is allowed to set sail.  I would have thought that Costa, a company owned by Carnival Corp. would have the same rules, but obviously that it not the case.  Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the deceased and missing.