In response to media enquiries in relation to the Costa Concordia disaster, the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) has developed the following information intended to assist in response to questions that might be posed, or on passenger ship design, construction and safety in general.

It is prudent to await the official report of the Costa Concordia grounding before making any comment on the possible causes of the incident or recommendations for the industry or for regulators.  However, the questions and answers below are intended for information purposes and further information can be requested from ICS (James.Langley@ics-shipping.org), National Shipowners' Associations or the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA).

What modifications have been made to passenger ships since the Titanic disaster and have these modifications made them more secure and safer?

It is not just passenger ships that have been modified since the Titanic, safety and emergency equipment and shore support has moved on a great deal.  Like any industry the shipping industry has learnt lessons from experience and unfortunately from accidents such as the Titanic.

If you wish to make a direct comparison with the Titanic, things that exist on today's passenger ships include lifeboats and life rafts for 125% of the people on board, this is important to note as if in an incident some lifesaving equipment is damaged, there is spare life saving capacity on board.  It might also appear that not all of the lifeboats or life rafts have been used on board evacuated ships but it may be that they were not required in an incident as they were part of this spare capacity.

Ship design is a comprehensive and heavily regulated process, passenger ships have to comply with stability requirements in the IMO SOLAS Convention which was first adopted in 1914 and it has been regularly revised ever since.  Examples include comprehensive damage stability survivability requirements, the watertight compartmentalisation of a ship's hull, calculations to ensure that ships will not immediately capsize and emergency pumping arrangements.

Crew training and certification is another area that has improved the safety of the shipping industry, crews are trained before they join a ship, they are then trained, briefed and familiarised when they immediately join the ship and then they are trained in their specific emergency duties on board.

When the term crew is referred to it is not intended to restrict the scope to only include deck and engine officers and deck and engine ratings, almost every member of crew on board has an emergency responsibility.  As an example photographers, entertainers, hairdressers and shop workers on board passengers all have emergency responsibilities, these might range from assisting and organising passengers in Assembly or Muster Stations to checking cabins and being stationed at every stair well in an emergency to direct passengers.

Another area that needs to be considered is the responsibility of the flag states that allow these vessels to operate under their flags; the flag approval process includes approval of the design, inspection during construction and an inspection and assessment of the crew demonstrating their emergency responsibilities.  Another important safety mechanism is Port State Control where vessels are regularly inspected for safety at ports they call at by that country's maritime administration, one of the key areas inspected is the crew's familiarisation with their emergency duties.

Search and Rescue and Communications have also improved dramatically since the Titanic, on board communication is so much easier, crews have many tools at their disposal including radios, paging systems and even mobile phones to communicate pertinent information to each other, as well as internal telephone systems and talkback systems.  Fire Detection Systems, Damage Stability Computer software and CCTV are amongst many of the tools that are available to inform decisions on the ship. 

There has also been a growing focus on the size of vessels, how big are they today versus 10 to 20 years ago and does size necessarily pose any bigger danger?

10 - 20 years ago passenger ships were over or around 200 metres in length.  In the last 10 years the cruise industry has increased in popularity and size and ships have got much bigger, the largest at the moment is 360 metres in length, which is around 3 football pitches in length.  Size, isn't necessarily an issue for passenger ships they all have to meet the same stability standards.  Larger ships can actually offer more stability with more space for sub division and watertight compartments.

Larger ships will probably have a larger draught meaning they sit deeper in the water and therefore there are limitations to the amount of ports and areas that they might be able to operate in.  Larger ships can be more stable in rough seas and offer a more stable platform for evacuation.  Of course larger vessels carry more passengers but they also carry more crew to look after the passenger's safety and of course on board enjoyment.

One of the major concerns is that a large passenger vessel makes it more difficult to evacuate during an emergency. Is this a valid concern or are bigger vessels able to provide more benefits including larger areas for lifeboats and easier access to muster stations for higher numbers of people?

There is no doubt that directing and controlling a large amount of people in an emergency situation anywhere will always be a challenge.  Evacuating a larger airplane might take longer than evacuating a smaller one, evacuating people from a large shopping centre, an office building or a nightclub will also be a challenge however. What large passenger ships offer and have in common with these comparisons is more space to muster people, more exits and more personnel to assist in an emergency.  Several different lounges, restaurants and spaces such as theatres on board are used to muster passengers and these spaces all have designated lifeboats and life rafts.  Contingency plans are in place if things don't go to plan and several alternative scenarios are regularly rehearsed.  Larger ships allow lots of space for the launching of lifeboats and other lifesaving equipment.

The lifeboats themselves are now enclosed, sophisticated craft rather than the open rowing boats of Titanic days.  Is there a problem launching them in the event of a sinking or are they sufficiently advanced to pose no such risk? There is growing speculation about replacing lifeboats with some alternative. Will that fundamentally make any difference to the safety of passengers?

Passenger ship lifeboats are not actually fully enclosed, they are only partially enclosed, the intent is to afford protection for the occupants from the elements which could be intense heat from the sun or wind, sea spray and rain, depending on where the vessel is.  They are designed to be filled quickly and launched with relatively low preparation, they are required by regulation to be ready for use within 5 minutes from their stowed position.

Cruise ships also carry life rafts and these are equally quick to launch and take a relatively large number of people.

There has been a gradual increase in the use of Marine Evacuation Systems, these are large inflatable slides that connect to large life rafts, similar to what aircraft have and these allow a rapid evacuation of passengers.  Modern versions of these have near vertical chutes that connect into large enclosed life rafts and there are ships that operate with a combination of these and lifeboats and even some vessels, notably ferries, that only have evacuation chutes and rescue boats.  

Does safety on passenger ships increasingly come down to the effectiveness of crew training rather than the stability of the vessels given changes to their designs?

One of a vessel's most important assets is the crew and this is recognised by the comprehensive international training and certification requirements as well as the requirement for companies to provide clear roles and responsibilities to their crews.  The safety of passenger ships is not just down to those who operate them however. Designers, ship builders, regulators and flag and port states all have a role to play.

It should also be mentioned that with respect to safety drills and instruction for passengers, there is a need for passengers to participate and take note of emergency instructions just like they should when they travel on an airplane. 

Are there any changes that are needed to be made to modify the designs of cruise liners in the light of the Costa Concordia incident?

It is wrong to speculate on the causes of the accident at this stage.  We believe that very quickly we will see preliminary results of the current investigations and only then will it be possible to examine the design requirements and to agree on any changes then required.

Do maritime regulations governing the safety of vessels also need modifying or are they sufficient as they are?

The International Convention on Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) is at the core of maritime safety regulation and is a robust and comprehensive framework in which we can all have confidence.  However, it is normal practice to examine such regulations in the light of every accident to see whether in fact experience has revealed that something needs to be changed.  The shipping industry is a willing participant in the exploration of such changes and in the development of suitable new safety regulation where it is found to be needed through lessons learned. 


James Langley

Senior Adviser (Marine Operations), ICS

This article was initially published at International Chamber of Shipping website and is reproduced here with their kind permission