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The disaster of the cruise ship Costa Concordia off the western cost of Italy has been the subject of many discussions throughout social networks and media in general regarding the security of these massive ships in our waters. One of the key issue to be understood is: can we blame one person only for the disaster? Costa Crociere, while trying to defend its captain in the first place, has now drastically changed its own position and has been accusing the captain for taking a decision that was not allowed by the firm, or at least that is what they say. The coming days will help clarifying the dynamics of the disaster as well as the responsibilities of every single person and institutions that were involved. What are we seeing now is the use of the coward captain Schettino as the scapegoat of something bigger, which involves the entire crew, the cruise ship owner Costa Crociere as well as those responsible for not making regulations strict enough, being too permissive towards these giants of the sea. Some experts in the sector have also criticised the quality of training courses carried by part of the crew. In fact, in order to be more competitive in the market, rescuing courses can be carried anywhere around the world, with a level of standards which appears not very consistent. If we also consider that out of the entire crew (approximately one thousand people) only one hundred had some kind of clue with regards to maritime security, we may come to the conclusion that the cruising industry would need stricter and more effective regulations aimed at guaranteeing a higher degree of security for all the passengers. The kind of dangerous manoeuvre that caused Costa Concordia hit the seabed has been made several times in the past, showing a bad habit within the industry. Only a few months ago a similar manoeuvre was made off the coast of Giglio Island in order to allow tourists in the ship to see the fireworks, and the same happens in other famous tourist spots like Venice. Restoring credibility for the Italian cruiser will be a very tough task, as this horrible event will definitely hit not just Costa Crociere but the entire industry too. The question is: do we really need these huge monsters for our holidays, allowing them to get so close to our shores, or maybe it's time to re-think the entire concept behind the cruise business, maybe offering alternatives that can be more eco-friendly and at the same time more secure, putting maritime security on the first place and restoring credibility in an industry that needs structural changes.
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maritime security, marine security, costa crociere, cruise ship,
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