Carnival Corporation & plc announces comprehensive audit and review of safety and emergency responses across all its cruise lines
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- Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä
- Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines
- Published: 19 January 2012 19 January 2012
Following the tragic Costa Concordia accident, Carnival Corporation & plc, parent company of Costa Cruises and nine leading cruise lines around the world, today announced a comprehensive audit and review of all safety and emergency response procedures across all of the company’s cruise lines.
Carnival Corporation & plc and the cruise industry as a whole have maintained an excellent safety record over the years. "However, this tragedy has called into question our company’s safety and emergency response procedures and practices," said Micky Arison, chairman and CEO of Carnival Corporation & plc. "While I have every confidence in the safety of our vessels and the professionalism of our crews, this review will evaluate all practices and procedures to make sure that this kind of accident doesn’t happen again."
The review is being led by Captain James Hunn, a retired U.S. Navy Captain and currently the company’s senior vice president of Maritime Policy & Compliance. Following a 32-year career in the Navy, Hunn has held senior positions at Carnival Corporation & plc for nearly a decade, focusing on corporate-wide efforts to establish maritime policy standards, while overseeing the company’s health, environmental, safety, and security practices.
Hunn and senior health and safety executives from each of the lines will review all safety and emergency response policies and procedures, officer and crew training and evaluation, bridge management and company-wide response and support efforts. Hunn will report to the Health, Environment, Safety & Security Committee of the Board, and to Howard Frank, vice chairman and chief operations officer of Carnival Corporation & plc.
In addition, the Health, Environment, Safety & Security Committee is engaging outside industry-leading experts in the fields of emergency response organization, training and implementation to conduct an audit of all of the company’s emergency response and safety procedures and to conduct a thorough review of the Costa Concordia accident.
Frank said, "This company-wide initiative will identify lessons learned and best practices to further ensure the security and safety of all of our passengers and crew."
Carnival Corporation & plc also supports the call for a comprehensive evaluation of safety regulations by the International Maritime Organization, which was requested earlier today by the Cruise Lines International Association.
Costa Cruises and Carnival Corporation & plc reiterate commitment to support Costa Concordia passengers and crew
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- Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä
- Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines
- Published: 19 January 2012 19 January 2012
Costa Cruise Lines and its parent company, Carnival Corporation & plc, yesterday confirmed their commitment to provide full support to those passengers, crew and families of the victims of the Costa Concordia grounding.
"I give my personal assurance that we will take care of each and every one of our guests, crew and their families affected by this tragic event. Our company was founded on this principle and it will remain our focus," said Micky Arison, chairman and CEO of Carnival Corporation & plc.
In this spirit, Costa has been arranging lodging and transportation for affected passengers and crew members to return home. Every passenger and crew member or their family is being contacted and the company has offered its assistance and counseling as needed, and will be addressing personal possessions lost on board. Costa has also begun the process of refunding all voyage costs including both passenger cruise fares and all costs incurred while on board. Our senior management teams are working together to determine additional support.
"During this time of tragedy, we are doing our very best to provide the needed support to the Costa Concordia passengers, crew and their families," said Pier Luigi Foschi, chairman and CEO of Costa Cruises.
Three way approach to enhance safety seen after Costa Concordia
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- Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen
- Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines
- Published: 19 January 2012 19 January 2012
Calls for improving safety of passenger vessels after the Costa Concordia disaster is likely to lead action on three levels, speakers at a news conference in London called by Cruise Lines’ International Association (CLIA), European Cruise Council (ECC) and Passenger Shipping Association(PSA) said.
On the international level, the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) will be the key platform and Italy, the flag state of Costa Concordia, is likely to come up with its own proposals and recommendations in the near future, said dr. Tom Allan, permanent representative of the UK in the IMO, the United Nations’ maritime organisation that has its headquarters in London.
Secondly, passenger shipping industry organisation themselves are likely to review safety questions and thirdly, individual cruise shipping companies are also likely to see what can be done to enhance safety further.
While it will probably take years before any new safety measures introduced by IMO would take effect, those initiated on the company and industry organisation level can be introduced sooner, Allen continued.
Allen also pointed out that large vessels in themselves are good from safety point of view, because they allow designers more freedom in arranging watertight sub-division than smaller ships. Design of evacuation systems also enjoys the same flexibility, Allen said, pointing out that large vessels are in the lead when it comes to innovation and development of safety on board cruise ships.
The panelists did not want to discuss Costa Concordia in particular as investigation to the causes of the accident is in progress. The discussion did not touch human error aspects in accidents, factor that appears to have played the greatest role in this case, but focused more on matters of technical and new safety nature in general.
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