Causes, Triggers, and Drivers of Costa Concordia Disaster - Assignment Example

Case study: Costa Concordia Name Institution Instructor Date The Costa Concordia, a cruise ship built in Italy in 2004 and operated by Costa Crociere , ran aground on 13 January 2012 off the Italian coast. Evacuation of cruise passengers took approximately 5,5 hours longer than that prescribed by maritime law (30 minutes) and 32 people died. The Costa Concordia’s grounding represent a major change event as discussed below. 1.Analyse and discuss the various CAUSES, TRIGGERS AND DRIVERS of the disastrous Grounding and wrecking / partial sinking of the Costa Concordia [10 marks] Causes of the sinking According to investigations carried out by a number of authorities such as the Italian Marine Casualty Investigation Central Board and the e European Maritime Safety Agency, the accident was caused by human error. The investigations revealed that the captain of the ship sailed the ship too close to the Giglo Island where it hit some rocks. However, this sail-past was on schedule (BBCa). Some passengers testified about the accident and claimed that the cruise ship was sailing at a relatively high speed of 30 km/h at the time of the accident which was intended to recover time lost during the captain’s personal activities which specifically were to dance with an ex-dancer (Squires, 2012). Prosecutors thus called for criminal prosecutions and charged the captain with manslaughter and also for violating the Italian Penal Code and Code of Navigation which included abandoning passengers (Captain Left ship, 2012). Drivers Scheduling to the sail past. It was reported that the sail past close to the Giglio Porto Islands was the sail schedule of the ship. This scheduling did not carefully assess the dangers of a sail-past in an area of shallow waters thus increased the risk to the ship. There was no indication from the management of the company that sail-past events were handled a special high risk processes that require a careful and unique approach (…….). The need to impress the passengers and the people of Giglio Porto Island. Previous ships, also captained by Captain Schettino, had made impressive sail-pasts along the Islands. This was identified by a letter that had been sent to the captain by the Mayor of Giglio Porto islands thanking him for an “incredible spectacle” in a previous close sail-past (Showboating, 2012). In fact, in August and September 2010, other ships bellowing to the same company, Costa Pacifica and Costa Allegra, as close as one mile to the Island (Dinmore and Gainsbury, 2012). The international maritime law requirement to have all cruise ship passengers receive emergency response training within 24 hrs of boarding. This created a window to have untrained passengers during an incident. In the case of Costa Concordia, 700 passengers had not been trained on emergency response. Triggers The Captain made an incorrect decision to steer off the scheduled path to sail too close to the island. This is a lack of discipline and negligence on part of the captain to steer away from the scheduled path of the ship in an attempt to impress passengers and the locals. Piers Luigi, CEO of the Costa Cruises show that the decision to change the course was purely the captain’s decision (Captain decided, 2012) The incorrect decision by the captain was triggered by poor monitoring on adherence to set ship course. The captain knew that he could veer off the course for his own personal reasons without detection by his employer. Pier Luigi Foschi revealed this possibility when he indicated that the ships scheduled course and route were computer stored and controlled via GPS by the firm whereby any deviation would set off alarms which, however, could be manually overridden (Captain decided, 2012). Lack of training on emergency response. The passengers were not trained on how to respond in case of an emergency hence there was chaos during the accident. Such chaos could have exacerbated the situation and probably deaths would have been avoided. The accident happened within 24 hours of boarding and within the 24 hour limit to train passengers on emergency responses. 2. Critically discuss the CHANGE MANAGEMENT process followed by management on-board, in Costa Crociere and Carnival Corporation in response to the Concordia Disaster [10 marks] Costa Crociere reinstituted new safety measures. This required emergency training, or muster drills as commonly known, for all passengers immediately after boarding a ship or before leaving the port unlike before where the same training was offered within 24 hrs of boarding. This was in recognition of the fact that accidents can happen in less than 24 hrs after boarding as was the case with 700 Costa Concordia passengers who were to receive their training the following morning prior to the accident a hey had embarked the ship in Rome (Gordon, 2012). A new muster drill training program was developed to replace the old. The new muster drill comprised of 12 specific emergency instructions that included the location of lifejackets, how and when to don life jackets, type of alarms, place of gathering after alarms etc (Saltzman, 2013). The muster drills were made mandatory with persons who did not participate in the drills being disembarked from ships (Archer, 2012). This law does not recognize passenger’s past experience in muster drills. However, there are exceptions that those who miss the drills with a valid reason can be offered compensatory muster drills (Cruise ships introduce, 2012) 3. Indicate how the change process COULD have been managed to minimize the negative consequences of the Concordia Disaster . [5 marks] Offering muster drill immediately after embarking to all passengers could have avoided the high number casualties. The fact that around 700 passengers who had boarded the ship just a few hours prior to the accident had not revived muster drill training could have caused the chaos. Recordings of the accident indicated chaos and confusion rather than orderly evacuation procedures. One passenger named Bruno indicated that “it was every man for himself. The main thing is no one knew how to help because they were never trained. That is the cruise ship’s fault” (Erlanger, 2012). The Company should have installed warning systems that cannot be manually overridden when the captain veers from the scheduled route. In doing so, the ship could not have moved so close to the island where there were rock outgrowths that caused the accident. This implies that the management should create a new system and train its employees and captains about the new system. To make this change effective, the firm should create some urgency around it and empowering the employees to own the change process by individualizing whereby each and every one understand how best the change will impact on them. Proper disaster preparedness by the crew. Recordings from the ships black box reveal a chaotic situation where the ship crew did not have the competence to handle the situation. Captain Schettino himself admitted over radio that “I screwed up.” Peter Ronai, a lawyer of the families affected claimed “crew members weren't all trained in safety procedures 'This ship was as big as a shopping mall. There was absolute chaos” (Day, 2012). This clearly shows the crew was partly responsible for the chaos through their inability or unpreparedness in handling such as disaster. Poor communication between the Helmsman and the captain. Survivors from the ship indicate that that captain, who happened to be way from the steering room was heard shouting to helmsman to steer the ship further away from the shallow waters. During the trial, Captain Schettino claimed that his helmsman was 13 seconds late in making an emergency maneuver that would have avoided the disaster. However, whether 13 seconds were enough to steer the ship away from disaster was heavily contested by experts (Davies, 2013). This clearly shows that there was breakdown in communication between the captain and his helmsman. Clear communication between the two who have enabled the captain to detect impending danger and initiate necessary action. Change management at any organization is a sensitive issue. There are usually forces that drive change and force that oppose change. The management must manage these forces well and achieve the right balance to move forward. 4 Identify and discuss the UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES of the Concordia Disaster (this refers to OTHER emergent change processes that inadvertently resulted from / followed in the wake of the Concordia’s grounding) [10 marks] There were calls for tougher punishment on captains who abandon ships in disaster before ensuring the safety of others There was reconsideration on the timing of muster drills for all ship passengers There was a huge concern for the environmental impact of such ships The financial position of the Carnival Corporation of Miami, the parent firm of Costa Concordia suffered a massive dip in stock shares by up to fifth (Erlanger, 2012) The ship, being so close to the Giglio Island was turned into a tourist attraction site before it was evacuated. Many residents of Giglio Island and surrounding areas flocked to the coast to witness the half sunken ship. The costa Concordia disasters served a warning to cruise ship companies to be more carefully about tracking the scheduled courses of their ships. The ship also cautioned ship captains about making dangerous sail-past in areas of shallow waters. There was a huge dent to the cruise ship industry. Players in the US and the UK, which happen to be the largest markets slashed down their fares to attract new cruises. For instance, fares in the US dropped to below $50 per day meals excluded (Archer, 2013). 5. Evaluate the impact of this major change, the Concordia’s disaster, on Costa Crociere and its stakeholders [10 marks]: The use of a stakeholder map or similar to identify the major stakeholders, should prove helpful. Use evidence from the case to substantiate your view External stakeholders Government requires to instill better regulation to govern cruise ships especially those American owned but registered in foreign countries such as Panama with loose legislations Professional bodies should push for a more ethically acceptable approach especially from captains in regards to abandoning ship before all passengers are evacuated. Experts have also included a new list of safety issues for passengers to consider before considering using a cruise ship such as languages spoken by crew (Motter, 2012). The society including passengers on the other hand should take muster drills more seriously and make sure that hey follow instructions given out by crew members during emergence situations. Connected shareholders Shareholders of the Carnival Corporation of Miami, the parent Company of Royal Caribbean suffered a hug drop its share in the New York Stock Exchange (Erlanger 2012). The investors lost gaining retunes on their investment after the loss of $568 million and more millions in compensation estimated at $1.3 million (Kingston, 2013). The Royal Caribbean, which is the largest cruise line suffered a very negative impact public as passengers could no longer feel safer to travel with the company. In fact Archer (2013) authored a very though provoking article titled “would you cruise after Concordia?” This article in one way or another sought to incite people against doing cruise ships. Internal stakeholders The management should initiate a better course navigation system for their ships to ensure that captains stick to stipulated courses and that any deviation can be detected at the headquarters. Employees should be engaged in better and more enhanced training on emergency situation and evacuation. in the current case, evacuation took around 76 minutes instead of the stipulated 30 minutes in an accident that happened just a few hundred meters from the shore which s not comparable to the Titanic case (Levs, 2012). 6. Reflect on the functioning of COSTA CROCIERE since its inception (against the backdrop of the Cruise Line Industry)… can patterns or change patterns be observed? [5 marks] Costa Crociere was established as a cargo ship company in 1854. The firm is a subsidiary of the Carnival Corporation & PLc. The firm was the acquired by Carnival Corporation in 2000. Over the years, the company shifted from a cargo line to a fully cruise ship line. Over the years, the company has expanded through acquisition of competitors. The company currently operates a number of ships under different classes such as Mistral class, classical class, victoria class, Atlantica class etc. The firms safety record has been impressive until the Costa Concordia case in which 32 people lost their lives on July 13 2012. However, in the same year another two of its cruise ships were involved in mishaps. On February 2012 27th before the Costa Concordia sinking, Costa Allegra drifted in the deep waters of the Indian Ocean for five days after the engine lost power following a fire in the engines room. No casualties were reported though the ship was finally towed to Seychelles. References Archer, J. (2013). Would you cruise after Concordia? CNN. Retrieved online on 27.04.14 from, http://travel.cnn.com/cruising-bruising-365411 Archer, J. (2012). Cruise safety drill: A welcome change to inadequate rules. The Telegraph. Retrieved online on 27.04.14 from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/cruises/9073901/Cruise-safety-drill-A-welcome-change-to-inadequate-rules.html Brown, C. (2012). Six ways the Costa Concordia disaster will change cruising. CNN. Retrieved online on 27.04.14 from, http://www.cntraveler.com/daily-traveler/2012/01/costa-concordia-six-changes-to-the-cruising-industry-safety BBCa(2013). Costa Concordia captain blames helmsman for crash. BBC. Retrieved online on 27.04.14 from, http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-24210522 Ebersold, B. (2012). After Concordia: Industry scrambles to improve safety. Marine Log 117(6); 21-25 Captain left ship well before passengers – prosecutor (2012). Retrieved online on 27.04.14 from, http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20120115/world/captain-left-ship-well-before-passengers-prosecutor.402320 Captain decided to change ship’s course (2012). BBC. Retrieved online on 27.04.14 from, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16575721 Cruise ships introduce mandatory pre-departure safety drills. (2012). Telegraph. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/travelnews/9073879/Cruise-ships-introduce-mandatory-pre-departure-safety-drills.html Cruising is safe' travellers told, as industry is criticized for 'putting profits above safety' Daily Mail. Retrieved online on 27.04.14 from, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/article-2087350/Costa-Concordia-tragedy-Cruising-accused-putting-profits-safety-PSA-reassures-passengers.html Day, K. (2012). 'Roberto, I screwed up… look I’m dying here': Black box recording from doomed Costa Concordia reveals Captain Coward's panic after ship hit rock. Daily Mail. Retrieved online on 27.04.14 from, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2217900/Black-box-recording-doomed-Costa-Concordia-reveals-chaos-ship-hit-rock.html Davies, L. (2013). Costa Concordia captain blames helmsman for cruise ship disaster. The Guardian. http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/sep/23/costa-concordia-captain-blame-disaster Dinmore, G. & Gainsbury, S. (2012). Concordia ‘not first to deviate from routes’ Financial Times. Retrieved online on 27.04.14 from http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/27aff644-437c-11e1-8489-00144feab49a.html#axzz2zpMhBl4X Erlanger, S. (2012). Oversight of Cruise Lines at Issue After Disaster. New York Times. Retrieved online on 27.04.14 from http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/17/world/europe/oversight-of-cruise-lines-at-issue-after-disaster.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 Gordon, S. (2012). Cruise industry introduces new safety drills after Concordia. Daily Mail. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/article-2099325/Costa-Concordia-disaster-sparks-new-ruling-emergency-drills-board-cruise-ships.html Hall, A. (2012). Costa Concordia tragedy prompts cruise industry reviews and changes. Retrieved online on 27.04.14 from, http://meetingsnet.com/risk-management/costa-concordia-tragedy-prompts-cruise-industry-reviews-and-changes Kingston, T. (2013). Costa Concordia firm fined $1.3 million for shipwreck off Italy. L.A Times. http://articles.latimes.com/2013/apr/10/world/la-fg-wn-costa-concordia-fine-20130410 Levs, J. (2012). What caused the cruise ship disaster? CNN. Retrieved online on 27.04.14 from http://edition.cnn.com/2012/01/15/world/europe/italy-cruise-questions/ Motter, P. (2012). How to pick a cruise line for safety. Fox News. Retrieved online on 27.04.14 from http://www.foxnews.com/travel/2012/01/16/how-to-pick-cruise-line-for-safety/ Squires, N. (2012). Concordia captain changed ship’s speed for dinner with ex-dancer. The telegraph. www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/9103705/Concordia-captain-changed-ships-speed-for-dinner-with-ex-dancer.html Showboating linked to cruise disaster. Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved online on 27.04.14 from http://www.smh.com.au/travel/travel-incidents/showboating-linked-to-cruise-disaster-20120116-1q27o.html Saltzman, D. (2012). 10 cruise industry safety policy changes since the Concordia sinking. Cruise Critic. Retrieved online on 27.04.14 from http://www.cruisecritic.com/news/news.cfm?ID=5151 dfdf fgfg Read More