FINANCIAL TIMES: The chief executive of Costa Cruises, Italian operator of the Costa Concordia cruise ship that capsized last Friday after venturing dangerously close to a Tuscan island, said it was possible other captains may have deviated from company-approved routes in the area.
“It’s possible they did without us knowing,” Pier Luigi Foschi, said in a telephone interview. “That’s what [the Costa Concordia captain] did.”…
According to Costa Cruises, it had previously given only one authorisation for the Costa Concordia to approach Giglio – last August 14 when another captain was in charge, to mark the island’s saints day. Mr Foschi did not dispute a report by Lloyds List that the ship came within 230 metres of the island on that day, but said it had passed the harbour and was safe within deep waters. He noted that no shipping regulations forbade that… (more)
EDITOR: Tragedies like this usually are not isolated events but manifestation of ongoing laxity concerning safety. We would be hesitant about booking a voyage with Costa Cruises and its parent company Carnival. Costa Cruises has some real work to do about generating a new ethos based upon safety and supervision.
