Re Costa Concordia: Open letter to CEO Celebrity Cruises

[dingoboy]

Dear Sir,

 

In response to your letter (attached below) about safety at sea on your ships;

 

I have travelled on Celebrity ships and I have some concerns about emergency procedures and equipment and its suitability to ensure a safe evacuation.

 

I am in aviation as such I have more than a passing interest in evacuation proceedures. When on the Eclipse last year I walked the decks and counted the capacity and number of life boats on the deck.

 

Initially I was confused when I discovered, by my calculations, that the total capacity of life rafts (150 per life boat, I think from memory) was well short of the number of crew and passengers on board, in the order of approximately 1000 spaces.

 

It was only after some time that I discovered through my own investigation that Celebrity has fitted "evacuation devices" with a capacity of up to 700 people.

 

It was only after my return to land that I able to research these evacuation devices. I was alarmed by what I learnt.

 

I have many concerns about this discovery and would like your answers here on this forum to address my questions that I know are of interest to everyone who chooses to cruise on Celebrity Solstice class ships.

 

 

http://www.viking-life.com/viking.nsf/public/products-dualchutesystems.html

 

1/ Why are passengers not informed that these "evacuation devices" are fitted to Solstice Class ships?

 

2/ Who are allocated to these "evacuation devices", are they purely for crew?

 

3/ Or are some passengers in cheaper cabins allocated spaces in these rafts?

 

NB Even if these devices are allocated 'only' to crew, in an emergency there are obviously going to instances where passengers will have to use these and I feel strongly that you have a duty as an operator to be open and fully inform all passengers that this could in fact be the only they have to escape a sinking ship.

 

4/ Has celebrity ever conducted sea trails where a full load of 700 have evacuated using the chutes.

 

5/ If a ship develops a list as has happened with the Costa Concorda, at what point, (degree of list) do they become unusable?

 

6/ In the event that one or more of these evacuation devices becomes unusable, what other option do these 700 people have as a back up escape?

 

7/ The selling point on the website for these "escape devices" is that they take up less deck space and increase views - which seems to me to be primarily a cost reduction strategy. Our muster station on Eclipse was in Qsine. And many other muster stations were also inside. My concern is that in the event of a serious and sudden list, as with Costa Concordia, Qsine is located a very long way inside the ship, well away from decks where life boats/evacuation devices are fitted.

 

Is this because with the fitting these "evacuation devices" there is simply not the space on open decks for muster stations for all passengers?

 

 

-------------------------------------------------------

 

Dear James,

 

Like you, all of us at Celebrity Cruises, both shipboard and shoreside, are deeply saddened by the events surrounding the tragic Costa Concordia accident. Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone affected by the incident.

 

I debated about writing to you, as I wanted to be respectful of the investigation process and avoid adding to the speculation as to the cause or related failures. However, the concerns that have been raised about the safety of cruise ships compelled me to take the opportunity to share what an intense focus we have always placed on safety, and how rigorously we put that focus into practice every day.

 

Since Celebrity Cruises’ founding more than 20 years ago, the safety of our guests and crew has always been our highest priority. The measures we take in the interest of safety are many, often exceeding regulatory requirements. It’s a critical part of our ongoing commitment to innovation and continuous improvement in every aspect of our business.

 

Our guests see just a portion of our safety practices through the mandatory muster drills we conduct at the outset of every sailing. But our safety practices encompass so much more. In light of the Costa Concordia accident, we chose to post a summary of our safety practices on our web site. Simply go to, http://www.CelebrityCruises.com/Safety, and click on the tab labeled "Safety and Security". I encourage you to take a look, and to share the information with your family and friends.

 

Above and beyond what we’ve communicated there, you also may be interested to know that the leader of Celebrity Cruises’ Captains is a highly experienced former officer in the U.S. Coast Guard, Greg Purdy. As the head of our Marine Operations Department, Greg’s highest priority is to guide and monitor the safety of our fleet. His own experience at sea, including serving as Captain of a Coast Guard vessel, combined with his depth of knowledge of cruise ship safety, ensures that he and the entire Celebrity Marine team continue to build on our strong safety culture.

 

Our Captains across the Celebrity fleet hold degrees from some of the world’s finest maritime institutions. You also may be surprised to know that, along with the Captain, every one of our ships has at least two other officers who hold the level of license required to serve as Captain of a cruise ship. Essentially, we have three people onboard every Celebrity ship who qualify as a Captain.

 

On average, each of Celebrity Cruises’ Captains has 25 years of seagoing experience. Besides the training and drills we conduct onboard, our Captains and their bridge teams also participate in navigation simulator courses and other training. One of the cornerstones of our training is that everyone is expected to speak up if they detect something wrong, regardless of their rank. Our shipboard officers and our shoreside team spend a considerable amount of time focused on how we can continually improve our safety procedures.

 

Along with our vast in-house expertise, we also rely on a group of experts known as our Maritime Safety Advisory Board. The group was established in 2006 to help guide our safety program and provide critical thinking from the world’s leading marine safety experts. The group includes former senior officials from the US and UK Coast Guards, as well as leadership from the academic world.

 

Our Chairman Richard Fain has said there’s no such thing as perfect safety, but there is such a thing as perfect dedication to safety. And that’s what we strive for daily.

 

Whether you’re a longtime cruiser, or have yet to sail with Celebrity, I hope you’ll help us reinforce the fact that cruising continues to maintain the best safety record of any industry in the travel business.

 

Our highly skilled and dedicated crew members look forward to welcoming you onboard soon to provide you with an outstanding vacation experience. Meanwhile, I thank you for your continued support of our brand and our business.

 

Sincerely,

 

 

Dan Hanrahan President & CEO

[Gonzo70]

Why not e-mail Celebrity if you are so concerned about this rather than post it on a forum such as this where Celebrity does not respond to posts? Seems like you have an ulterior motive. I have no concerns about the safety of sailing on Celebrity and hope they are not forced by people's emotional reactions to an extremely RARE event (that appears to have been mainly attributable to human error to boot) to take all sorts of expensive initiatives to "fix" a non-issue.

[dingoboy]

Why not e-mail Celebrity if you are so concerned about this rather than post it on a forum such as this where Celebrity does not respond to posts? Seems like you have an ulterior motive. I have no concerns about the safety of sailing on Celebrity and hope they are not forced by people's emotional reactions to an extremely RARE event (that appears to have been mainly attributable to human error to boot) to take all sorts of expensive initiatives to "fix" a non-issue.

 

I have emailed them.

[Gonzo70]

I have emailed them.

 

Good, that is a better approach.

[Despegue]

Hi there,

 

If you are "in aviation", then no doubt that you have participated in various emergency seminars, trainings and evacuation drills.

 

a couple of remarks regarding your concerns:

 

1) Assembly stations are always best situated inside the vessel, on the same deck as the evacuation devices, be it lifeboat or liferaft via the MES system. Reason for that is that obviously, any emergency is different and some methods of evacuation might not be available. you will be guided from the assembly station in an orderly manner to the best suitable escape device. Sometimes, evacuation can only be performed from one side of the ship . eg. severe listing or catastrophic fire/ explosion ( think of a fire while bunkering heavy fuel or Maritime Gass (kerosine!!) (on M-class) Also remember that there is more time for a ship evacuation than an aircraft evacuation. The 90 second rule is hardly valid here;)

 

2) tests done on North Sea trials with various vessels have proven the effectiveness of the MES (Maritime Escape System) escape tunnel and raft combination, also in bad weather situations. In case of listing of the vessel, the MES system works better and more reliably than the traditional Lifeboat and davit. Viking has done evacuations during life sea-trials of max. capacity within the 30 min. timeframe.

 

3) it is not up to the passenger to decide how one will evacuate, it is the crew's responsibility to ensure a safe, rapid evacuation. On aircraft, you also do not have a choice how you will escape, you WILL go down the slides ( which are very high on B747 upper deck for example). The MES system has been in operation for more than 15 years on ALL modern ships, including all cmodern cruise vessels.

 

4) It is NEVER the case that lower cabin grades have less chance of evacuating succesfully. We are not in the Titanic era anymore ;)

 

5) Passengers will normally have the lifeboats as primary evacuation method as far as I am aware. the MES system is primarily used as alternative and crew evacuation device.

 

I am not a Celebrity employee, nor do I know the details of their emergency procedures. I am however an experienced person regarding emergency training, both in shipping as in aviation.

 

Best regards,

 

Despegue

Cpt. B747-400

Chairman TCAS.

Aviation and Maritime Safety

[Andy]

Hi Everyone,

 

I agree with Gonzo, that it makes sense for the OP to direct his communication to Celebrity, as they (for the most part) do not respond on this forum.

 

Despegue : As always, thank you for your informative posts.

[TLCOhio]

I am not a Celebrity employee, nor do I know the details of their emergency procedures. I am however an experienced person regarding emergency training, both in shipping as in aviation.

Best regards, Despegue Cpt. B747-400

 

THANKS to Despegue for the continued excellent details and postings! It was a great learning experience in reading what you and others have posted. Appreciate the info and solid, intelligent approach in sharing. Terry in Ohio

 

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 59.302 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

[dpryo319]

Dear Sir,

 

In response to your letter (attached below) about safety at sea on your ships;

 

I have travelled on Celebrity ships and I have some concerns about emergency procedures and equipment and its suitability to ensure a safe evacuation.

 

I am in aviation as such I have more than a passing interest in evacuation proceedures. When on the Eclipse last year I walked the decks and counted the capacity and number of life boats on the deck.

 

Initially I was confused when I discovered, by my calculations, that the total capacity of life rafts (150 per life boat, I think from memory) was well short of the number of crew and passengers on board, in the order of approximately 1000 spaces.

 

It was only after some time that I discovered through my own investigation that Celebrity has fitted "evacuation devices" with a capacity of up to 700 people.

 

It was only after my return to land that I able to research these evacuation devices. I was alarmed by what I learnt.

 

I have many concerns about this discovery and would like your answers here on this forum to address my questions that I know are of interest to everyone who chooses to cruise on Celebrity Solstice class ships.

 

 

http://www.viking-life.com/viking.nsf/public/products-dualchutesystems.html

 

1/ Why are passengers not informed that these "evacuation devices" are fitted to Solstice Class ships?

 

2/ Who are allocated to these "evacuation devices", are they purely for crew?

 

3/ Or are some passengers in cheaper cabins allocated spaces in these rafts?

 

NB Even if these devices are allocated 'only' to crew, in an emergency there are obviously going to instances where passengers will have to use these and I feel strongly that you have a duty as an operator to be open and fully inform all passengers that this could in fact be the only they have to escape a sinking ship.

 

4/ Has celebrity ever conducted sea trails where a full load of 700 have evacuated using the chutes.

 

5/ If a ship develops a list as has happened with the Costa Concorda, at what point, (degree of list) do they become unusable?

 

6/ In the event that one or more of these evacuation devices becomes unusable, what other option do these 700 people have as a back up escape?

 

7/ The selling point on the website for these "escape devices" is that they take up less deck space and increase views - which seems to me to be primarily a cost reduction strategy. Our muster station on Eclipse was in Qsine. And many other muster stations were also inside. My concern is that in the event of a serious and sudden list, as with Costa Concordia, Qsine is located a very long way inside the ship, well away from decks where life boats/evacuation devices are fitted.

 

Is this because with the fitting these "evacuation devices" there is simply not the space on open decks for muster stations for all passengers?

 

 

-------------------------------------------------------

 

Dear James,

 

Like you, all of us at Celebrity Cruises, both shipboard and shoreside, are deeply saddened by the events surrounding the tragic Costa Concordia accident. Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone affected by the incident.

 

I debated about writing to you, as I wanted to be respectful of the investigation process and avoid adding to the speculation as to the cause or related failures. However, the concerns that have been raised about the safety of cruise ships compelled me to take the opportunity to share what an intense focus we have always placed on safety, and how rigorously we put that focus into practice every day.

 

Since Celebrity Cruises’ founding more than 20 years ago, the safety of our guests and crew has always been our highest priority. The measures we take in the interest of safety are many, often exceeding regulatory requirements. It’s a critical part of our ongoing commitment to innovation and continuous improvement in every aspect of our business.

 

Our guests see just a portion of our safety practices through the mandatory muster drills we conduct at the outset of every sailing. But our safety practices encompass so much more. In light of the Costa Concordia accident, we chose to post a summary of our safety practices on our web site. Simply go to, http://www.CelebrityCruises.com/Safety, and click on the tab labeled "Safety and Security". I encourage you to take a look, and to share the information with your family and friends.

 

Above and beyond what we’ve communicated there, you also may be interested to know that the leader of Celebrity Cruises’ Captains is a highly experienced former officer in the U.S. Coast Guard, Greg Purdy. As the head of our Marine Operations Department, Greg’s highest priority is to guide and monitor the safety of our fleet. His own experience at sea, including serving as Captain of a Coast Guard vessel, combined with his depth of knowledge of cruise ship safety, ensures that he and the entire Celebrity Marine team continue to build on our strong safety culture.

 

Our Captains across the Celebrity fleet hold degrees from some of the world’s finest maritime institutions. You also may be surprised to know that, along with the Captain, every one of our ships has at least two other officers who hold the level of license required to serve as Captain of a cruise ship. Essentially, we have three people onboard every Celebrity ship who qualify as a Captain.

 

On average, each of Celebrity Cruises’ Captains has 25 years of seagoing experience. Besides the training and drills we conduct onboard, our Captains and their bridge teams also participate in navigation simulator courses and other training. One of the cornerstones of our training is that everyone is expected to speak up if they detect something wrong, regardless of their rank. Our shipboard officers and our shoreside team spend a considerable amount of time focused on how we can continually improve our safety procedures.

 

Along with our vast in-house expertise, we also rely on a group of experts known as our Maritime Safety Advisory Board. The group was established in 2006 to help guide our safety program and provide critical thinking from the world’s leading marine safety experts. The group includes former senior officials from the US and UK Coast Guards, as well as leadership from the academic world.

 

Our Chairman Richard Fain has said there’s no such thing as perfect safety, but there is such a thing as perfect dedication to safety. And that’s what we strive for daily.

 

Whether you’re a longtime cruiser, or have yet to sail with Celebrity, I hope you’ll help us reinforce the fact that cruising continues to maintain the best safety record of any industry in the travel business.

 

Our highly skilled and dedicated crew members look forward to welcoming you onboard soon to provide you with an outstanding vacation experience. Meanwhile, I thank you for your continued support of our brand and our business.

 

Sincerely,

 

 

Dan Hanrahan President & CEO

 

 

I'm not quite sure where you got that picture, but they actually don't use the "chutes" anymore because passengers and crew have gotten hurt during drills using them and they are unsafe. My boyfriend who worked on the silhouette told me this after a boat drill once.

[slideman]

Yes you are correct, many cruise ships are fitted with Marine Evacuation Systems (MES). You bring some valid points which some were already answered, by members.

 

As a matter of interest you may want to have a look at this site: http://www.liferaftsystems.com.au/products.cgi?task=DETAIL&articleID=513

 

and perhaps also view these:

or

or

 

It is a fast, safe, and and relaible system.

 

Stay safe!

[jacketwatch]

Dear Sir,

 

In response to your letter (attached below) about safety at sea on your ships;

 

I have travelled on Celebrity ships and I have some concerns about emergency procedures and equipment and its suitability to ensure a safe evacuation.

 

I am in aviation as such I have more than a passing interest in evacuation proceedures. When on the Eclipse last year I walked the decks and counted the capacity and number of life boats on the deck.

 

Initially I was confused when I discovered, by my calculations, that the total capacity of life rafts (150 per life boat, I think from memory) was well short of the number of crew and passengers on board, in the order of approximately 1000 spaces.

 

It was only after some time that I discovered through my own investigation that Celebrity has fitted "evacuation devices" with a capacity of up to 700 people.

 

It was only after my return to land that I able to research these evacuation devices. I was alarmed by what I learnt.

 

I have many concerns about this discovery and would like your answers here on this forum to address my questions that I know are of interest to everyone who chooses to cruise on Celebrity Solstice class ships.

 

 

http://www.viking-life.com/viking.nsf/public/products-dualchutesystems.html

 

1/ Why are passengers not informed that these "evacuation devices" are fitted to Solstice Class ships?

 

2/ Who are allocated to these "evacuation devices", are they purely for crew?

 

3/ Or are some passengers in cheaper cabins allocated spaces in these rafts?

 

NB Even if these devices are allocated 'only' to crew, in an emergency there are obviously going to instances where passengers will have to use these and I feel strongly that you have a duty as an operator to be open and fully inform all passengers that this could in fact be the only they have to escape a sinking ship.

 

4/ Has celebrity ever conducted sea trails where a full load of 700 have evacuated using the chutes.

 

5/ If a ship develops a list as has happened with the Costa Concorda, at what point, (degree of list) do they become unusable?

 

6/ In the event that one or more of these evacuation devices becomes unusable, what other option do these 700 people have as a back up escape?

 

7/ The selling point on the website for these "escape devices" is that they take up less deck space and increase views - which seems to me to be primarily a cost reduction strategy. Our muster station on Eclipse was in Qsine. And many other muster stations were also inside. My concern is that in the event of a serious and sudden list, as with Costa Concordia, Qsine is located a very long way inside the ship, well away from decks where life boats/evacuation devices are fitted.

 

Is this because with the fitting these "evacuation devices" there is simply not the space on open decks for muster stations for all passengers?

 

 

-------------------------------------------------------

 

Dear James,

 

Like you, all of us at Celebrity Cruises, both shipboard and shoreside, are deeply saddened by the events surrounding the tragic Costa Concordia accident. Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone affected by the incident.

 

I debated about writing to you, as I wanted to be respectful of the investigation process and avoid adding to the speculation as to the cause or related failures. However, the concerns that have been raised about the safety of cruise ships compelled me to take the opportunity to share what an intense focus we have always placed on safety, and how rigorously we put that focus into practice every day.

 

Since Celebrity Cruises’ founding more than 20 years ago, the safety of our guests and crew has always been our highest priority. The measures we take in the interest of safety are many, often exceeding regulatory requirements. It’s a critical part of our ongoing commitment to innovation and continuous improvement in every aspect of our business.

 

Our guests see just a portion of our safety practices through the mandatory muster drills we conduct at the outset of every sailing. But our safety practices encompass so much more. In light of the Costa Concordia accident, we chose to post a summary of our safety practices on our web site. Simply go to, http://www.CelebrityCruises.com/Safety, and click on the tab labeled "Safety and Security". I encourage you to take a look, and to share the information with your family and friends.

 

Above and beyond what we’ve communicated there, you also may be interested to know that the leader of Celebrity Cruises’ Captains is a highly experienced former officer in the U.S. Coast Guard, Greg Purdy. As the head of our Marine Operations Department, Greg’s highest priority is to guide and monitor the safety of our fleet. His own experience at sea, including serving as Captain of a Coast Guard vessel, combined with his depth of knowledge of cruise ship safety, ensures that he and the entire Celebrity Marine team continue to build on our strong safety culture.

 

Our Captains across the Celebrity fleet hold degrees from some of the world’s finest maritime institutions. You also may be surprised to know that, along with the Captain, every one of our ships has at least two other officers who hold the level of license required to serve as Captain of a cruise ship. Essentially, we have three people onboard every Celebrity ship who qualify as a Captain.

 

On average, each of Celebrity Cruises’ Captains has 25 years of seagoing experience. Besides the training and drills we conduct onboard, our Captains and their bridge teams also participate in navigation simulator courses and other training. One of the cornerstones of our training is that everyone is expected to speak up if they detect something wrong, regardless of their rank. Our shipboard officers and our shoreside team spend a considerable amount of time focused on how we can continually improve our safety procedures.

 

Along with our vast in-house expertise, we also rely on a group of experts known as our Maritime Safety Advisory Board. The group was established in 2006 to help guide our safety program and provide critical thinking from the world’s leading marine safety experts. The group includes former senior officials from the US and UK Coast Guards, as well as leadership from the academic world.

 

Our Chairman Richard Fain has said there’s no such thing as perfect safety, but there is such a thing as perfect dedication to safety. And that’s what we strive for daily.

 

Whether you’re a longtime cruiser, or have yet to sail with Celebrity, I hope you’ll help us reinforce the fact that cruising continues to maintain the best safety record of any industry in the travel business.

 

Our highly skilled and dedicated crew members look forward to welcoming you onboard soon to provide you with an outstanding vacation experience. Meanwhile, I thank you for your continued support of our brand and our business.

 

Sincerely,

 

 

Dan Hanrahan President & CEO

Thank you for posting your concerns. I personally feel fine about X and hopefully will be on the Equinox next fall. I am pleased Dan replied in such a reassuring way. BTW why did you post this here? Best of luck. Larry

[Lazz]

I am an experienced passenger, but no nothing about being an officer or a crew member on anything larger than a party boat on lake Some Where.

 

Having said that, I thought I had heard and read that the best life boat in any emergency is the ship itself. In other words. I hope that the cruise companies make sure that I NEVER be forced into a situation where I have to use any type of life boat. I know that some things may be out of the crews hands and life boats may have to be used. But, good crew training, strictly enforced rules, and well designed ships are the best alternatives.

[robtulipe]

I'm not quite sure where you got that picture, but they actually don't use the "chutes" anymore because passengers and crew have gotten hurt during drills using them and they are unsafe. My boyfriend who worked on the silhouette told me this after a boat drill once.

This shot of the RC Oasis of the Seas was obtained from the Pt. Everglades webcam this morning so it appears RCCL, X's parent, is still using or at least evaluating this evacuation system.