10 New Cruise Industry Safety Procedures

Nearly a year after the Costa Concordia shipwreck, a cruise industry panel formally summarized 10 new safety practices that have been adopted to protect passengers.

The industry reacted quickly to the widely publicized Jan. 13, 2012, incident in which the Costa Cruises ship crashed off the Italian coast, killing 32 passengers. It established a safety panel and began implementing new procedures less than two months after the accident.

Passengers may have already noticed one new policy, adopted last February, which requires cruise lines to hold muster drills before ships leave port. Previous regulations called for them within 24 hours of departure.


Another new policy, adopted in April, severely limits bridge access during arrival and departure from port and any other time when increased vigilance is required, such as during heavy traffic.

"The industry's commitment to the safety of passengers and crew remains our number one priority," Christine Duffy, president and CEO of Cruise Line International Association, said in a statement.

Other newly enacted policies include:

• Excess life jackets: Cruise ships must carry additional life jackets, having more than the number of passengers aboard.
• Location of life jacket: The jackets must be stowed near muster stations or lifeboats and be easily accessible.
• Securing equipment: Cruise lines must enact procedures to secure heavy items such as pianos and televisions.
• Passenger nationality: The nationality of each passenger must be recorded and easily available to search-and-rescue workers.
• Musters and emergency instructions: During musters and emergency situations, cruise lines must communicate 12 basic elements to passengers, including the location of life jackets and how to recognize emergency exits.
• Lifeboat loading training: Crews responsible for lifeboats must practice loading and handling one full boat at least every six months.
• Passage planning: All bridge team members to be briefed on passage plans.
• Consistent bridge procedures: Large cruise companies must have consistent bridge operating procedures across all its brands.

The safety review was led by cruise industry members with the advice and input of an independent panel of safety experts, including Mark Rosenker, former chairman of the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board; Stephen Meyer, former Rear Admiral in the Royal Navy and Head of the UK's Marine Accident Investigation Branch; Dr. Jack Spencer, former director, Office of Marine Safety, U.S. National Transportation Safety Board, and Willem de Ruiter, former executive director of the European Maritime Safety Agency.

Source: USA Today

This item was written by Larry Bleiberg, former Travel Editor of The Dallas Morning News and Coastal Living magazine. Bleiberg is serving as Guest Editor of The Cruise Log while USA TODAY Cruise Editor Gene Sloan is away.