The Costa Concordia...

There are so many disasters that happen in our world, most of which are unpreventable.  Natural if you will and generally weather related.  I am not considering wars and other acts of human atrocities.  There are things, catastrophic things, which we have no control over.

The Costa Concordia Cruise that went aground off the coast of Italy…there are no words for this.  I have not spoken much of my experience on the cruise ship.  Mostly out of embarrassment at the lack of time I was on it, but it was definitely not an experience I will ever forget. 

I remember when I interviewed for the job, the recruiter telling me this was one of the hardest ships in the industry to work for.  It was easy to get offered the job, hard to get on.  There were background checks and physicals and the list went on.  For about 3 months I was going in ten directions to get paperwork filled out and processed.  That was nothing compared to what happened once we got on.

Immediately you are treated like an employee, even though you don’t technically start your job for 7 days.  I flew 9 hours straight on a plane and immediately went to class.  It was a very minor introduction to your new life and then drills training.  We were taken to our muster station and told what was to happen in the event of an emergency.  This was literally within hours of my arrival.  You better know what the alarms meant when you got to class in the morning and you better know where to go when one sounds.  Within the first (and only) 2 weeks I was onboard, we went through several drills.  Lifesaving, safety drills.  Our entire first week was spent on such things.  A lot of it was classroom; a lot of it was physical.  Firefighting, water safety, CPR/First Aid, you name it, it was mandatory.  And you were required to pass it or you went home when we arrived in Honolulu the next Saturday.  Before you could “graduate” you had to literally be able to write or speak the paths to safety from your room and your place of work.  In detail.

It was not the easiest thing in the world to do, nor was it the hardest.  Some of it was boring; some of it was something I hope I never have to utilize in the world.  I do remember each instructor telling us that because we were in US waters, that the requirements for safety training were much stricter than international waters and so were the maritime laws.  It seemed mundane and monotonous at the time because it was literally shoved down our throats and we were tested, relentlessly tested.  But very few people can say they are responsible for 2000 passengers every single day.  And you were.  It didn’t matter your rank. 

I suppose I am not like most people who are viewing these news updates about the Costa Concordia…I would imagine most of us think it is sad and that it should have been prevented.  I still have friends on the ship I had to depart.  If something like this happened I would be a mess.  Even though it was a brief beep on my radar of life, it still affected me deeply.  I cannot fathom being on that ship and being surrounded by crew who had no clue what their roles were, crew who couldn’t speak English…or knowing that the Captain had abandoned ship.  It is even more ridiculous that something like this happens in 2012.

Truly, my heart is breaking for the families who have loved ones who have still not been found.  I have a really hard time watching the footage.  And I realize it is not as awful as say the tsunami, hurricanes, etc…I am probably most upset that it should have never happened.

I hope the captain spends what life he has left, in jail.