Cruise Ship "Costa Concordia" Salvage Attempt To Go Ahead 151
dryriver writes "A daring attempt to pull the shipwrecked Costa Concordia upright will go ahead on Monday, Italian officials have confirmed. The Civil Protection agency said the sea and weather conditions were right for the salvage attempt. Engineers have never tried to move such a huge ship so close to land. Thirty-two people died when the cruise ship hit rocks off the Tuscan island of Giglio in January 2012. It has been lying on its side ever since. Five people have already been convicted of manslaughter over the disaster, and the ship's captain, Francesco Schettino, is currently on trial accused of manslaughter and abandoning ship. The salvage operation is due to begin at 06:00 (04:00 GMT) on Monday, and it is being described as one of the largest and most daunting ever attempted. The head of the operation, Nick Sloane, told AFP news agency that it was now or never for the Costa Concordia, because the hull was gradually weakening and might not survive another winter. Engineers will try to roll the ship up using cables and the weight of water contained in huge metal boxes welded to the ship's sides — a process called parbuckling. This procedure must be done very slowly to prevent further damage to the hull, which has spent more than 18 months partially submerged in 50ft of water and fully exposed to the elements. The salvage project has so far cost more than 600m euros ($800m; £500m) and could cost a lot more by the time the operation is complete."
Re:this has me wondering (Score:5, Insightful)
Is this a dress rehearsal for RMS Titanic?
I'm curious as to what makes you think it might be.
Is there something aboard Costa Concordia that we shouldn't know about? (yes, I'm thinking of a certain book)
Uh... the Necronomicon?
What's happening right now is a desecration.
Why? We don't leave mangled wrecks of cars by the side of the road. Wouldn't it be a massive hazard to shipping to leave it where it is and let it get slowly chipped to bits by the sea?
Is it comfortable? (Score:5, Insightful)
Why are you speaking up now?
I'm sure the bumbling amateurs who are making it up as they go along could have benefited from your vast knowledge and experience if only you'd bothered to share them earlier.
You're a hoarder, that's what you are.
Re:this has me wondering (Score:5, Insightful)
What I got is that there's only two kinds of people in a shipwreck, those who can make decisions for themselves, and those who are at substantial risk of dying while they wait for someone else to make decisions for them. I watched a documentary on the incident and many people were just sitting around waiting for someone to save them.
Actually four kinds of people: those too dumb to leave when they're in actual danger, those smart enough to get out of danger, those smart enough to know they're not in danger and wait for rescue, and those stupid enough to have the mindset "do something, anything, even if it's wrong." HHGTG is right: Don't panic. Nothing is more dangerous than panic.
Whether to wait or act depends on the situation.
Re:Cost of salvage Cost of replacement?? (Score:5, Insightful)
I'm fairly sure the cost of a new ship and the cost of salvage have absolutely nothing to do with each other. It's like saying "Why both removing the tree that fell on my roof? It's cheapest just to plant a new tree!" That's what the Costa Concordia is right now... a tree that fell on the roof. It needs to be chopped up and hauled away for scrap and they're trying to do it without causing more damage to the roof (which is largely the marine environment and tourism in this bad analogy).
Re:this has me wondering (Score:5, Insightful)
What I don't get about this is what's so horribly wrong with a captain abandoning the ship?
He's supposed to be the one organizing the evacuation efforts. He's the one people are reporting the condition of the ship to. He's in charge of the stupid ship. If he leaves, you have a major organizational change on the ship at the worst possible time. He should not go down with the ship, but he should be one of the last ones off.