Costa Concordia

Lore & Background

On 13 January 2012 at 21:45, Costa Concordia struck a rock in the Tyrrhenian Sea just off the eastern shore of Isola del Giglio. This tore open a 53 m gash on the port side of her hull, which soon flooded parts of the engine room, cutting off power from the engines and ship services. As water flooded in, the ship listed as she drifted back towards the island and grounded near shore, then rolled onto her starboard side, lying in an unsteady position on a rocky underwater ledge. The evacuation took over six hours, and of the 3,229 passengers and 1,023 crew known to have been aboard, 32 died.

Francesco Schettino, the ship's captain at that time, was tried and found guilty of manslaughter, causing a maritime accident, and abandoning his ship. He was sentenced to sixteen years in prison in 2015. The wreck was salvaged three years after the incident and then towed to the port of Genoa, where she was scrapped.

The Company Behind the Vessel

Costa Crociere S.p.A., operating as Costa Cruises, is an Italian cruise line founded in 1948 and organized as a wholly owned subsidiary of Carnival Corporation & plc since 2000. Based in Genoa, Italy, the cruise line primarily caters to the European cruise market, but the company's 10 ships, which all sail under the Italian flag, provide itineraries sailing to countries globally.

The company attracted international attention when Costa Concordia ran aground and capsized off the coast of Italy on 13 January 2012. Thirty-two people died in the disaster. Six weeks later, the company made headlines again when a fire on Costa Allegra left it drifting without power for 13 hours in waters near Somalia frequented by pirates, before the ship was taken under tow.

The Catastrophe

On 13 January 2012, Costa Concordia ran aground off Isola del Giglio in Tuscany. The ship capsized and partially sank, killing 32 people. In 2014, the ship was parbuckled and refloated with caissons, and in July 2014, she was towed to the Port of Genoa over a period of five days, where it was dismantled and eventually scrapped. The total cost of the disaster was estimated to be over $2 billion.

On 11 February 2015, the captain at the helm during the sinking, Francesco Schettino, was found guilty by an Italian court on multiple counts of manslaughter, causing the shipwreck, and abandoning his passengers. He was sentenced to 16 years in prison. An Italian appeals court on 31 May 2016 upheld the 16-year prison sentence.

Corporate Architecture and Fleet Identity

Costa Crociere S.p.A. has been a wholly owned subsidiary of Carnival Corporation & plc since 2000. Based in Genoa, Italy, the cruise line primarily caters to the European cruise market, but the company's 10 ships, which all sail under the Italian flag, provide itineraries sailing to countries globally.

In 2000, Carnival Corporation took full control of Costa Crociere after buying out Airtours' 50% interest for $525 million. As of 2018, Costa accounted for approximately 12% of Carnival Corporation & plc's revenue. The fleet of ten Italian-flagged ships, home-ported in Genoa, gave Costa a distinct Mediterranean identity.

Aftermath and the Long Road Forward

The Costa Concordia disaster was not the final chapter in Costa Cruises' turbulent period. In February 2018, Costa announced its partnership with the Italian football club, Juventus. In December 2019, Costa debuted Costa Smeralda and became the second cruise line to operate a cruise ship fully powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG), following AIDA's AIDAnova one year earlier. Costa Smeralda was joined by her sister LNG ship, Costa Toscana, in 2021.

Owing to the Covid pandemic of 2020, Costa sold some of its ships, including the Costa Victoria and Costa neoRomantica to help cut costs. It also led to the continued long term layup of the Costa Magica and Costa Serena. In February 2023, it was announced that Costa Magica had been sold to Seajets, a Greek/Cypriot ferry company. On 31 March 2023, Costa Cruises celebrated its 75th anniversary.

Common Misconceptions (Editorial)

Some people believe the Costa Concordia disaster was a simple accident, but court rulings found Captain Francesco Schettino guilty of multiple counts of manslaughter, causing the shipwreck, and abandoning his passengers — resulting in a 16-year prison sentence upheld on appeal. Another misconception is that the ship was simply left at the wreck site; in fact, it was parbuckled and refloated with caissons in 2014, then towed to the Port of Genoa over five days for dismantling and scrapping.

Why It Matters (Editorial)

The Costa Concordia disaster endures as a stark reminder of how individual negligence in a position of command can lead to catastrophic loss of life, with 32 people killed. It also stands as a monumental feat of maritime salvage engineering, as the unprecedented parbuckling and removal of the wreck cost over $2 billion — underscoring both the human and financial toll of such a tragedy.

Reader's Guide

Costa Concordia was ordered in 2004 by Carnival Corporation from Fincantieri and built in the Sestri Ponente yard in Genoa, as yard number 6122. At the vessel's launch at Sestri Ponente on 2 September 2005, the champagne bottle, released by model Eva Herzigová, failed to break when swung against the hull the first time. This type of occurrence is considered a bad omen among seafarers, and this incident has been partially blamed for the ship's 2008 accident and 2012 sinking.

The ship was delivered to Costa on 30 June 2006. It cost €450 million (£372 million, ) to build. The name Concordia was intended to express the wish for 'continuing harmony, unity, and peace between European nations'. She was 290.20 m long, had a beam of 35.50 m and drew 8.20 m of water.

She had a diesel-electric power plant consisting of six 12-cylinder Wärtsilä 12V46C four-stroke medium-speed diesel generating sets with a combined output of 102780 hp. The ship was propelled by two 21-megawatt electric motors coupled to fixed-pitch propellers. Her design service speed was 19.6 kn, but during sea trials, she achieved a speed of 23 kn.

Costa Concordia had 13 public decks, each named after a European country: Deck 1 Olanda, Deck 2 Svezia, Deck 3 Belgio, Deck 4 Grecia, Deck 5 Italia, Deck 6 Gran Bretagna, Deck 7 Irlanda, Deck 8 Portogallo, Deck 9 Francia, Deck 10 Germania, Deck 11 Spagna, Deck 12 Austria, Deck 14 Polonia. She was outfitted with approximately 1,500 cabins; 505 with private balconies, and 55 with direct access to the Samsara Spa, which were considered Spa staterooms; 58 suites had private balconies and 12 had direct access to the spa. Costa Concordia had one of the world's largest exercise facility areas at sea, the Samsara Spa, a two-level, 6000 m2 fitness center, with gym, a thalassotherapy pool, sauna, steam room, and a solarium. The ship had four swimming pools, two with retractable roofs, five Jacuzzis, five spas, and a poolside movie theatre on the main pool deck.

There were also five on-board restaurants, with Club Concordia and Samsara taking reservations-only dining. There were thirteen bars, including a cigar and cognac bar and a coffee and chocolate bar. Entertainment options included a three-level theatre, casino, a futuristic disco, a children's area equipped with video games and a basketball court.

Did You Know?

• The body of the last missing person, Indian crew member Russel Rebello, was recovered on 3 November 2014. It appears that Rebello died while saving other passengers.
• On 17 September 2013, Costa Concordia was brought to a vertical position through a parbuckling procedure. The cost for salvaging the ship increased to $799 million.