Aurélien WOLFF
Member
I wanted to see what was controversial before the collision too, I find it itneresting there are so many interpretation of the ship trip and sinking.
most controvertial aspect of the sinking?
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Richard C Elliott
Member
That is fine as a general principle and would certainly be true in respect of any reasonably foreseeable damage mode, but then we come back to the concept of probability-based risk assessment. The probability of a sideswipe allision causing damage to enough compartments to sink the ship was very low. With the exception of the very idiosyncratic Great Eastern nobody designed for it then nor (in passenger ships) since. Double hulls are nowadays used mainly on the basis of environmental protection rather than safety considerations.
marina_irc
Member
If I had to design a ship in the existing regulatory regime, I'd actually agree with you. But it would be a better regulation than more lifeboats, so the indignation should be real. For many decades after Titanic the lifeboat regulation was useless in many sea states and damage configurations.
Samuel Halpern
Member
The problem regarding lifeboats was mainly perception. After Titanic, the traveling public would not get on a ship that did not carry enough lifeboats for all. The practicalities of getting all of them them loaded, launched, and manned by enough competent crew under various conditions is seldom thought about by the traveling public.
Arun Vajpey
Member
Absolutely true. Even after the Titanic disaster and right down to this day, a lot of people believe that the main reason that nearly 1500 people died in the sinking was because "the ship did not carry enough lifeboats for all". The fact that the 160 minutes that it took the Titanic to sink would not have been sufficient to launch all the boats even if there had been enough isn't understood by many.
That said, there remains at least a theoretical possibility that if the ship had lasted several hours longer and there were enough lifeboats, all could have been saved. Of course, the aforementioned (by Sam) practical difficulties, especially regarding crew and maintenance of control once all the boats were at sea would have remained.
Therein lies the controversy.
Dave Gittins
Member
One of the great myths about the Titanic affair is that passenger ships were thereafter required to carry lifeboats sufficient for all on board. That has never been so. In 1912 the rule was changed to require boats for 75% of those on board, plus rafts for 25%. The current rule is boats for 75%, plus rafts under davits for 25% and loose rafts for 25%. Modern cruise ships meet the rules with huge lifeboats that can supposedly can hold more than 400 people. Let's see them load those in a hurry! Liferafts under davits are another joke, as they swing merrily about, far above the sea.
marina_irc
Member
The rafts are frankly more effective.
Dave Gittins
Member
Try getting into a swinging raft without falling in the drink. Once in, join a band of seasick landlubbers and get blown gaily across the ocean. Great fun!
marina_irc
Member
I'm not disputing any of that; but, life raft cannisters do solve the problem of successfully launching the lifeboats in time during a rapid sinking, at least with an even roughly competent crew. I am aware that may not be true with many modern cruise ships, but I don't take cruises.
Arun Vajpey
Member
Just out of curiosity, if a situation arose in contemporary times in which evacuation of a seagoing vessel was required and there was just about enough time to save all on board, what would be the SOP for the crew, if any? I presume they would see the passengers off first in standard lifeboats with handling crew and the barges would be launched later with seasoned deck and engineering crew on board?
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Aurélien WOLFF
Member
I read it wasn't easy for the crew to convince the passengers to get in when the sinking started,the same problem may arise with more lifeboat too.
marina_irc
Member
We're better at socially engineering evacuations in our procedures these days, though that requires the crew to be trained like modern flight attendants to be truly effective.
Aurélien WOLFF
Member
and problems still happen during evacuation (I've already scene videos of people taking their luggage when they shouldn't, this kind of stuff can not exactly be the crew fault). A night to remember also had scenes showing the rew trying the get people in at some point (sometimes with ismay in the background).
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