Cruise editor Donna Tunney spoke with CLIA President and CEO Christine Duffy about ramifications from the Jan. 13 Costa Concordia disaster, the cruise lines’ response to the incident and industry safety changes.
Travel Weekly: During the first days and weeks after the Concordia accident, the cruise lines went silent, prompting some agents to feel they were left on their own to deal with customer anxieties. Was it a good idea for the lines to keep quiet?
Duffy: I’ve certainly seen some of the concerns about lines being silent ... and questions like, “Where was Duffy?”
I felt that the best place for me was in London, where I was attending an International Maritime Organization meeting the Monday [after the accident]. When something like this happens, people want to be very respectful and ensure that the appropriate authorities can conduct their investigation; we need facts before we can publicly comment.
I understand some of the frustration from agents and others. I hope people look at the other side of this and know that we are committed to doing what’s right.
CLIA, the Passenger Shipping Association in the U.K. and the European Cruise Council are speaking on behalf of the industry. I don’t think it would be a good idea to have 26 lines trying to speak to agents.
The industry is extremely engaged and committed at the most senior levels to ensure that the lessons that can be learned from this will be taken into account.
TW: Is CLIA providing ship safety education sessions for agents so that they can better address client questions?
Duffy: Yes, we have a video on our site, and we’re putting together a tool kit for CLIA Cruise3sixty [in April]. We’ll also have panelists and speakers there focusing on cruise ship safety.
Also, content is being put together that agents can post on their Facebook pages, about the things the industry is doing.
There’s a task force at CLIA that’s responsible for our operational safety review, and as you know, we announced a new muster policy adopted by our members. We will make sure the agent community is in the loop and aware of valuable information and the decisions that come out of our review.
We have gotten very positive feedback from regulators at the European Union and from [U.S.] legislators like [California Sen.] Barbara Boxer. They see that the industry is working very proactively to make changes.
TW: What level of damage do you think the cruise industry has sustained from a public relations standpoint?
Duffy:For those who have cruised before, the issue is seen for what it is: a very extreme, rare incident. And although it was tragic, it has not caused a significant number of cancellations. The bigger question and risk seems to be with the first-time cruisers. With all the media attention, this incident has raised questions among first-timers.
TW: What should the cruise lines do now in order to restore cruising’s reputation, particularly with first-time cruisers?
Duffy: To me, the work to be done is less about what the lines actually do and more about stepping up how we communicate to agents and consumers how regulated the industry is, and what the safety record is.
From 2002 to 2011, 153 million people took a cruise. If you include crew, it’s 233 million people. And there have been 28 marine-related fatalities, which is extremely low compared to any other recreational activity or [mode of] transportation.
While even one fatality is too many, it’s important for the public to understand the record the industry does have.
TW: How easy or difficult was it to get all the cruise line players onboard with CLIA’s operational safety review plan and the pledge that all muster drills will now be held before departure?
Duffy: It wasn’t difficult at all. The CLIA executive committee has [representation] from the world’s largest cruise lines. That group is extremely engaged and was engaged prior to the Concordia incident. I had their complete support for both initiatives.
TW: What other safety changes might be on the agenda?
Duffy: I can’t really share that at this point. There are several specific things the task force is working on, and as we announced, we are looking at operational things and human factors. So of course, navigation, evacuation, emergency training for crew, those are the kinds of things the group is focusing on.
TW:The Concordia event shined a spotlight on ships’ officers. Do the cruise lines need to shore up their standards for the training and evaluations of their captains?
Duffy: Our safety review will be looking at all human factors, and crew training is an operational and human factor. Captains go through a tremendous amount of education and training, and have years of experience before they are given that responsibility.