Cruise Ship Costa Concordia - MERGED THREADS

[SabreKai]

"desperate attempt" just about sums it up.

I shall watch this with interest.

[Silverado6x6]

I clicked on to that UK news article about the Concordia and they expressly do NOT want advice from America, especially the cowboys with ping pong balls ideas.

Actually I am surprised the Chinese don't get involved, they could right the vessel, tow it back to China and turn it into some form of naval vessel.

[sigmasailor]

Best if they let the Dutch handle it.

[St. Elsewhere]

The decision is down to two salvage ventures. Work is expected to start next month. More details are here.

[hellosailor]

Maybe they can just roll it over and sell it to Cinecitta Studios for a remake of the Poseidon Adventure. Full-size prop complete with all fittings, conveniently located within same-day commuting range of the studio...

Invest now, the chance of a lifetime!

[St. Elsewhere]

Salvage contract to be awarded to Titan-Micoperi . . . .

Name: COSTA CONCORDIA Costa Concordia - Type of ship: Passenger ship - Callsign: IBHD - vesseltracker.com
IMO: 9320544
Time: 20-04-2012 07:36:01 UTC

NEWS:
A contract to salvage the "Costa Concordia" is expected to be awarded on Apr 23. The US-Italian joint venture Titan-Micoperi was already being reported as the likely winner of the tender process to recover the ship, which has meanwhile been written off by the Italian line’s parent company Carnival Corporation. Italian admirals and government officials met in London with London Offshore Consultants on Apr 19 to consider a bid by the Florida-based Titan Salvage together with Italy’s Micoperi,. The operation could cost between €250 million-€280 million and it could take a year. The Titan Salvage-Micoperi proposal involves building an underwater platform which would support the wreck after it is rotated and partially raised from the seabed using tanks. Once the hull is repaired it would be floated.

[Capt Phil]

This will be one of the most closely followed salvage job in history. We will probably see some amazing marine engineering execution and the scrutiny attracted by every government, NGO and radical environmental organization will guarantee delay after delay at every step. It will be entertaining to see how the Italian court system will handle it all. My guess is that there will be many naysayers complaining about everything from the potential damage to tiny marine life to the color of the work suits worn by the salvagers. None will come up with constructive alternatives but will be sufficiently vocal to hold off constructive activity. The circus begins... Capt Phil

[hellosailor]

"building an underwater platform which would"

Disney announces upcoming Italian version of "SPACE MOUNTAIN IN THE DEEP" to open in 2016?

Be a shame to waste all that platform after just one use.<G>

[Silverado6x6]

It might be cheaper to build a breakwater around it like the one around the Queen Mary in Long Beach Ca. The breakwater could start out as being simply floating boxes that are sunk and stacked. The Dutch know all about building massive sea dikes. First it allows the ship to be righted. Gut the lower compartments and fill it with concrete.

Refurbish the upper decks into a luxury resort hotel.

I suspect at some point a disaster will occur and the ship will sink further or will start to break up. Or rather both will happen when the first attempt to right the vessel.

The real question is just how much media coverage will actually happen, or rather how much will be allowed by the cruise industry. Even Disney has an awful lot in stake as they just launch their latest cattle hauler.

[St. Elsewhere]

Additional salvage plan details . . .

Name: COSTA CONCORDIA Costa Concordia - Type of ship: Passenger ship - Callsign: IBHD - vesseltracker.com
IMO: 9320544
Time: 24-04-2012 07:16:35 UTC

NEWS:
According to Resolve Marine Group, Inc., which is among the world's foremost maritime emergency and disaster response, salvage and ship wreck recovery companies, the removal of the "Costa Concordia" is one of the largest undertakings of its kind . Resolve Marine Group has worked with Titan Salvage on a number of important maritime ship wreck projects. The "Costa Concordia" is a massive, international assignment that will involve hundreds of personnel including naval architects and engineers, highly experienced salvage masters and a variety of specialists such as environmental consultants. Titan and Micoperi are staffed with qualified teams for this mission, which will require dispatching equipment and crews from around the globe. The plan to upright the capsized craft; then slowly tow it to a port near Rome could take more than a year to complete. Because of the magnitude of this project, unlike other salvage operations – and because the cruise ship is so close to land, – the "Costa Concordia" requires special attention to the environmental concerns and to limiting disruption to the community. The salvage team has to be extremely careful not to cause adverse effects to the environment. Rolling and then refloating the ship in one piece rather than dismantling it piece-by-piece will be quite a feat. The main concern will be to not further compromise the ship's structural integrity, so that it can be maneuvered off the coast and to another port.

[goboatingnow]

Originally Posted by Silverado6x6

I clicked on to that UK news article about the Concordia and they expressly do NOT want advice from America, especially the cowboys with ping pong balls ideas.

Actually I am surprised the Chinese don't get involved, they could right the vessel, tow it back to China and turn it into some form of naval vessel.

well the contract has been awarded to Titan a US firm!!!


Dave

[St. Elsewhere]

Rather late in the process, but some want to use it to create a tourist scuba dive attraction . . . .

Name: COSTA CONCORDIA Costa Concordia - Type of ship: Passenger ship - Callsign: IBHD - vesseltracker.com
IMO: 9320544
Time: 04-05-2012 15:57:15 UTC

NEWS:
The "Costa Concordia" could be a paradise for recreational scuba divers from around the world - if sunk instead of salvaged. Most of the Tuscan island's 1,500 residents want the ship to be hauled away as soon as possible, but Aldo Baffigi, the owner of Deep Blue Diving College spots it would be the most popular shipwreck in the world. A strong storm could still send the cruise liner, precariously perched on an undersea ledge, sliding down into deeper waters. However, sinking the ship in deeper waters, which is not an uncommon practice, was not yet considered an option. Gian Domenico Battistello, an instructor at International Diving, admits that Baffigi is right that a sunken Concordia would make an international diving attraction. The wreck would be the Disneyland of the scuba diving world. Taxing divers to visit the wreck would make the island's municipal government the richest in Italy, and its presence would underpin the economic future of the island.

[Therapy]

Originally Posted by St. Elsewhere

Rather late in the process, but some want to use it to create a tourist scuba dive attraction . . . .

Name: COSTA CONCORDIA Costa Concordia - Type of ship: Passenger ship - Callsign: IBHD - vesseltracker.com
IMO: 9320544
Time: 04-05-2012 15:57:15 UTC

NEWS:
The "Costa Concordia" could be a paradise for recreational scuba divers from around the world - if sunk instead of salvaged. Most of the Tuscan island's 1,500 residents want the ship to be hauled away as soon as possible, but Aldo Baffigi, the owner of Deep Blue Diving College spots it would be the most popular shipwreck in the world. A strong storm could still send the cruise liner, precariously perched on an undersea ledge, sliding down into deeper waters. However, sinking the ship in deeper waters, which is not an uncommon practice, was not yet considered an option. Gian Domenico Battistello, an instructor at International Diving, admits that Baffigi is right that a sunken Concordia would make an international diving attraction. The wreck would be the Disneyland of the scuba diving world. Taxing divers to visit the wreck would make the island's municipal government the richest in Italy, and its presence would underpin the economic future of the island.

Great. But how are you going to keep the divers out of it because, for sure, if they are let in some will die there. Just insurance?

[JoeDiver]

That would end up being the most popular death trap in the world. I can't imagine the work it would take to make that thing safe for recreational divers.

You can't fix stupid.....and try as you might, you can't train it out of them either.

[hellosailor]

Dive shop operators are more known for being enthusiasts and dreamers than solid businessmen. How many air fills or guided tours or hotel stays would you need to simply meet the value of the scrap metal?

And how different is the Italian liability system from the US, where ships to be sunk routinely have large holes blown or cut into every bulkhead, to make sure divers don't get trapped inside?

I still say Disney could make a successful water park out of it.

And suggest that the real purpose of the diving announcement, was to get that diving "college"s name in the nooze for some free advertising. Clever buffoon.