The International Convention for the Safety of Life At Sea (SOLAS), part of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), sets the legal baseline for the safety of merchant and passenger ships, their construction, equipment, and operation. Another example of courage is Captain Edward Smith who went down with the Titanic. The captain and officers of this British ship perished after allowing the women and children to board the lifeboats first. One incident in particular, an 1852 crash of The HMS Birkenhead, is considered to help set the standard for noble conduct at sea. In the past captains showed a tremendous amount of courage and self-sacrifice. Now that I think of it, two questions come to my mind: Should the captain go down with the ship and should they make every effort to ensure the safety of their passengers before they seek safety? The Sewol captain is facing criminal charges, including abandoning ship, negligence, causing bodily injury and not seeking rescue from other ships. The crew abandoned ship and were some of the first people rescued by the coast guard. Trusting the crew and not knowing what else to do, they listened. The crew issued a shipwide announcement for passengers to remain in their cabins instead of heading to deck and life rafts. In April 2014, the South Korean Sewol Ferry sank with over 242 lives lost and 60 still missing. The charges allege that he caused the shipwreck by steering too close to the island and abandoning the ship before everyone else was safely evacuated.
Does the captain go down with the ship trial#
The captain of that ship is on trial for manslaughter. In 2012, thirty two were killed aboard the Costa Concordia when it capsized off an Italian island. Most notably, the Costa Concordia in Italy and the Sewol Ferry in South Korea, are examples of shipwrecks where the crew behaved less than admirably. Recent shipwrecks have left us with a much different opinion of the leader of a ship. This is how I like to think of the skipper of a ship.
“Just sit right back and you’ll hear a tale,įor those of you who remember the TV show Gilligan’s Island, this theme was the opening of each show.
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