EMERGENCY RISK REDUCTION

Much has been written about the century-old Titanic disaster, which caused 1,514 deaths on April 14-15, 1912. It is an interesting case study of a series of events that sent this ‘unsinkable’ ship to a watery grave. No single factor caused the tragedy, but rather what we call an ‘event cascade’.  I recently gave a lecture during which also I was trying to emphasis some facets of emergency management – prevention, preparedness, response. I used the Titanic’s sinking as Exhibit A and the learners seemed to appreciate this approach.  Perhaps you will also.

Prevention

The senior radio operator had not passed on a crucial ice warning received from the British merchantship SS Mesaba. It gave the precise location of an area of icebergs that, at the time, approximately 9.40 p.m., was only 50 miles dead ahead of the Titanic. Soon after, the Titanic struck one of these icebergs.

The last specific message read “Saw great number large icebergs also field ice. Weather clear,” but the radio operator did not consider the message urgentbecause it was not prefixed with “MSG” (“Masters’ Service Gram”). If so, it would have required a personal acknowledgement from the captain.

The Titanic was sailing full speed ahead despite the concerns about icebergs. Captain Smith was trying to set a fleet record for the Atlantic crossing.  A slower speed could have prevented the collision, or lessened its impact.

The steel plates toward the bow and the stern were allegedly held together with an inferior grade iron rivets. The steel plates ripped apart upon impact, causing a larger gash, more water, and a quicker sinking.

Binoculars that could have been used by lookouts on the night of the collision were locked up, and the key was held by someone who was not even aboard! Some historians have speculated that the fatal iceberg might have been spotted earlier if binoculars were in use.

Preparedness

There were not enough lifeboats to accommodate all of the Titanic’s more than 2,200 passengers and crew members. The lifeboats could accommodate only about 1,200 people, which was above the legal ship requirement in 1912. Interestingly, no regulation was breached.

A lifeboat drill was scheduled to take place on board the Titanic on the morning of April 14, 1912 – the day the iceberg was hit – but the drill was canceled.

Response

Not only were there not enough lifeboats to save everyone on board, most of the lifeboats that were launched off the Titanic were not filled to capacity.

When the iceberg was struck, the captain ordered the ship to continue forward, at a slower speed. This caused excessive water to enter the ship. Had the ship stopped completely, the sinking would have happened more slowly, possibly allowing for more survivors.

When the Titanic began sending out distress signals, the Californian, rather than the Carpathia, was the closest ship; yet the Californian did not respond until too late. At 12:45 AM, crew members on the Californian saw mysterious lights in the sky — distress flares from the Titanic — and woke up their captain. Unfortunately, the captain issued no orders. If the Californian had responded, probably many more lives could have been saved.

Conclusion

No one factor caused the sinking of the Titanic, but rather a number of small items. So it is with most emergencies in our lives. Hopefully this will be reminder is consider the details in addressing emergencies that might come our way, and realize the importance of the little things to help us prevent, prepare for, and respond to the unforeseen. This way, we can avoid a future Titanic event.

Thanks for reading.