Page 28: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (November 1999)

Cruise Industry Report Navigating Rough Waters The cruise industry, enjoying a record run of popularity and profits, has been smacked by several recent mishaps at sea, which has in turn sparked the inter-est of legislators and international policymakers. The spate of recent accidents at sea involv-ing high profile cruise ships has spurred fears among owners and operators that once again the long arm of the law will be reaching out to demand new levels of safety products, sys-tems and procedures onboard luxury cruise liners. The cruise shipping industry, which has enjoyed unprecedented growth for much of the decade, has been beset by some unsightly accidents and mishaps that have raised the watchful eyes of legislators around the globe. At a recent hearing on S. 1510, The United States Cruise Ship Tourism Development Act, Senator John McCain, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, said in his opening state-ment: "I believe that continued failure by the international cruise industry to abide by all U.S. and international laws and regulations for operation in and out of our ports and to meet high standards with regard to passenger safety and well-being will result in action to restrict access, not expand it. I challenge them to improve their operations and warn them that if they don't, the Congress will act." The statement is made more significant by the fact that S. 1510 is not about improving cruise ship safety, per se, rather a measure to allow more U.S. companies to reap the bene-fits of the cruise popularity windfall. Weathering the Storm Senator McCain's statement in his testimo-ny clearly indicates that, warranted or not, safety issues aboard modern cruise ships is clawing its way toward the top of legislative agendas. Maritime safety, in general, is a very emotional topic that usually peaks immediately following accidents, i.e. Exxon Valdez. The cruise industry has unintention-ally placed a full plate of fodder for legisla-Disney Wonder is the second of two for Disney Cruise Lines from Italy's Fincantieri. The ships have been built to encase the unique Disney experience on the high seas, and have successfully integrated entertainment agendas with a ship design that is sta-ble, efficient and environmentally friendly. L-MAP The First Complete ECDIS Library some of our current U.S. based CM93 customers... US NAVY ARIES MARINE SEACOR MARINE CELEBRITY CRUISES KEYSTONE SHIPPING AMERICAN PRESIDENT LINES BOUCHARD COASTWIDE MGMT. PRINCESS CRUISES READING & BATES ENSCO MARINE ARCO MARINE CROWLEY MARINE WOODS HOLE OCEANOGRAPHIC INSTITUTION US ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS HORNBECK OFFSHORE SERVICES BC FAST FERRIES HVIDE MARINE CARNIVAL CRUISE LINES MARINE TRANSPORT LINES See Us at the WorkBoat Show - Booth #223 The Navigational Choice" THE GLOBE! ...using CM93 based systems developed by: RACAL PELAGOS MAXSEA ATLAS KONGSBERG SIMRAD LEICA GEOSYSTEMS, INC. LITTON MARINE SYSTEMS RAYTHEON MARINE COMPANY ADVANCED MARINE TECHNOLOGY Q-MAR, INC. and more! 28 Circle 331 on Reader Service Card Maritime Reporter/Engineering News