Safety and Security on Passenger Ships

A crisis is any situation originated by a threat from which serious damages or loss of lives, goods, interests or image may be produced. Any rupture of routine activities on the ship may unleash a crisis situation, independently of the actual nature or seriousness of the initial situation. Vulnerability refers to the extent to which the preventative and security actions established in the ship safety scheme may be invalid in the face of threats and risks, both for the system and for the organisational aspects that may remain. To a large extent, crisis situations related to maritime accidents (fire aboard, stranding, water ingress, etc.) are well known to seafarers, while aspects included within the concept of security have not been addressed as certain recent occurrences would demand. The present publication addresses human factor influence, negotiation between opposing grounds, procedures to face crisis situations and methods for controlling masses when seized by shock or panic.