What Would Happen If A Cruise Ship Capsized?

On 13 January 2012, the Costa Concordia cruise ship capsized on Isola del Giglio, Tuscany, during its first leg of a Mediterranean Sea cruise. The ship deviated from its planned route and struck a rock formation on the sea floor, causing it to list. Capsizing is a phenomenon that occurs when a boat or ship rolls on its side or turns upside down due to various factors, such as wave action, instability, or wind.

Capsizing or keeling over occurs when a boat or ship is rolled on its side or further by wave action, instability, or wind force beyond the angle of positive static stability or it is upside. If the water in which the ship capsizes is deep enough, the ship will sink. In shallower water, it will tip to the side (the term is list). If the ship is sinking and the crew cannot stop it with their countermeasures, the captain will order an evacuation of the cruise ship.

While it is technically possible for a cruise ship to tip over, it is highly unlikely in the modern era. Large cruise ships can sink at any time when buoyancy is lost or the ship capsizes due to an accident that allows water into the hull. Under certain conditions, they can reach heights of 75 to more than 100 feet, high enough to capsize a cruise ship if the ship were to be hit.

In addition, if the boat has taken on too much water through holes or cracks in its hull, it will eventually capsize and sink. When a cruise ship rolls, it rights itself faster than an ocean liner would because of all that weight (bilge, fuel, ballast).