The Nation : Fire Danger Aboard Cruise Ships Cited

Cruise ships leaving U.S. ports carrying hundreds of American tourists operate with only “superficial” safety surveillance by the Coast Guard and the danger of loss of life by fire “is enormous,” the chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board said. A rash of fires aboard cruise ships prompted NTSB Chairman Jim Burnett to ask whether stricter safety standards or better regulation of the industry are required. Burnett, opening a three-day hearing in Miami into a March 16 fire aboard the Scandinavian Star in the Gulf of Mexico, said his agency is currently studying the U.S. responsibility to cruise industry safety. William Fannon, a key NTSB investigator, said most cruise industry operators register the vessels in foreign countries, such as Panama and the Bahamas, and U.S. regulators are powerless. Most cruise ships leaving U.S. ports are registered in other countries and carry a certificate issued under the Safety of Life at Sea Convention, a 1974 agreement covering safety features on cruise ships.