Straightening The Deck Chairs On The Titanic

It is always preferential to have foresight where possible, as opposed to hindsight. Working today to prevent the accidents of tomorrow seems to be a sensible approach to Human Factors. With this in mind the irony of our blog writing has not escaped us, constantly we find ourselves looking backwards for examples of accidents to use within the articles. Often these examples are very tragic and sometimes difficult to relive, this is also something that does not escape us. This is important because to develop clear foresight requires an occasional touch of hindsight. The past is where our questions wait, and more importantly the answers to these questions lay, we need to shine a light on these shadows to illuminate the lessons.

                                             The crew of Titanic including Cap Smith

The Titanic presents, in our opinion, the single greatest lesson in Human Factors. When examined, nearly every strand of modern Human Factors is present within this single story. The Titanic lesson is so strong it has now become a metaphor for Human Factors.

Recently it was suggested that investment in ‘prevention focused’ training should be measured against the likely occurrence of a ‘big’ event becoming reality. Is it better to surrender to the hand of fate and hope that chance smiles on you (and potentially save money), or invest and prepare for an unlikely reality? This statement mirrors the corporate mentality of the White Star Liner when designing and building the Titanic. Discussing all of the contributing factors into this disastrous trans Atlantic crossing, from design and build to its maiden voyage, could not be achieved in one blog. With that in mind we would like to focus on one particular contributing element; the mindset and attitude of those involved.

Most organisations that have experienced a sizable accident will of held the mindset of ‘it might never happen’. Added to this investment in preventing something that might not actually become a reality is sometimes a difficult expense to swallow. This can create a paradox of planning and training for an unlikely event, hence the title ‘tidying the deck chairs on the Titanic’. The further paradox with this mindset is you can’t measure the accidents you never had!  

Is it better to ‘appear’ you are serious about accident prevention while really focusing on the more immediate and pressing issues associated with operating a large business? Surely as long as there is a measured approach that complies with industry recommendations this is fine, isn’t it?

Perhaps not?

The designers of the Titanic thought they had created an unsinkable ship, this provides the perfect conditions to test such profound humanistic statements. There is a famous saying that nature does not respect the qualifications or the competence of men. This statement can be applied to avalanches in mountaineering, fog and high winds to airline pilots and, as with Titanic, icebergs and ships Captains. Nature does not recognise their competence nor does it spare them when the time of reckoning comes. The Titanic had lifeboat capacity for only half of its passengers, because they presumed it was unsinkable. Recent evidence has surfaced that before departing Southampton a civil servant called Maurice Clarke expressed serious reservations about Titanic’s lifeboat capacity. His superior’s threatened Mr Clarke’s job and the original recommendation of increasing Titanic’s lifeboat fleet by 50% was overruled. Had this come to light during either the British or American enquiry there may have been a stronger case for corporate manslaughter against the White Star Liner?

                                                Computer regeneration of Titanic 

This ‘invincible’ mindset was intoxicating; the passengers believed it, the ships builders believed it and the crew did also. Even immediately after the iceberg struck still many felt safe. Perhaps the most poignant example of this wilful blindness was that of Wireless Officer Phillips. He was responsible for sending and receiving messages on the one radio channel that Titanic had, he chose to prioritise wireless transmissions of the super rich 1^st class passengers over the iceberg warnings. Mr Phillips went down with the ship, sending SOS messages to the end.

                                                 Both parts of Titanic on the sea bed

Although this seems an extreme example from over 100 years ago, do we still exercise this ‘wilful blindness?’ The answer in short is yes, albeit rarely thankfully. We need look no further than the Costa Concordia for a stark reminder of the hubristic inclination of man.  Part of this fallibility is our romance with courting chance, whether in a casino, bungee jumping off a bridge or performing a flamboyant manoeuvre with a large ship.  Human Factors learns the lessons of the past so to implement today for a safer future. Working with risk will always require measuring the consequence against the likelihood; this process helps us plan with foresight. A safety culture embedded within operational excellence allows for a clear and transparent vision for the future. We need only use hindsight once to know that one Titanic is enough.

"Eternal Father, strong to save, whose arm hath bound the restless wave,

Who bids't the mighty ocean deep its own appointed limits keep;

Oh, hear us when we cry to Thee, for those in peril on the sea!"