As if the Tampa Bay area hasn’t already had a difficult enough hurricane season that was thought to be over, it looks like a new tropical storm in the Gulf of Mexico could wreak havoc on the area once again.
The US Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg has implemented Port Condition Whiskey in Tampa Bay, altering the community to the possibility of gale-force winds within 72 hours.
The designation of Port Condition Whiskey is a preemptive status meant to encourage heightened awareness and preparedness, and the port remains open at this time.
Port Tampa Bay is the first US port to set a “Whiskey” designation “out of an abundance of caution,” but ports across the Gulf Coast are keeping an eye on what became Tropical Storm Rafael as of 4 p.m. EST on November 4, 2024, as it moves northward from the Caribbean.
Although the storm’s current trajectory does not show the storm near Tampa, the hard-hit port that recently suffered two back-to-back hurricanes in late September and early October is not taking any chances.
“The Tampa Bay port community has initiated the Port Heavy Weather Advisory Group, which closely monitors impacts to the port and waterways, engages with the US Coast Guard and various operators that make up the local maritime community, and makes recommendations to the Coast Guard on Hurricane Port Conditions,” said Port Tampa Bay.
“At this time, both the port’s landside and waterside operations remain OPEN, and there is no impact to cruise schedules,” it continued.
That is a welcome relief for the thousands set to cruise from Port Tampa this week on Royal Caribbean’s Enchantment of the Seas, Radiance of the Seas, and Serenade of the Seas; Carnival Cruise Line’s Carnival Paradise and Carnival Legend; and Margaritaville at Sea’s Islander, each homeported in Tampa.
Storm Threatens to Intensify into Hurricane
But not all is good news. Meteorologists predict Tropical Storm Rafael will strengthen into hurricane status by the time it nears the Cayman Islands on Tuesday, November 5, when MSC Cruises’ MSC Seascape and Royal Caribbean’s Freedom of the Seas were scheduled to call.
Both ships adjusted their sailings to avoid the storm, with Freedom of the Seas swapping its Labadee, Haiti, and George Town, Grand Cayman, dates, and MSC Seascape skipping the island and Jamaica altogether.
In fact, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) issued a Hurricane Warning for the Cayman Islands, as well as a Tropical Storm Warning for Jamaica on November 4, 2024, with the storm approximately 200 miles south of Kingston. It is currently carrying sustained winds at 35 miles per hour.
The storm’s path crosses Cuba on November 6, with the NHC stating, “Tropical storm conditions are possible in the Lower and Middle Florida Keys beginning late Wednesday or Wednesday night.”
Read Also: Busy 2024 Hurricane Season Expected – What It Means for Cruises
If the storm remains on its trajectory and gathers strength, New Orleans may see its port declaring “Whiskey” as the storm is expected to arrive on November 9. Royal Caribbean’s Brilliance of the Seas, Carnival Cruise Line’s Carnival Valor and Liberty, and Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Getaway are currently homeported in Port NOLA.
However, the NHC says, “It is too soon to determine what, if any, impacts Rafael could bring to portions of the northern Gulf coast.”
Florida and the southeast should expect heavy rains mid to late in the week, and cruise lines may continue to make adjustments as the storm continues.
