Posted on 04/03/2021 7:11:13 AM PDT by Capt. Tom
No Test Sailings Yet and No Clear Dates from CDC The new technical instructions released by the CDC don't include test sailings and no clear dates for resuming operations.
Are the technical guidelines the CDC released the guidelines we’ve all been waiting for, and a pathway for the cruise lines to resume service? Or is it just another empty shell? So far, the guidelines seem to be nothing more than additional requirements and some clarification on existing requirements.
The CDC has not given any precise dates for when cruising can resume, neither has it given the green light for test cruises to start. CEO Captain John Murray of Port Canaveral calls the CDC’s guidelines disappointing.
Just More Requirements- No Clear Objectives It seems then that the CDC has made life just a little more difficult for the cruise lines. Not only has the conditional sailing order not been lifted, something many have asked for in recent weeks, in particular Royal Caribbean’s Richard D. Fain and Florida Governor DeSantis.
Many will be asking if this really is phase two of the Conditional Sail Order, as the instructions provided do not seem to be of a caliber that takes five months to prepare.
A question Captain Murray of Port Canaveral wonders about as well:
“For a year now, we have been working closely with our cruise partners and directly with the CDC to find a way forward for the return of cruising from Port Canaveral. Just today CDC announced vaccinated Americans could safely travel internationally. We’re disappointed that this guidance for the cruise industry appears to be nothing more than an incremental step in a far-reaching process to resume passenger sailings in the U.S. with no definitive or target start date.”
What Is Really In The New Guidelines?
As it stands currently, the new guidelines that the CDC has issued do not speed up a return of cruising anytime soon. The cruise lines have no guidance on when they would start test cruises; there is no guidance on restart dates.
Although we knew that phase two would always only be some additional technical guidance from the CDC, what they have released now seems to be disappointing for everyone in the cruise industry.
Test Sailings
The CDC has said the requirements and possibility for test sailings will only be made available on the next phase, which will be phase three:
The next phase of the CSO will include simulated (trial) voyages that will allow the crew and port personnel to practice new COVID-19 operational procedures with volunteers before sailing with passengers.
Vaccinations The CDC is now recommending the public, port workers, and crew members onboard are all vaccinated and plans to take this into account for a resumption of cruising:
COVID-19 vaccination efforts will be critical in the safe resumption of passenger operations. As more people are fully vaccinated, the phased approach allows CDC to incorporate these advancements into planning for resumption of cruise ship travel when it is safe to do so. CDC recommends that all eligible port personnel and travelers (passengers and crew) get a COVID-19 vaccine when one is available to them.
We can take away from this that the CDC will likely favor cruise lines that make a 100% vaccination grade mandatory for all passengers and crew.
COVID-19 Vaccine Cruise lines will also need to implement a timeline for vaccinating crew members and port personnel, effectively making vaccination mandatory for those working on board or with the ships. Keep in mind, the CDC is not saying guests must be vaccinated, it only recommends it.
Also Read: Which Cruise Lines Have a COVID Vaccine Requirement?
Port and Medical Agreements The new guidelines heavily feature the need for agreements between ports, ships, and medical facilities in case of an outbreak.
The good thing here is that most, if not all, of these measures, are already in place for the cruise lines under their Outbreak prevention plans. A few key points to take away from this and which must be included are:
Ensure disembarking and embarking passengers, from the same and from different ships do not occupy the same enclosed or semi-enclosed areas (e.g., gangways, terminal waiting spaces, check-in areas) within the same 12-hour period.
The above means ships will need to do late embarkations to accommodate this, or embarkations and debarks will need to take place in different areas of the port, using different gangways, and different terminal waiting areas.
It could very well mean ships will have to do embarkation and debark on separate days to accommodate the 12 hours period.
Agreements must include clear protocols that avoid medical evacuations at sea to the greatest extent possible for COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 related medical reasons, and plans must be in place to deal with any COVID-19 related incidences on board, any possible or confirmed infections, confirmed quarantine, and medical facilities onboard and ashore, and last but not least an evacuation plan which does not rely on help from outside.
Disappointing Instructions All in all, the guidelines are disappointing, create even more regulations and protocols for the cruise lines, and provide no clear path for cruises to resume in the near future.
Let’s not forget most cruise lines have already sailed numerous times in other parts of the world, the current regulations as released by the CDC look like the agency is re-inventing the wheel.
The cruise lines will be seeking further clarification from the CDC in the coming days, as more information becomes available and the CDC can clarify the points specified, we will see where we actually stand after today.
I would expect CARNIVAL to be the big loser, as NORWEGIAN and ROYAL are moving their ships out of this country and the clutches of our CDC.-Tom
how is fair that the CDC made the FauXi virus
to MURDER Americans and the economy using their bioweapon,
and then they ORDERED horrific, untested, KNOWN
dangerous DNAoperating systems to be inserted
into Americans unLawfully (as if any Law was followed),
AFTER DENYING THEM CURATIVE AND PREVENTATIVE MEDICINES
DEMANDED BY DOCs,
and then take over the country giving Orders
without any foundation oe scientific basis.
it is not.
Cruise Lines moving their ships and jobs to the Islands - big rumor is that Cuba will become a Port for the cruise lines. The communist need the money and make their own laws.
Used to enjoy cruises. We would always get a suite though. Standard cabins are really small. For a family if 4 it was a good vacation. We have decided that cruises are no longer an option if they require a vaccine. In fact ID much rather stay home if a vaccination of an experimental drug becomes a requirement. I’ve got plenty to do on my acreage anyhow.
Do they need permission from the CDC? I didn’t know that.
I am against that, in general. They’re a private business.
As a matter of fact, why have we been listening to the CDC all this time? I suppose it’s because permits, etc. could be withdrawn.
But it seems to me that this disaster has demonstrated just how accustomed to government regulation we have allowed ourselves to become.
Sucks I can't get my money back from NCL for the cruise and have to wait so long...
I hate that damn' Fraudci and everything he's done to this country. I hope he wakes up dead tomorrow. (Not that I wish ill will on anyone but that guy has just so damaged this country with all the stupid crap he's said, his constant flip-flops sewing fear, uncertainty and doubt that I'm convinced the best thing that can happen at this point is for Fraudci to quitely pass in his sleep tonight.)
I for one would celebrate.
That is the name of the game for the Socialist/Communist/American Hating (Dems) who now have seized control of our Govt. and PRESS, and IMHO stole the last Federal Election.
It will be full speed ahead to wreck this country.- Tom
Who elected the CDC?
I had a worldwide trip all planned and ready to go for last year. I saved up cash for 6 months of travel. I had accommodation, activities, sight seeing, and guides all ready to go. Now.... I have had the same Fauci vacation as everyone else with the added bonus of having the state pretty much shut down my business. Stay home and watch my savings dwindle while the a hole government bureaucrats stay home and sti get paid for doing nothing.
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