Engineroom Snipe

I have repetitively stated in so many words, "I hope I am wrong." My OPINION is that everyone is being overly optimistic Unless you have been directly involved with something like this, you are just speculating. Again, I hope I am wrong and have to eat crow. That would be good for everyone involved. Has anyone on this board ever been involved with doing anything underwater in such a complex situation to understand the total logistics necessary to make this happen under sixty days?

I wasted so many words lacking the proper quote you made. Precisely.

So few people understand your words which are stated well. The water flow is swift and difficult for divers. This is still a forensic scene until everything is analyzed and documented. So much has to be done. I feel your respect.

All of your undercurrents are understood. I hope you are right and I am wrong. That would be good for so many people.

@pghflyer. Are you sure, even paranoid people have real enemies (one of my favorite quotes)! Life is short and we are all doing our best. Carry on. 😁

You and I have had respectful discussions without animosity or vitriol. I understand your discussion that their is "power and resources" trying to get the harbor open. My OPINION is that the resources are limited despite how much power is brought to bear. The clock is ticking. Our debate will end on June 1st, 2024. The harbor will be clear and I will have to eat crow. This would not be the first time I am wrong. Now try and get @chengkp75 to agree with your opinion.

I stated in another post that waiting is the hardest part. Just let us know so we can adjust whatever plans we made. The stress comes from dealing with unknowns that we have no control over.

Do you know your lifeboat was probably provided by the lowest bidder? Be afraid, be very afraid! I am a very positive person. I want my cruise to succeed and I want your cruise to succeed. I keep saying that this incident was an extraordinary event and it is just going to take time to fix and repair. I wish I could wave a magic wand and fix everything in 60 days but I also have to deal in the reality of the situation, not just what "I want to happen."

What, to ruin my vacation? I am not that important! 🤣

I stated my case and I hope I am proven wrong. This is not I95 in Philadelphia on land that only had to be filled in and paved until a long term solution is found. Again, I hope I am wrong but after 47 years of working. No matter how fast I want to build a house, the foundation must be laid before any framing happens. The roof can only be put on after the framing. The plumbing and electrical can only be done at certain times. There are only so many special cranes to pull the metal out of the water. Divers need time to cut steel and attach the cranes to pull out the steel. Think of all of the steps involved and it can be done under 78 days?

A three month estimate takes us to June 12th, 2024.

Unlike One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), I do not live in a birdhouse. As I always say, time will tell, 65 days and counting.

But who is the source, the actual person providing this expert opinion?

The garbage pale can only handle so much before it is full. The debris is off-loaded from the barge and the piles can only get so big before there is no space left. Space is limited and this is part of being a contractor during demolition. Such minutia must be calculated and written into the contract.

"...or something like that is what I'm hearing,..." Who is telling this person that above?

The harbor is going to take at least three months to clear with the most optimistic of projections. I am in agreement with @chengkp75. The contracts have to be defined. The resources needed to clear the harbor must be relocated. The resources of the Armed Services cannot be utilized in most cases without an act of war. The military is not allowed to compete with the private sector in most cases so "bringing in resources from Norfolk from the military is a remote possibility unless sanctioned by Congress." Calculate the amount of tonnage in the water that needs to be cut, lifted, and barged to shore. What happens when it gets to shore? It has to be trucked for salvage or recycle. Each truck might be able to handle 60,000 lbs. Go back to line four, how much tonnage must be removed? When all of this is competed, how much time will it take to complete a precise, meticulous sweep of the channel to ensure that no debris is left behind? Even when the channel is clear, ship traffic will have to coordinate with the effort to clear the remaining bridge materials to facilitate an ultimate rebuilding of the bridge. There are SO many moving parts to this equation. I can bet my house against having all of the above done before June 1st, 2024. The Vision will need other alternatives at that point. Done of lecture and I hope I am wrong and everyone can go back to normal in the Port of Baltimore upon the date of June 1st, 2024.

We all must make sacrifices during these difficult times....... 😮‍💨

Carnival stated the bus from Norfolk to Baltimore was a one way, one time deal for the disrupted cruise currently on the water. As of now, Norfolk is the home port and they expect people to provide their own methods to get there.

I agree with your statement. In my case, my wife does not get many annual leave days so until her retirement, we drive same day to Baltimore and Bayonne. Avoids the extra day of flying and motel on both sides of the cruise. We would fly to Florida except for time consumption.

@Jimbo, While you only see a pig with lipstick, I see a magic animal full of bacon, chops, ribs, loins, belly, butt, fillet, spare ribs, ham, baby back ribs, and hock. Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. 😉

The cruise ship dry dock schedules do not mention any type of major changes. Typical maintenance for under water gear and structure. Mandatory inspections for insurance and registry purposes.

May 30, 2024 is the first date of cruising after dry dock.

@Ocean Boy Until this extraordinary situation resolves itself, everyone has got to be flexible if they have reserved a cabin on the Vision of the Seas. Now people realize how nice the Baltimore Port Terminal is for cruising. "Don't it always seem to go. That you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone..." (Big Yellow Taxi, Joni Mitchell, 1970)

If you read through all of the posts, parking in Bayonne has been discussed many times by many posters to include myself. We are not sticking our heads in the sand about the limited amount of immediate parking in Bayonne. At least for the month of April, 2024, the only ship that uses the Bayonne cruise port is Anthem of the Seas with docking on Sundays. For the Vision cruises occurring in April, 2024, there would be plenty of parking. Vision then goes into dry dock and needs no ports until May 30, 2024. This gives about two months from now to discuss another port or find a way to enhance parking when Bayonne is hosting more ships. If people want to cruise, they will have to find some flexibility around the solution. The only alternative will be canceling your cruise and getting a refund and hopefully some future cruise credit.

You are correct. The only statement from Carnival is that they will transfer the current cruisers who will debark in Norfolk to Baltimore in an estimate 4 hour bus ride. Norfolk is the new temporary home port instead of Baltimore for the immediate future. Nothing was mentioned about busing any future guest TO Norfolk from Baltimore.