California Wildfires

[MJSailors]

Are the wildfires impacting the Princess California Coastal cruises or the  Mexican  Rivera cruises that embark from the LA area ?

Has anyone planning on taking any of those cruises soon gotten any notices from Princess about cancellations ?

[Kartgv]

There should be no impact at all.    The Southern California wildfire is in forested areas north of Los Angeles in the Ventura/Malibu area, while the cruise port is many miles to the south in urban areas very unlikely to be affected by fires.   While the fires are devastating to residents, and would prevent travelers from driving on Highway 1 along the coast from the north, there would be no affect on cruise itineraries.    

Edited November 11, 2018 by Kartgv

[MJSailors]

Thank you for your reply.

Being from NY, I am not too familiar with California locations.

The TV news reports are showing widespread fires and resulting damage. 

One can only feel empathy for the residents of the affected areas and the fire crews trying to put out the fires as well as the rescue crews trying to help the people.

[jlp20]

About 12 years ago there were massive fires to the North of the Los Angeles port. One of the main freeways into L.A. was completely closed. Mexican cruise so no real rush to lease dock. PA announcement that push back would be delayed. Diner service was at the pier, ship didn't leave til well after 9:00 PM

[Times Prince]

You may encounter smoke.  Friends in San Francisco have shared photos showing obscured views in The City.   Smoke has come from well up the state.   You should be good while out at sea.

[vampiress]

the air quality here is pretty bad, my eyes and throat hurt from it.  but Kartgv is right, there sould be no effect.  you might want to stay to inside areas of the boat until you leave.

 

the only effect that might happen is if the winds change and the malibu fire smoke starts going over the airport and reducing visibility.  but so far that hasn't happened.

 

the fire closest to port/airport is called woolsey so you can filter out news stories.  the hill fire is much further north.

 

this is a pretty good map to show you where malibu is in relation to the airport and port https://google.org/crisismap/google.com/2018-Woolsey-fire

 

 

 

the fire is near neither the port nor the airport at this time, but the smoke is a concern, so try and stay inside.

 

[nukesubsailor]

A frequent and valued poster on this board, Thrak, lives in Chico, California.  The northern fire was reported to be on the edge of that city.  We sincerely hope that no misfortune happens to him or his property.

[voljeep]

Agreed, but mr thrak is currently on a 30 day B2B - leaving either today or yesterday, so no harm will come to HIM from the fires...

 

his niece and her husband, I believe, are house-sitting for him as their house was destroyed...

[500adverbs]

Here's an article showing the current extent of the smoke: https://m.sfgate.com/california-wildfires/article/camp-woolsey-fire-from-space-smoke-photos-13381891.php

 

I live in San Francisco and haven't ventured out much since Saturday morning due to the smoke. The air quality throughout the Bay Area continues to be unhealthy. At the very least, smoke would affect a California Coastal cruise while docked in SF.

[Richjoxyz]

I live in the East Bay (south of Oakland) and today looks much better than the last couple days.  I can see blue sky instead of the orange haze we have had. 

[500adverbs]

It's not a linear progression, especially with the fire still burning. Winds change direction. 

[4cats4me]

We had 2 hour delays at SFO due to smoke.  Air quality is awful throughout our state.  

The Southern fires are a decent distance away from your cruise port, northwest. Hopefully,  you won’t have the poor air quality that we’ve all been experiencing.  

Edited November 11, 2018 by 4cats4me

[jfgdbg]

I live 10 minutes from the Port of Los Angeles. We have bright sunshine and no smoke as I am writing this. In fact this area has had no impact from these horrible fires. 

[Pam in CA]

The biggest impact with regards to the fires north of LA is highway closures for those driving to the port. It’ll be very difficult and a very long way around the fire areas. 

 

[Cruise Raider]

2 hours ago, 4cats4me said:

We had 2 hour delays at SFO due to smoke.  Air quality is awful throughout our state.  

The Southern fires are a decent distance away from your cruise port, northwest. Hopefully,  you won’t have the poor air quality that we’ve all been experiencing.  

 

We are also in the east bay and wow ... I can't breathe outside, the smoke is just that bad.  It looked worse yesterday than today but the smell is so much worse today.  It's all in the way the winds are blowing, I guess.  

Those poor people up north ... can't even imagine what they are going through.  

[DrivesLikeMario]

Our son lives just off the 101 near where it has been shut down.  He said this morning that the smoke is really bad in his area.  It won't affect cruises but it might make for a longer drive for those trying to get down to the Port of LA from Ventura County.

[Astro Flyer]

4 hours ago, Pam in CA said:

The biggest impact with regards to the fires north of LA is highway closures for those driving to the port. It’ll be very difficult and a very long way around the fire areas. 

 

 

1 hour ago, DrivesLikeMario said:

Our son lives just off the 101 near where it has been shut down.  He said this morning that the smoke is really bad in his area.  It won't affect cruises but it might make for a longer drive for those trying to get down to the Port of LA from Ventura County.

At the noon briefing they were planning to prepare that stretch of the 101 to open with some off ramps remaining closed.  Until then traffic is being diverted to the north.

 

The hillside across the street burned on Friday but when the Santa Ana winds blow the smoke is pushed away from us.

 

Except for traffic problems cruises from the Port of LA won’t be affected.

Edited November 11, 2018 by Astro Flyer

[DrivesLikeMario]

3 minutes ago, Astro Flyer said:

 

At the noon briefing they were planning to prepare that stretch of the 101 to open with some off ramps remaining closed.  Until then traffic is being diverted to the north.

 

The hillside across the street burned on Friday but when the Santa Ana winds blow the smoke goes away from us.

 

Except for traffic problems cruises from the Port of LA won’t be affected.

 

Thanks - I'll let him know that about the 101.  Thankfully, he doesn't have to take it to work but does use it for other places.

[MJSailors]

My sympathies to those in the affected areas who have heart or respiratory issues.

It is so difficult to handle smoke situations with those illnesses.

I am an asthmatic and I recall a time when we had to shorten a stay at Disneyworld because of wildfires in the area.

The fires didn’t seem as strong or as widespread there as what we are seeing from CA,but the smoke was present in the air.

It caused me to have a major asthma attack,but my DH was not affected. Luckily, he was able to arrange a flight home and we left the resort after two days of a week’s vacation.

I do hope the fires abate soon and that people can begin the recovery process for their health and property.

[cruzsnooze]

I am in one of the evacuated areas and came home Saturday evening despite the mandatory evacuation still in effect. The air quality is shoddy in places and clear in others. It looks like a white fog covering the area. The fire that is effecting my area is the Woolsey one ( Westlake) and that has made it to the coast. News reports 17 homes burned down in one tract alone. The smoke will blow over to LAX and there is traffic diversions that will cause delays. The closure on the 101 may open within the next 12 hours. The fear is the Santa Ana wind gusts which are significant and blowing the embers far distances. Once in San Pedro and boarded there should be no issue.

 I imagine there will be several passengers who choose not to sail because they are uncertain about their homes. Many passengers on these cruises out of San Pedro are from the fire areas since we're locals to the port without needing to fly. If only we could get some rain, wouldn't that be wonderful.

[vampiress]

i'im northeast of downtown and this is a shot from scholl canyon, one of the mountaintop parks in glendale.

probably 8-10 miles north (13 by car with lots of twists and turns)

 

normally i can see downtown very clearly from this spot. 

 

 

[wizard-of-roz]

I live in the center of all of the burn areas.....We moved out of the hilly/mountain areas years ago because my DH wanted to be able to walk to all conveniences.  SMART MOVE!  I can see the smoke and poor air in every direction.  Going to the market yesterday was something out of an apocalypse movie.  Everyone had the look of shell-shock on their faces and in their stares.  The shelves were absolutely being cleared.  The winds had finally died down but we knew that the promise of more strong winds was in our future.

 

Well, the winds are back and the fires have kick-started again today.  The firefighters were given a break and we've been promised assistance from other states.

 

I'll be cruising in a few weeks onboard the Emerald to Hawaii out of San Pedro.  I'm expecting that there will be some folks who will NOT be boarding due to these horrific fires. 

 

You absolutely can not believe what the fires areas look like.......war zones!  These were some of the most lovely and coveted areas  to live in, in Los Angeles. 

[Woobstr112G]

3 hours ago, Astro Flyer said:

 

At the noon briefing they were planning to prepare that stretch of the 101 to open with some off ramps remaining closed.  Until then traffic is being diverted to the north.

 

The hillside across the street burned on Friday but when the Santa Ana winds blow the smoke is pushed away from us.

 

Except for traffic problems cruises from the Port of LA won’t be affected.

Frank;

 

Glad to hear that you and the Mrs are okay.  We are in Kauai at the moment and I just got word my coworkers are going on 12 hour shifts.....

 

Bob

[MJSailors]

Very sorry to hear your news,Roz.

I hope that you and your family stay safe.

To Woobstr112G- you mention your coworkers . I assume that you work/live in the affected area?

Have you received any reports about your home ?

After a bit of consideration, my DH and I will not be taking the cruise from San Pedro.

I can not tolerate smoke in the air.

Since no cruises have been cancelled by Princess, we will use the cancel for any reason option of our insurance.

Thank you to those who have given informative replies.

For those living in the affected areas, I do hope the situation improves for all of you very soon.

 

 

 

 

[4cats4me]

10 hours ago, Cruise Raider said:

 

We are also in the east bay and wow ... I can't breathe outside, the smoke is just that bad.  It looked worse yesterday than today but the smell is so much worse today.  It's all in the way the winds are blowing, I guess.  

Those poor people up north ... can't even imagine what they are going through.  

This is unbelievable. Also, I’ve just learned that THREE separate households of relatives  ( my cousins)  have lost everything in The Paradise fire.  

 

Depicted: Poor air today in the San Francisco Bay Area today and yesterday, 150 miles from the Northern fire. The smell is awful.  

 

Edited November 12, 2018 by 4cats4me