Container Ship Struck Key Bridge in Baltimore, Bridge has Collapsed

[RobInMN]

3 minutes ago, dmwnc1959 said:

Whatever it takes. Carnival and their employees know that there are no other options at this point.

For RCL and Carnival, it's an Argo situation:

 

[Engineroom Snipe]

Just now, dmwnc1959 said:

Whatever it takes. Carnival and their employees know that there are no other options at this point.

Literary, "An all hands on deck" call.

 

"Adapt or become extinct." Do not get caught with your feet stuck in the tar pits. Keep moving.

[LB_NJ]

44 minutes ago, KmomChicago said:

It’s an excellent solution. And honestly for the immediate situation it’s really the only solution. After the current cruise, the drivers will just park in Norfolk so perhaps half the buses or perhaps far fewer taking people to the airports. 
 

I feel like Baltimore is likely a driving heavy and flying light port anyway.

Will Royal pay the extra cost of getting to Norfolk and the possible cost of an overnight hotel stay?

 

Or will they let everyone cancel without penalty?

[KmomChicago]

11 minutes ago, toad455 said:

 

I'd bet a later departure time from Norfolk and (maybe) a modified itinerary.

Right, it’s gonna be a mess plus the bus ride times. I wonder if they’ll come into port early as well.

[KmomChicago]

4 minutes ago, LB_NJ said:

Will Royal pay the extra cost of getting to Norfolk and the possible cost of an overnight hotel stay?

 

Or will they let everyone cancel without penalty?

My guess is they will let people cancel without penalty and that maybe 10% or less will do so. They will likely provide free busses for a while and possibly a $200 pp assistance credit for flight changes. 
 

Hotels, no.

Edited March 27 by KmomChicago

[Engineroom Snipe]

4 minutes ago, LB_NJ said:

Will Royal pay the extra cost of getting to Norfolk and the possible cost of an overnight hotel stay?

 

Or will they let everyone cancel without penalty?

Royal has not made a decision on any port yet for the current Vision cruise or the two cruises in April, 2023, before dry dock.

 

The Norfolk discussion is for the Carnival cruise line which is included in a Royal discussion because they are both affected by the Baltimore Bridge Disaster.

[Engineroom Snipe]

Royal has not declared using Norfolk as an alternate port for any of the Vision cruises both current or future.

 

Norfolk has been only designated by Carnival as a temporary docking port in lieu of Baltimore.

[Yorkvillain]

36 minutes ago, toad455 said:

Either way, Carnival now has to bus guests from Baltimore to Norfolk until the harbor reopens. 

 

Did Carnival say they are going to bus guests from Baltimore TO Norfolk? I understand they are going to bus the guests that are sailing right now FROM Norfolk back to Baltimore but I have not seen anything saying they will bus future guests to Norfolk.

[BND]

13 minutes ago, Engineroom Snipe said:

Royal has not made a decision on any port yet for the current Vision cruise or the two cruises in April, 2023, before dry dock.

 

The Norfolk discussion is for the Carnival cruise line which is included in a Royal discussion because they are both affected by the Baltimore Bridge Disaster.

Or April 2024 either lol.

[OBX-Cruisers]

14 hours ago, BND said:

We're booked on Vision for 4 and 12 April. There are at least 7 people missing. I know they'll work to clear the channel as soon as possible.  Not sure when the Carnival ship is due in but Vision is in 9 days.

It will take a long time to clear that bridge structural steel out to open the channel to ANY ship.  Sorry for those who will miss out but this is a catastrope for commercial ships as well.

[Engineroom Snipe]

9 minutes ago, Yorkvillain said:

 

Did Carnival say they are going to bus guests from Baltimore TO Norfolk? I understand they are going to bus the guests that are sailing right now FROM Norfolk back to Baltimore but I have not seen anything saying they will bus future guests to Norfolk.

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.

[toad455]

if a guest can't change their flight from Baltimore to Norfolk, they'll have a lot of canceled guests.

[KmomChicago]

18 minutes ago, Yorkvillain said:

 

Did Carnival say they are going to bus guests from Baltimore TO Norfolk? I understand they are going to bus the guests that are sailing right now FROM Norfolk back to Baltimore but I have not seen anything saying they will bus future guests to Norfolk.

Seems likely they will for at least the next few weeks. 

[OBX-Cruisers]

6 hours ago, Williamsburgcruiser said:

The biggest problem with Bayonne is the lack of parking - a HUGE issue.  Even with the few ships they have, there's no parking to be had, except really, really far away - which is horrible.  

Excellent point ignored by others it seems.  Norfolk has been underused for many years now and it is a logical choice if the Baltimore port is out of service for months vs weeks.

[KmomChicago]

4 minutes ago, OBX-Cruisers said:

Excellent point ignored by others it seems.  Norfolk has been underused for many years now and it is a logical choice if the Baltimore port is out of service for months vs weeks.

Supposedly crew members on VOS are circulating a rumor that it will be Bayonne. 
 

They could work with 3rd party parking providers.

[BND]

12 minutes ago, OBX-Cruisers said:

Excellent point ignored by others it seems.  Norfolk has been underused for many years now and it is a logical choice if the Baltimore port is out of service for months vs weeks.

With only one ship in Bayonne right now (Anthem), parking is not an issue.  How is Norfolk logical?  There's even less parking there.

[Jimbo]

https://www.norfolkvisitor.com/cruisenorfolk.html

[Etta1213]

15 hours ago, chengkp75 said:

That is even further upriver, and one more bridge, than the old Philly cruise terminal at the Navy Yard.  The Kennedy had to remove most of her masts just to get to the Navy Yard.

Were you shocked that a container ship could take out a bridge like that? Before this happened, I would have thought the ship would be severely  damaged and bridge only modestly. Makes me wonder about future terror attack targets.

Edited March 27 by Etta1213

[Jimbo]

15 minutes ago, Etta1213 said:

Were you shocked that a container ship could take out a bridge like that? Before this happened, I would have thought the ship would be severely  damaged and bridge only modestly. Makes me wonder about future terror attack targets.

I wouldn't be surprised, have you ever seen the size and weight of a container ship this size looks like in person? Any ship this size moving even at a slow pace could take out any bridges piers like this. 

 

The objective of ships this size or any size is not to run into the piers holding up a bridge.

Edited March 27 by Jimbo

[Charles4515]

17 minutes ago, Etta1213 said:

Were you shocked that a container ship could take out a bridge like that? Before this happened, I would have thought the ship would be severely  damaged and bridge only modestly. Makes me wonder about future terror attack targets.

Not surprising that a container ship could take out a bridge designed as this one was.

 

I don’t think when the bridge was designed anyone thought about terror attacks but lots of infrastructure could be taken out with a terror attack. 

[SakeDad]

4 hours ago, LB_NJ said:

Will Royal pay the extra cost of getting to Norfolk and the possible cost of an overnight hotel stay?

 

Or will they let everyone cancel without penalty?

Another reason to have travel insurance. They would cover it.

[gatour]

2 hours ago, Etta1213 said:

Were you shocked that a container ship could take out a bridge like that? Before this happened, I would have thought the ship would be severely  damaged and bridge only modestly. Makes me wonder about future terror attack targets.

look up Sunshine Skyway bridge.

[ONECRUISER]

6 hours ago, Etta1213 said:

Were you shocked that a container ship could take out a bridge like that? Before this happened, I would have thought the ship would be severely  damaged and bridge only modestly. Makes me wonder about future terror attack targets.

"Unlike some other bridge designs, steel-truss bridges are prone to catastrophic failures, and officials have documented more than 500 of them in the United States alone in the past decade. The main reason: they're one continuous structure, with each segment depending on the others. Still, experts say there was no way any bridge would have survived the Dali's impact"

[Scottdalfonso]

7 hours ago, Etta1213 said:

Were you shocked that a container ship could take out a bridge like that? Before this happened, I would have thought the ship would be severely  damaged and bridge only modestly. Makes me wonder about future terror attack targets.

I work at the port in Philly, we just had the biggest container ship to visit the East cost come by. We are directly under the Walt whitman bridge, now it's a much bigger bridge than the Key bridge, but the supports for the bridge are both on land. I wonder if a rebuild of the Key bridge will ensure that the main supports are on land, if possible. 

[Jimbo]

28 minutes ago, Scottdalfonso said:

I work at the port in Philly, we just had the biggest container ship to visit the East cost come by. We are directly under the Walt whitman bridge, now it's a much bigger bridge than the Key bridge, but the supports for the bridge are both on land. I wonder if a rebuild of the Key bridge will ensure that the main supports are on land, if possible. 

I assume not all bridges have the capabilities of building the supports on land though. The length of the span also can make this a problem and the type of bridge it is. Suspension  bridge,etc.

 

This was just an unlucky event,if this issue happens with the ship out at sea all we maybe hear about is a stranded ship out at sea and it is towed back to a port for repairs.

Edited March 27 by Jimbo