Is The Gem Going To Bermuda?

[JIMESOPUS]

Belco outage map, if this were the Hudson Valley I would expect several days if not a week of outages

https://portal.belco.bm/app/outage/outageMap.jsp

[PelicanBill]

I agree. There's no additional equipment staged and arriving to help, so this is a week's work for sure.  You have to wonder how ready they can be for Gem on Monday... maybe a chance for my sister's cruise on MSC Meraviglia arriving Wednesday.

[AmbitionatBay]

2 hours ago, PelicanBill said:

Hurricane force winds just now leaving Bermuda. Amazed the port cam is still up. The fact that the palm trees are not stripped is encouraging. Damaging hurricanes usually strip leaves from palm trees.

This is the response from a passenger currently on the Gem:
 

What is your new itinerary?  Looks like you are arriving in Bermuda on Monday? Looks like the ship is in calm seas- glad you are safe from Ernesto. 

Yes, we’re scheduled for an extra sea day on Sunday and are supposed to arrive in Bermuda around 8:30am Monday, that’s the only change we’ve had. So far conditions are good! Our route seems to be sticking closer to the US then will head out towards Bermuda sometime tomorrow from around the Carolinas. 

[Laszlo]

As of 3:55pm (Bermuda) they are getting hammered with rain and 50mph over the entire island 

 

If nothing else the cisterns will be full

Edited August 17 by Laszlo

[mking8288]

On 8/16/2024 at 3:04 PM, www3traveler said:

When is your grand QE adventure?  Can not wait ... Enjoy

Thanks ... been busy lately with lots of things.  Q427 sailing leaving YVR on Aug 30th, 10 nights - forecast for nearly all the ports - showers & rain, wet.  It's good to know & be prepared, just starting to pack "light" with "only" 2 themed / gala nights on sea day evenings.  Flying into Richmond, BC on Tue 8/27 ... 

 

Just managed to post & kick off the Not-Quite-Live cruise journal/trip report as a new post (thread) over on Cunard.  

 

Meanwhile, Bermuda is still getting hammered by Ernie ... haven't seen newer post / update from @bluesea777 - and, with up to 73% of the islanders experiencing power outage.  Hope and pray all is well with all the Bermudians sheltering in place to ride out the storm.  

Edited August 17 by mking8288

[www3traveler]

5 minutes ago, mking8288 said:

Thanks ... been busy lately with lots of things.  Q427 sailing leaving YVR on Aug 30th, 10 nights - forecast for nearly all the ports - showers & rain, wet.  It's good to know & be prepared, just starting to pack "light" with "only" 2 themed / gala nights on sea day evenings.  Flying into Richmond, BC on Tue 8/27 ... 

 

Just managed to post & kick off the Not-Quite-Live cruise journal/trip report as a new post (thread) over on Cunard.  

 

Meanwhile, Bermuda is still getting hammered by Ernie ... haven't seen newer post / update from @bluesea777 - and, with up to 73% of the islanders experiencing power outage.  Hope and pray all is well with all the Bermudians sheltering in place to ride out the storm.  

Errol Bailey is currently assigned to NCL's office in Bermuda.  Have not heard from him yet.

 

Are you and your group thinking of doing The Aqua's Transatlantic?

 

I hope you have a wonderful cruise.  I will watch for your thread.

[ontheweb]

6 hours ago, JIMESOPUS said:

Belco outage map, if this were the Hudson Valley I would expect several days if not a week of outages

https://portal.belco.bm/app/outage/outageMap.jsp

🤦‍♂️, that brings back awful memories of the long power outage from Sandy. 😢. 

[Laszlo]

19 minutes ago, ontheweb said:

🤦‍♂️, that brings back awful memories of the long power outage from Sandy. 😢. 

Our power was out for 7 days and we are 15 miles west of Philly lol. Whole house generators are the best

[mking8288]

Take another good look at Port Bermuda webcam's streaming video feeds ... kind of eerie looking as it sweep across, darker than usual in the distant parishes and even Dockyard area looks odd, strange with wind-driven rain against the webcam ??   There are some street lights & illuminations in the immediate area, could there be an outage & they are running on generation power ?? and keeping the webcam feeds going along with other essential functions in the vicinity, like cellular signals to support telecomms.  

 

Speaking of Sandy, we rode the Gem right after her delayed return into NYC, our house in NE Queens never lost electricity and/or broadband access (on Fios then) despite scalttered outage in my neighborhood, down trees & block streets that was cleared a day or 2 later, local FD crews out busy with their power tools & chain saws, etc. to help utility crews.  We raced out of NY ahead of another Nor-Easter back in 2012, MCT was still on emergency generator power and unheated, rather chilly for beginning of November - and, the captain charted a course to blast thru the storm under strong gale & cross-wind conditions, going 23 to 24 kts. once we came out of the eye of the system on the other side, boosted by tail wind to move away - one hell of a ride.  Our portside OV on deck 4 Fwd just ahead of the ship's comm officer's cabin/office gave us ... great submarine style window view of the raging seas with 30-35 ft. waves 

 

Will be interesting to see the Gem's heading midday tomorrow into Monday, she's doing 16 kts heading south - eventually will need to turn east to get to Bermuda.   

 

 

[Hot Stop]

Belco is reporting the power outages are down from 75% of customers to 50%

Edited August 18 by Hot Stop

[ontheweb]

11 hours ago, Laszlo said:

Our power was out for 7 days and we are 15 miles west of Philly lol. Whole house generators are the best

My memory of finally getting power back after Sandy---a neighbor was a lineman for NYSEG (New York State Electric & Gas) our power company. And he ended up being the one on top of the nearest pole restoring power to our area. And I yelled up to him, "Stanley, don't forget that your wife and kids are also freezing their asses off." 🤣

[ontheweb]

6 hours ago, Hot Stop said:

Belco is reporting the power outages are down from 75% of customers to 50%

Definitely an improvement. Let us hope for the sake of the people of Puerto Rico as well as those cruising on the Gem that there will be continuing improvement.

[tsahall01]

3 hours ago, ontheweb said:

Definitely an improvement. Let us hope for the sake of the people of Puerto Rico as well as those cruising on the Gem that there will be continuing improvement.

Don't forget the Virgin Islands!!  We are worse off than Puerto Rico, mostly due to our horrible power situation.  I have not had power since around 6pm on Tuesday.  Big tree in roadway, that has to be removed by power company because of the wires tangled in it, no power until that tre is removed.  I'm thinking another week or so, know how our island time works.  Only about 50% of the island has power.  We are the poor step-child that the states don't pay very much attention to!

[shof515]

Things is slowly being returned to normal. Power is being restored to most of the island, causeway is reopen, airport will reopen later today

[bluesea777]

I’m back on line!

 

First high winds arrived 6pm Friday and lasted until early this (Sunday) morning, making Ernesto the longest timing hurricane we’ve ever had here. Fortunately he was a Cat 1 hurricane for the most part, and there were no structural damage, only trees, branches, foliage, lines and a few poles down. 
 

The Electric Co had to wait until the winds subsided before they could go out to start repairing and putting power back on. 
 

Our power went out at 8pm on Friday and was restored at 00:10 am today (Sunday) - 28 hours. We are on the “main line” in Southampton - easier for the company to restore than the “branch lines”. 
 

Now, the cleaning-up is ongoing - lots of road sweeping!

 

 

[PelicanBill]

thanks for all the reports. This wasn't a devastating storm, but the USVI, PR and Bermuda won't forget it soon.

Wonder what they are telling the passengers on Gem today...

[bluesea777]

7 minutes ago, PelicanBill said:

Wonder what they are telling the passengers on Gem today...

About what? Bermuda is ready to receive Gem tomorrow and there’s another ship on its way to Bermuda as well. 
 

The passengers on Gem already knew about Ernesto and that their arrival to Bermuda would be delayed by a day. 
 

[ontheweb]

2 hours ago, tsahall01 said:

Don't forget the Virgin Islands!!  We are worse off than Puerto Rico, mostly due to our horrible power situation.  I have not had power since around 6pm on Tuesday.  Big tree in roadway, that has to be removed by power company because of the wires tangled in it, no power until that tre is removed.  I'm thinking another week or so, know how our island time works.  Only about 50% of the island has power.  We are the poor step-child that the states don't pay very much attention to!

No one meant to forget those of you in the Virgin Islands. This thread was about the Gem and would it go to Puerto Rico, so naturally Puerto Rico was the subject being discussed.

 

Wishing you the best of luck with getting your power back and things back to normal relatively quickly.

[debenson0723]

43 minutes ago, ontheweb said:

No one meant to forget those of you in the Virgin Islands. This thread was about the Gem and would it go to Puerto Rico, so naturally Puerto Rico was the subject being discussed.

 

Wishing you the best of luck with getting your power back and things back to normal relatively quickly.

The Gem is going to Bermuda, not Puerto Rico.

[bluesea777]

Now it’s 9K customers that are still out of power, but the number is decreasing pretty fast. There are approx 36K customers, I think. 
 

Bermuda is so resilient!

The Bermuda Electric Co is part of CARILEC. Whenever a Carilec island suffers devastation from hurricane, Bermuda Electric Co sends their linesmen over to the island to help out with rescue efforts. And vice versa. Bermuda helped Grenada this year after Beryl. 
 

[JIMESOPUS]

NCL Gem current location

 

NCL Gem forward camera

 

The party boat already moved and ready to go

[ontheweb]

3 hours ago, debenson0723 said:

The Gem is going to Bermuda, not Puerto Rico.

My bad, you are of course right.

[Laszlo]

Looks like the Gem is getting close. IDK where the RC ship is 

[BND]

1 hour ago, Laszlo said:

Looks like the Gem is getting close. IDK where the RC ship is 

We're on Vision of the seas. We're not far behind Gem. We were due in at 130 and got pushed to 330 by the harbormaster. Something about two bumpers having to be put back in place.  I came here to see how much Gem has been pushed back.

[shof515]

3 minutes ago, BND said:

We're on Vision of the seas. We're not far behind Gem. We were due in at 130 and got pushed to 330 by the harbormaster. Something about two bumpers having to be put back in place.  I came here to see how much Gem has been pushed back.

for ships/boats the bumpers is called fenders