corona virus alerts - Latest cruising Information for vessels/locations/rules

[Montanan]

Not what cruisers stuck in the Caribbean desire to hear but what I have been anticipating and which the Public Health Officials on the islands have initiated planning towards, tropical storm and hurricane season, which brings wind damage, storm surge and heavy rain which rain and flooding bring all the host of dangerous wet season diseases in the tropics.

Hurricane season is still weeks away but experts are already anticipating that this year could be more active than normal — a forecast that emergency officials may find troubling as much of the country remains in the grips of the coronavirus pandemic. The season officially begins June 1, but some meteorologists who have been tracking ocean and atmospheric dynamics over the past few months say conditions are ripe for storms.

“I’m sure nobody wants to hear this with everything else going on, but it’s looking like it will be a relatively active season,” said Phil Klotzbach, an atmospheric scientist at Colorado State University in Fort Collins.
Klotzbach and his colleagues at Colorado State released a forecast in early April that predicts 16 named storms with winds of 39 miles per hour or higher. Of those, the researchers’ models suggest eight could become hurricanes, including four "major" hurricanes that reach Category 3 or higher. An average season has 12 named storms, six hurricanes and three major hurricanes, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which is expected to release its official hurricane season outlook later this month.

There are two main factors that suggest this year’s hurricane season could be busier than usual: warmer-than-average sea surface temperatures in the Atlantic Ocean and low probabilities that a climate pattern known as El Niño will return.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/world-she...205036619.html

[Montanan]

Super Yachts were out in force before the pandemic then headed back to the USA once the borders started closing.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...virus-n1202231

"For superyacht owners, the go-to spots before the national emergency declaration were the Florida Keys, the Bahamas and the Caribbean: paradises that had little-to-no confirmed coronavirus cases and were still mostly open. Yachting season for the region was at its peak for the year, with nearly 65 superyachts stretched throughout the region. After Trump’s declaration, four-fifths of the ships set sail for the U.S. At the same time in 2019, there were three times as many U.S.-flagged yachts in the Caribbean.
As states began to issue stay-at-home orders and the country ground to a halt, the yachting season became less about leisure and more about finding somewhere to shelter in place."

[Gadagirl]

it seems some boats might be moving out of / into the BVI or in negotiations to do so.

http://www.traveltalkonline.com/ubbthreads.php/topics/225730/getting-boats-out.html#Post225730

JasonHelmbrecht Offline
Traveler
Posted on the FB BVI Abroad page....
"Good Morning everyone. As you may know I work for Nanny Cay in the BVI. I’ve just been in touch with the marina manager there and this morning there was a very productive conversation with BVI Customs and Nanny Cay senior management. We are presently working on a program with BVI Customs to assist getting boats out of the territory that want to leave and also boats wishing to enter the territory to haul for storage at Nanny Cay. There nothing definitive yet but we are working together and this is the most positive development to date. Anyone who is a boat owner in either of these categories should kindly email me ted@nannycay.com. I can get you the information we have right now and advise on how we hope to move forward. Please feel free to share this info with anyone relevant. Thank you."

[Gadagirl]

USVI are tentatively open for local only charters beginning 06/01/2020

http://www.traveltalkonline.com/ubbthreads.php/topics/225916/charter-companies-st-thomas.html#Post225916

CaptainJay Offline
Traveler
Thanks for the love everyone. By the way, it looks like we will be able to open up on June 1st. Trips will be USVI based only for the remainder of the summer. The airlines are adding some airlift. We plan to have boats available from June 1st until early August for anyone that wants to come down.

[Montanan]

Today, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson outlined a tentative "road map" for the a phased easing of coronavirus lockdown restrictions.

It will include plans for a two week quarantine for all arrivals into the UK, in a bid to avoid a "second peak" of the coronavirus.

The new quarantine measures are said to be coming into effect in June, while other restrictions such as limits on exercising outdoors [e.g., walking, jogging, bicycling] may be loosened as early as next week.

The UK may reopen beginning in July “at least some of the hospitality industry [pubs, restaurants] and other public places, provided they are safe and enforce social distancing.”

https://www.yahoo.com/news/passenger...092058397.html

[Hunterdog]

Update from Pasito Blanco, Gran Canaria:
On Feb 28 we limped into this marina as a result of a massive engine failure. Cazorla Yanmar had taken the job to repower our 2011 Beneteau Sense 50. On March 14, the lockdown officially went into effect. A week later our new engine arrived, but it just sat in the mechanics building until 3 weeks ago when some restrictions were lifted and they could resume work.
A week ago we were back in the water, almost 2 months of living on the hard. (Shipyards are dirty, and expensive, even during lockdown. But to their credit the did not charge us for ‘some’ of the days of the official lockdown where no work was being done. Thank you, but why it didn’t cover the entire time??).

We wanted to anchor out, just outside of the marina with about 8 of our new ‘cruiser’ friends. But the marina said ‘NO, If you leave the marina, you must leave the country. The marina is CLOSED”. He was then more than happy to rent me an otherwise empty space along the dock...we’ve been dangling on the mooring lines since...

As of today, Monday the 11th of May, the new rules allow for local navigation, 12 miles out, and about 6 miles up and down the coast. Enough space to play in...Seems the marina is no longer closed. So I went to the boss and asked if they would object to us throwing the lines and anchoring out now. He said...you must close out your bill first with us, then take your chances if the police will hassle you out there...

Hmmmmmm....

[JPA Cate]

Hello, Hunterdog,

Sorry you're having a tough time of it.

However, if I understand correctly, you wanted to post that in Pasito Blanco, Gran Canaria, restrictions are being slowly lifted. With the notion included that perhaps more easing will soon occur. Because this thread is mainly about port closure and opening....

We hope they ease enough for you to get mobile again, but it seems as if there is a fair wee bit of work to be done first. May it be speedily completed. For the time being, you're the cash cow. Hope you can get some of the folks back in for the work.

Ann

[atoll]

UK lifts ban on recreational boating


This guidance sets out the key principles of enjoying the benefits of being outside, while protecting yourself and others from coronavirus.

The risk of the coronavirus being passed on to others outdoors is considered to be low as long as people maintain social distancing.

In England you can leave your home to exercise and spend time outdoors for recreation.

You can now:

spend time outdoors, including exercise, alone, with your household, or with one person who is not in your household as long as you stay two metres apart
exercise more than once a day
take part in other outdoor sports and activities, including fishing - on your own, with your household, or with one other person while adhering to social distancing rules
drive to outdoor open spaces, including beaches and beauty spots, irrespective of distance. You should travel in a private vehicle, alone or with members of your own household.
you should check first if facilities, such as car parks, are open to receive visitors and, when in the countryside, continue to follow the Countryside Code by respecting the local community and protecting the natural environment
go swimming in either lakes or the sea as part of daily exercise provided that social distancing guidelines are observed - you cannot use public indoor and outdoor pools

all forms of water sports practiced on open waterways, including sailing, windsurfing, canoeing, rowing, kayaking, surfing, paddle-boarding and the use of privately-owned motorised craft (in line with the guidance issued by the relevant navigation authority) are allowed. You can continue to use towpaths for walking, running and cycling, being mindful of other users and people living in boats along the water

There are no restrictions on how far you can travel to get to the countryside. However, you cannot visit and stay overnight at a holiday home or second home.

To stay safe, you must take hygiene precautions when you are outside, and wash your hands as soon as you are back indoors, and keep at least two metres apart from anyone outside your household at all times.

Please see the latest government guidance on social distancing. The Cabinet Office has also published the following: Coronavirus outbreak FAQs: what you can and can’t do.

Please be aware that if you are experiencing symptoms of coronavirus illness (COVID-19) or at risk of severe illness if you catch coronavirus, then you should stay at home. See the latest guidance from Public Health England.

The government has also published Safer Public Places during Coronavirus in Urban Centres and Green Space which sets out how high streets and areas around transport hubs and parks can be managed and operated safely, giving people confidence to return to public spaces.



https://www.gov.uk/government/news/c...o-green-spaces

[Hunterdog]

Originally Posted by JPA Cate

Hello, Hunterdog,

Sorry you're having a tough time of it.

However, if I understand correctly, you wanted to post that in Pasito Blanco, Gran Canaria, restrictions are being slowly lifted. With the notion included that perhaps more easing will soon occur. Because this thread is mainly about port closure and opening....

We hope they ease enough for you to get mobile again, but it seems as if there is a fair wee bit of work to be done first. May it be speedily completed. For the time being, you're the cash cow. Hope you can get some of the folks back in for the work.

Ann

Thanks Ann for the reply.
All work has been done.
The only reason we came to the marina was to get work done. It’s 100% paid for to the mechanic as well as the shipyard.
But now they are holding us hostage saying we cannot leave the marina, unless we leave the country.
This is insane.

[Montanan]

Originally Posted by Hunterdog

Thanks Ann for the reply.
All work has been done.
The only reason we came to the marina was to get work done. It’s 100% paid for to the mechanic as well as the shipyard.
But now they are holding us hostage saying we cannot leave the marina, unless we leave the country.
This is insane.

The arrangement with the marina, wherein you are leasing a place of residence on the hard, is not dissimilar to the rules for lodging on land at the time of intiating a quarantine. If someone was already lodging in a hotel or motel, or a short term rental of a home, typically they were allowed to remain in quarantine in that interim place of residence but they were not allowed to travel about locally, that is to say they were a part of the community at the beginning of the quarantine, they are not a thence new addition of potential vector of a disease. In most countries, states, provinces, etc. a visiting resident was allowed to repatriate to their permanent residence or country, albeit with restrictions of travel and social distancing protocols. Perfectly rational and consistent.

You are free to launch your vessel and leave. Leave to where? The possibilities likely being your home country of citizenship or permanent residence, or the country of nationality of your vessel [its flag]. Those are possibilities not certainties as every country imposes its own border controls including the prospect of excluding repatriation of their own citizens or permanent residents.

The marina is just doing its customary business activities of mechanical work and letting of space. The country is just following normal quarantine protocols and practices. No one is being held hostage and there is no hostage taker. The transient is free to go.

[Montanan]

Canada-U.S. border to stay closed to non-essential travel until at least June 21

https://www.unionleader.com/news/hea...02da81550.html

Canada and the United States appear likely to extend a ban on non-essential travel until June 21 amid the ongoing novel coronavirus pandemic, sources in both nations said on Wednesday.

The two neighbors had agreed on April 18 to extend border restrictions until May 21 as cases of the disease continue to rise in both nations. Canada is now pressing for the measures to stay in place for another month.

"It's too early to lift the restrictions, so we're working toward an extension," said one Canadian government source, describing the talks with Washington as positive. A second government source said the discussions had been collaborative.

In Washington, a U.S. official confirmed the two sides were set to agree on a 30-day extension.

On Tuesday, the chief Canadian public health officer said the United States - where cases are increasing steadily - presented a risk to Canada.

[Montanan]

Spanish authorities are planning to keep borders closed to most travelers from abroad until July, in a move to try and avoid the second wave of contagion from the coronavirus. Land borders with France and Portugal have been closed since a state of emergency was declared in mid-March to fight the pandemic.

Spain has started easing the lockdown for its residents as the pandemic gets under control. But it also imposed a two-week quarantine for foreign travelers and practically shut the border to air and maritime travel to avoid importing new cases from other countries. The quarantine measure is due to expire on May 24 when the state of emergency lapses, but both can be extended. In any case, restrictions on travel are likely to remain in place for much longer than May 24, no matter how crucial tourism is for the Spanish economy.

"When we reach the new normal we can start opening borders with Schengen countries, we are talking about opening to these countries in early July," one of the sources said. The second source confirmed the government did not expect to open borders before July.

To prevent triggering a new wave of infections being imported by travelers from abroad, the government is studying ways of controlling who can enter the country. "The two models proposed are either special travel corridors / sanitary corridors to and from specific resort areas, or medical-testing requirements," the first source said. "This is the debate we are holding with other European countries."

The European Commission is expected on Wednesday [today] to set out guidelines to reopen tourism within the European Union's borders.

[Midnight Son]

Aligned to topic:


Cruisers starting long solo passages to home countries, mostly from the Caribbean, noted stopping point Horta in the Azores.
Best wishes to all





https://www.theguardian.com/environm...the-hurricanes

[JPA Cate]

^^^^
Horta is not a for sure stop. Incoming boats are only allowed to anchor out in the outer harbor. And are asked to stay only two days. Our friend who is there is waiting for weather as you suggest, and has been allowed to stay longer. But, there is only room for about 14 boats, total, in there. And they have the right to chuck you out to make room for an emergency.

I'm thinking they may turn boats away completely, once the harbor is full, and people headed in that general direction need to provision [food water & fuel] respecting the possibility that Horta may be closed entirely, once the anchorage is full. The number of spaces is far less than the numbers of boats heading away from the Caribbean.

Ann

[Matt Johnson]

Originally Posted by JPA Cate

^^^^
Horta is not a for sure stop. Incoming boats are only allowed to anchor out in the outer harbor. And are asked to stay only two days. Our friend who is there is waiting for weather as you suggest, and has been allowed to stay longer. But, there is only room for about 14 boats, total, in there. And they have the right to chuck you out to make room for an emergency.

I'm thinking they may turn boats away completely, once the harbor is full, and people headed in that general direction need to provision [food water & fuel] respecting the possibility that Horta may be closed entirely, once the anchorage is full. The number of spaces is far less than the numbers of boats heading away from the Caribbean.

Ann

The holding is pretty horrible in Horta too.

Terraceria's Praia da Vitoria is also a port of entry, has great sand bottom and a huge area for anchoring well protected behind a breakwater.


Matt