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

[Montanan]

Today, I received this response from the New York State Canal Corporation:

Thank you for taking the time to write to the NYS Canal Corporation with your inquiry. I apologize for the delay in my response.

In an effort to do our part to flatten the curve, we halted all non-essential projects across the Canal system and throughout NYPA (our parent organization) until further notice. However, to support the Canal’s continued use as a prime recreational waterway, we are currently evaluating operational options to ensure New Yorkers will have access to the Canal system this year. We recognize that this is an extraordinarily difficult time and are sensitive to potential hardships Canal stakeholders, New Yorkers and many others, may experience. The situation with COVID-19 is ever-evolving and we are trying to adapt our plans accordingly.

I recommend signing up for our Notice to Mariners alerts and following all Canals pages on social media, all of which can be done by visiting our website.

I hope this information is helpful to you.

Warm regards,
Jackie

Jackie Schillinger
Manager, Public and Government Relations

New York State Canal Corporation
30 South Pearl Street, Albany, NY 12207
jacqueline.schillinger@canals.ny.gov
New York State Canals

[Montanan]

San Francisco Bay Area extends the Stay At Home orders through the end of May.

Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties as well as the city of Berkeley, which has its own health department separate from Alameda County.

There is a statement that there will be some easing of restrictions but they have not specified what matters will be eased from the continuing lockdown.

[Montanan]

New Zealand claimed Monday it had "eliminated" the coronavirus as the country announced the easing of restrictions from "level four" to "level three," with new cases in single figures.

At a news conference, New Zealand reported one new case, four "probable cases" and one new death.
Ashley Bloomfield, New Zealand's Director General of Health, said the low number "does give us confidence that we've achieved our goal of elimination, which -- that never meant zero but it does mean we know where our cases are coming from."

He added: "Our goal is elimination. And again, that doesn't mean eradication but it means we get down to a small number of cases so that we are able to stamp out any cases and any outbreak that might come out."
New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the coronavirus was "currently" eliminated but that the country needed to remain alert and could still expect to continue to see new cases.
"So as we have said elimination means we may well reach zero but we may well then have small numbers of cases coming up again, that doesn't mean we have failed, it just means that we are in the position to have that zero tolerance approach to have a very aggressive management of those cases and keep those numbers low and fading out again," she said.

The "level three" alert that goes into effect at the start of Tuesday will allow businesses to partially reopen with some restrictions, including requiring physical distancing of two meters outside of home.
Schools are to reopen with limited capacity, and work such as manufacturing and forestry will resume, although people are encouraged to work from home unless that is not possible.
People will be able to buy takeaway food, and take part in low-risk recreational activities including swimming at the beach. Up to 10 people will be allowed to gather for weddings and funerals.
Public venues such as libraries, museums, gyms are still going to remain closed and the measures will be reassessed in two weeks on May 11.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/27/asia/...ntl/index.html

[Montanan]

Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker announced that the state's stay-at-home order will be extended until May 18.

All nonessential businesses must remain closed until then, according to the governor.

Baker said although the number of new cases in the state has flattened and hospitalizations are no longer climbing, it's still not enough to safely reopen the state.

"We're moving in the right direction with respect to the virus, but we are not where we need to be," Baker said.

He noted that while he understands some people may be frustrated with his decision, he can't lift restrictions until there is a steady downward trend. He described the state's current trend as "flattened out."

[Sand crab]

Originally Posted by Sand crab

Today is April 22
The US has 840,340 cases with 46,497 deaths.
The world has 2,672,223 cases with 182,903 deaths.
https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html

So here we are a week later. Seems like a month.
The US has 1,037,526 cases with 60,846 deaths.
The world has 3,187,030 cases with 227,127 deaths.


Washington State has said that most state parks will reopen May5th. This is interest to cruisers here because many have docks and mooring balls and some parks are on islands which are only accessible by a private boat.

[Montanan]

Thousands of cruise ship crew members remain out at sea amid clash over CDC's rules
"Everyone's got cabin fever. We've been confined to our cabins now for two weeks,"

Part of the reason crew members have been unable to disembark and travel home is a conflict regarding guidelines issued by the CDC, a situation first reported by The Miami Herald.

Following coronavirus outbreaks on cruise ships and the spread of the disease, the CDC extended its No Sail Order, which says cruise line companies must implement plans to get crew members home safely.

The agency will allow crew members to disembark only if the cruise line signs an agreement stating that it has complied with the CDC's requirements, which say the companies need to provide noncommercial transportation.

A CDC spokesperson told The Herald that cruise companies have complained that arranging private transportation for crew members would be too expensive.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...clash-n1196721

[Montanan]

Michigan extends state of emergency and restriction until May 28th.


Acting under the Michigan Constitution of 1963 and Michigan law, I order the following:
1. Effective immediately and continuing until May 28, 2020 at 11:59 pm, the following places of public accommodation are closed to ingress, egress, use, and occupancy by members of the public:

. . .

“Place of public accommodation” means a business, or an educational,
refreshment, entertainment, or recreation facility, or an institution of any kind, whether licensed or not, whose goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations are extended, offered, sold, or otherwise made available to the public. Place of public accommodation also includes the facilities of private clubs, including country clubs, golf clubs, boating or yachting clubs, sports or athletic clubs, and dining clubs.

[Montanan]

April 29, 2020
Marinas and Boatyards
Phase 1 Opening
The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management provides this guidance to marinas, boatyards and yacht clubs to clarify the protocols that must be in place by May 1st in order to allow patrons access to their vessels during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) crisis. (This guidance may be adjusted and updated in the weeks or months to come, as we enter new phases of the reopening plan.)

Reference link:

http://http://rimta.org/wp-content/u...ance-43020.pdf

[JPA Cate]

There have been a number of posts deleted from this thread.

This thread is only for port openings and closures. All other content will be removed.

[JPA Cate]

On another note,

It is beginning to appear that people who have self quarantined at sea, on passage, over 14 days, are being allowed to anchor in the port at Horta, Faial, Azores. If I am able to get better data, I will post again, here. This report is based on shiptrack and marinetraffic. I know the boat is there. But no personal communication, as yet.

Ann

[Exile]

Originally Posted by LauraleeG

I am confused as to the rules for posting. The other thread labelled “ are boaters selfish” was shut down for political content, yet tthis one isn’t however the posts were similar in content , information and opinion. I absolutely appreciate and understand the rules and am grateful for moderation but I am confused why that thread was shut down and this one isn’t? Could a moderator clarify?
Thank you for all you do!

Had to double-check, but I thought this had been directed to a moderator.

It may be useful to start a new thread, but only because this one has become so lengthy and encumbered with unnecessarily long posts, unsolicited personal stories & anecdotes, and yes politics, that it's hard to imagine it's much use to people looking for relevant information about impacts from the latest Covid-19 restrictions on potential cruising destinations. It's pretty easy as well as considerate to simply post a link with a sentence or two description rather than copying & pasting an entire text. That way all the people who are not interested in, for e.g., a Moorings charter won't have to scroll through half a page just to get to content that is helpful to them. And those that are interested have the relevant info easily available through a link. Sound reasonable?

[Montanan]

Illinois update on boating restrictions.

The governor’s standing 2-person order remains intact, along with rules prohibiting large groups and requiring social distancing along the shore and on the water. Although some local jurisdictions are permitting more than two on a boat, if they all live together. "Families who live together can still boat together".

That means boats can’t tie up together, gather in large groups and that people in the water must maintain the 6-foot distancing like those on land.

[Montanan]

Florida: Planning for Covid-19 and hurricane preparedness and response.

With record warm water temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea an early and active hurricane season may be realized.

Florida officials are considering adjusting the state’s hurricane-response plans to prepare for the possibility of an early storm season intersecting with the COVID-19 pandemic, per Division of Emergency Management Director Jared Moskowitz.

If storms threaten Florida in June or July, the state might need to rethink the use of mass shelters, shuttles to evacuate people and the way it recruits volunteers to help with storm recovery

“It will differ between if we have early storms in June or July or if we have August and September storms,” when the state hopes the number of COVID-19 cases will have significantly decreased.

If there is an early hurricane season, the state is considering using hotel rooms instead of schools and other types of mass shelters.
The state might pursue the use of ride-sharing companies like Uber to avoid congregating too many people in buses or shuttles to and from shelters.
After a storm, the state might also have trouble finding volunteers amid the pandemic.

[Montanan]

The Bahamas Plan for a Phased Re-opening of the Economy, contingent on the advice of health officials.

Reference attachment.

[Auspicious]

I've been moving boats stuck places back to their owners - some just from launch to slips, some local, a few moderate (four to eight days) lengths.

I'm finding it not too hard to find fuel but many fuel docks are not providing water or pump outs. Logistic requirements are up - more research and more phone calls. Note that websites are not keeping up with reality. For example, Farleys Marina in Atlantic City NJ advertises 24/7 self-serve fuel but are completely shut down. Kammermans across the creek is open and will fuel you 24/7 IF YOU CALL AHEAD.

Shaefers on the C&D is selling fuel but no water or pump out.

National Harbor on the Potomac has fuel and water but you have to move off the fuel dock to get water.

Annapolis City Marina has fuel, no water or pump-out. Restricted hours so call ahead.

Atlantic Highlands fuel, no water or pump-out.

Liberty Landing fuel and water, not sure about pump-out.

Mystic CT is pretty much shut down. Stories to tell there that digress.

I'm working on a write-up for moving boats during the virus. More info when it's coherent. In the meantime anyone who wants advice on moving a boat in these challenging times can write me dave@auspiciousworks.com