The Maryland Port Administration announced on Tuesday the suspension of vessel traffic into and out of the Port of Baltimore until further notice. The port is not shut down and it’s still processing trucks inside of the terminals.
As far as cruises go, Carnival Cruise Line sent a statement to 11 News, saying it will temporarily move Carnival Legend’s Baltimore operations to Norfolk, Virginia. Carnival Legend was scheduled to return to Baltimore from its current voyage on Sunday. It will now return to Norfolk on Sunday, and guests will be provided free bus service to Baltimore. Carnival Legend’s next seven-day itinerary on March 31 will then operate from and return to Norfolk. Guests on the current and upcoming cruises are being informed of this change.
“Our thoughts remain with the impacted families and first responders in Baltimore,” Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line, said in a statement. “We appreciate the pledge made by President (Joe) Biden today to dedicate all available resources to reopen Baltimore Harbor to marine traffic as soon as possible. As those plans are finalized, we will update our future cruise guests on when we will return home to Baltimore, but in the meantime, we appreciate the quick response and support from officials in Norfolk.”
WBAL-TV 11 News has also reached out to Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines and will update this article when a response is received. Royal Caribbean has a sailing scheduled to leave Baltimore in April.
The Cruise Lines International Association’s statement follows: “We are deeply saddened by the tragedy and collapse of the Key Bridge that occurred last night and extend our support and heartfelt prayers to all those impacted. We join everyone in extending our thanks and appreciation to the first responders and emergency workers in Baltimore, the U.S. Coast Guard, and other professionals who are working with one goal in mind — to save lives. We are closely following this situation. Right now, the most important thing to do is to allow the emergency workers to do their work.”
Based on published itineraries, there are 12 ships making 115 ship calls in 2024. Baltimore is the 29th largest cruise port in the U.S. with 378,000 passengers scheduled to move through the port.
The Baltimore Water Taxi released a statement, saying its service continues in the harbor: “Today, the entire Baltimore Water Taxi team is thinking of all those impacted by the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse – families and friends of loved ones who are missing and the first responders at the scene working under dangerous conditions. Baltimore is a tough, brave community. Together, we will come out of this tragedy even stronger.
“At this time, the Harbor Connector continues to provide public transit. We will alert the public if any impacts to our operations develop.”
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