By Karen Robes Meeks
Three passenger ships that arrived in Oakland over the weekend will idle with only crewmembers while the US embargoes cruise operations, the Port of Oakland announced Friday.
The vessels, which include two Norwegian Cruise Line ships, contain no passengers and have no reported coronavirus cases. They could stay at berth for two to three months. The ships will be tied up at Oakland’s Outer Harbor Terminal and at Howard Terminal on the Oakland Estuary, both of which are not being used for container operations.
This move to provide berthing space comes as more than 100 cruise vessels are looking for safe harbor all over the world.
“We’re a container port, but we’re still in the shipping business,” said Port Executive Director Danny Wan. “These ships are under federal requirements to report health concerns, and we understand that they haven’t had a history of coronavirus, so we’ll do what we can to help.” Crewmembers aren’t expected to disembark in Oakland, according to the port.
