Port Tampa Bay has resumed vessel operations and our port’s shipping channels are officially re-opened, with vessel movements restricted to daylight hours. Throughout the storm, Port Tampa Bay coordinated with federal, state, and local agencies, as well as the maritime community, to respond to the impacts of Hurricane Milton.
In coordination with the Port Heavy Weather Advisory Group, and following detailed assessments of the port, waterways, and channels, the U.S. Coast Guard has reopened the port and set the port condition to normal, with a daylight hour restriction and one-way travel. Port staff fully assessed the docks, wharfs, and terminals for safety. Commercial vessel traffic is again being queued for a return to full operations at the port, meaning we are open for business. Some of the first vessels to return will be fuel tankers, cruise ships and vessels carrying perishable cargo.
There will be changes to the following cruise schedules: Carnival Paradise, Royal Caribbean Serenade of the Seas, Royal Caribbean Grandeur of the Seas, Royal Caribbean Enchantment of the Seas and Margaritaville at Sea Islander. If you have any questions about a specific sailing, we recommend you contact your cruise line directly as all changes to itineraries will be communicated by your cruise line. The customer service lines for the impacted cruise lines are:
- Carnival Cruise Line: 1-800-764-7419
- Margaritaville at Sea: 1-800-814-7100
- Royal Caribbean International: 1-800-256-6649
Port Tampa Bay's fuel supply remains adequate. Following Hurricane Milton, our fuel terminals lost power, preventing them from distribution to the community. On Friday, Oct. 11, 2024, power was restored to all seven private fuel terminals. Each terminal performed, or is in the process of completing, a necessary and thorough safety test to ensure their facilities could discharge fuel without incident. A majority of our fuel terminal operators have begun discharging to fuel trucks, which will then deliver it to gas stations for the public. We expect all to be operational by the end of the day.
Fuel has once again begun flowing to our region and more and more will continue to leave our port and get to the community and region most in need. Port Tampa Bay leaders have remained in close contact with Governor Ron DeSantis and local, state and federal lawmakers and government agencies about our fuel supply.
We want to express our sincere appreciation to those who helped our port prepare and recover from the impact of the storm. The port’s Operations, Security, Facilities and Engineering staff, maritime community, the U.S. Coast Guard, and our local law enforcement and emergency response agencies were critical to our ability to minimize the effects of the storm and help our port to return to operations as soon as safely possible. Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone who was impacted by Hurricane Milton.
UPDATED Friday, Oct. 11, 2024 at 8:00 P.M.
Port Tampa Bay's fuel terminal operators are making significant progress towards restoration and resuming operations.
According to our partners, Port Tampa Bay's fuel supply remains adequate. Following Hurricane Milton, our fuel terminals lost power, preventing them from distribution to the community. Today, power was restored to all seven private fuel terminals. Each terminal performed, or is in the process of performing, a necessary and thorough safety test to ensure their facilities could discharge fuel without incident. Some fuel terminal operators have begun discharging to fuel trucks, which will then deliver it to gas stations for the public. The fuel terminals that are operational at this time will remain open through the night. We hope that all seven of our fuel terminal operators will be able to discharge fuel by tomorrow.
Fuel has once again begun flowing to our region and more and more will continue to leave our port and get to the community and region most in need. Port Tampa Bay leaders have remained in close contact with Governor Ron DeSantis and local, state and federal lawmakers and government agencies about our fuel supply.
We hope to welcome vessels back to our port tomorrow, the first of which will be carrying petroleum products. Port Tampa Bay is proud of our status as an energy gateway port and we take our role in storm recovery seriously, as we supply nearly half of the state with fuel for vehicles and airplanes.
We will share updates on when the port's shipping channels can re-open, as soon as they are available. All updates, once they are available, will be shared on the port's Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram accounts as well as here: https://www.porttb.com/posts?id=ED56E5DC-AB2F-4B42-BB4D-5A75952D4F71
UPDATED Friday, Oct. 11, 2024 at 8:30 A.M.
Port Tampa Bay continues to work with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Coast Guard and our maritime partners to continue to assess our landside and seaside operations. Thankfully, our port community did not experience widespread flooding, but power continues to be an issue.
We are working with our fuel terminal operators to assess their facilities and learn when they will be able to return to service. Our port fuel terminal partners have fuel ready to deploy to our region, and are currently undergoing necessary safety tests to re-open their operations. We are hopeful the fuel terminals can be re-established today and are working with our energy supplier, TECO, to expedite the process. Our President and CEO has been in with the Governor's office about our fuel status so that they can make the determination on whether to bring in additional resources to the area.
Individual port tenants will make independent decisions on when to resume their operations.
The storm continues to impact our cruise schedule. If you have any questions about a specific sailing, you must contact your cruise line directly as all changes to itineraries will be communicated by your cruise line. The customer service lines for cruise lines sailing from Port Tampa Bay this week are:
- Carnival Cruise Line: 1-800-764-7419
- Margaritaville at Sea: 1-800-814-7100
- Royal Caribbean International: 1-800-256-6649
We will share updates on when the port's shipping channels can re-open, as soon as they are available. All updates, once they are available, will be shared on the port's Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram accounts as well as here: https://www.porttb.com/posts?id=ED56E5DC-AB2F-4B42-BB4D-5A75952D4F71
UPDATED: Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024 at 11:00 A.M.
Now that Hurricane Milton has passed through the Tampa Bay region, our recovery efforts have begun. Port staff are working with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Coast Guard and our maritime partners to assess our landside and seaside operations. We will share updates on when the port's shipping channels can re-open, as soon as they are available.
While the preliminary assessments of the port's landside and seaside operations are underway, our port is currently without power. Some damage was observed to buildings but there has been no significant damage to docks, so far. The port is accessible through main gates, but please be advised there are road closures and flooding concerns in the surrounding roadways to our port.
We are working with our fuel terminal operators to assess their facilities and learn when they will be able to return to service. Individual port tenants will make independent decisions on when to resume their operations.
All updates, once they are available, will be shared on the port's Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram accounts as well as here: https://www.porttb.com/posts?id=ED56E5DC-AB2F-4B42-BB4D-5A75952D4F71
UPDATED Tuesday, Oct. 8 2024 at 8:30 A.M.
The Tampa Bay port community has initiated the Port Heavy Weather Advisory Group, which closely monitors impacts to the port and waterways, engages with the U.S. Coast Guard and various operators that make up the local maritime community, and makes recommendations to the Coast Guard on Hurricane Port Conditions.
The storm will have an impact to our cruise schedule. If you have any questions about a specific sailing, we recommend you contact your cruise line directly as all changes to itineraries will be communicated by your cruise line. The customer service lines for cruise lines sailing from Port Tampa Bay this week are:
- Carnival Cruise Line: 1-800-764-7419
- Margaritaville at Sea: 1-800-814-7100
- Royal Caribbean International: 1-800-256-6649
We will work with our fuel terminal operators and partners to ensure gas and other fuels move out of our port and to consumers as long as possible. Additionally, port staff will continue to work round-the-clock so we can re-open to full operations as soon as safely possible to support the community and region we serve.
Port Tampa Bay is doing all it can to prepare for Hurricane Milton, and to ensure safety of life, protection of the environment, and maritime commerce resiliency.
All storm-related updates will be posted at www.porttb.com and poste on the port's Linkedin, Facebook and Instagram pages.