Port of Mobile Closed, Port of New Orleans Open After Nate

The Port of Mobile remains closed after Hurricane Nate made landfall on the U.S. Gulf Coast near the mouth of the Mississippi River over the weekend.

According to the latest update from port authorities, channel surveys at the Port of Mobile will begin in earnest this morning. The port will remain closed until those surveys are completed.

The Port of New Orleans has reopened, with all operations unaffected, according to the port’s official Twitter account.

Carnival Cruise Line reports that the Carnival Dream is scheduled to dock in New Orleans at approximately 9 p.m. this evening. After that the ship will depart on a six-day cruise with calls to Grand Cayman and Cozumel. Carnival Fantasy remains at sea, awaiting the first opportunity to reenter the Port of Mobile. That ship’s next itineraries will be shortened, with the exact schedule to be determined.

Guests who sail on modified voyages will receive a one day pro-rated refund equal to one day of their cruise fare, Carnival said. Those who opt to cancel can do so and receive a future cruise credit equal to their cruise fare.

Guests scheduled to depart on Carnival cruises from New Orleans and Mobile can sign up for text alerts by texting the following codes to CRUISE (278473):

• Carnival Dream 10/8/17 – CCL2
• Carnival Fantasy 10/7/17 – CCL3

According to USA Today, Nate made landfall as a category 1 hurricane near Biloxi, Mississippi, making it the first major storm to make landfall in the state since Hurricane Katrina in 2005. While the storm brought deadly flooding to much of Central America, no storm-related deaths or injuries were immediately reported in the United States, and the area did not suffer the kind of catastrophic damage seen in Florida and the Caribbean during Hurricanes Irma and Maria recently.

Air Travel

Travel waivers as a result of the storm are still in place for a number of airlines.

American Airlines customers traveling through Gulf Coast airports through October 9 can rebook through October 15. Customers flying through other airports in the United States through October 10 can rebook through October 15. In both cases travel must be between the same city pair in the same cabin (or pay the difference).

Delta customers scheduled to travel through Costa Rica through October 9 can rebook through October 12, with the new ticket to be reissued on or before that date. Customers flying through the United States through October 9 can rebook through October 15.

United Airlines will waive the change fee and any difference in fare for customers flying through October 9 on new flights departing through October 15 between the same city pair in the originally ticketed cabin.

Southwest Airlines guests flying through October 9 can rebook in the original class of service or travel standby within 14 days of their original date of travel between the same city pair.

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