Royal Caribbean’s Independence of the Seas remained docked overnight in Cape Liberty, New Jersey, after a powerful nor’easter halted pilot-boat operations, according to an announcement from the ship’s captain.
Guests boarded Saturday but were told the ship could not depart that day. Captain Tor Olsen said high weather-related conditions prevented pilots from operating safely, with operations suspended until at least 10 a.m. Sunday.
The revised plan calls for the ship to leave Cape Liberty at noon Sunday and continue to Bermuda. That delay means the vessel is expected to arrive in Bermuda on Tuesday, one day later than planned, and visit only for the day rather than the originally scheduled overnight stay.
The storm was also expected to affect other Royal Caribbean operations in the region. Oasis of the Seas was scheduled to return to Cape Liberty on Sunday, though the captain said inbound ships could face delays as pilots first work to move vessels already in the harbor. Royal Caribbean had not announced a change for Oasis of the Seas at the time of the report.
Earlier in the week, Royal Caribbean’s Vision of the Seas was delayed returning to Baltimore and spent an additional day there. The cruise line replaced that ship’s Canada and New England itinerary with calls in The Bahamas and Port Canaveral, Florida, citing unfavorable weather and high winds.
The National Weather Service Weather Prediction Center was forecasting widespread major coastal flooding and repeated flooding concerns with the system, while New York and New Jersey declared states of emergency ahead of the storm’s intensification.
