by Donald Wood
Last updated: 5:30 PM ET, Fri August 25, 2017
Hurricane Harvey is now impacting cruise travel, as four Galveston-bound cruise ships and around 20,000 passengers are forced to wait in the Gulf of Mexico until the storm passes.
According to ABC13.com, the Galveston port authority announced the four cruise ships involved include three Carnival Cruise Line vessels and a Royal Caribbean International vessel, none of which will be permitted to enter port until Tuesday at the earliest.
Carnival spokesperson Christine de la Huerta told ABC 13 the Carnival Freedom and Valor ships will make a stop in New Orleans Saturday. Not only will the ships be adding food and supplies for the extended journey, but they will also allow passengers to disembark and return to Galveston by other means of transportation if they choose.
The passengers remaining on board will return to sea and reach the Port of Galveston when it reopens to ships next week. As for the Carnival Breeze, it is currently docked in Cozumel and will depart for Galveston Saturday.
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Port authority representative Roger R. Quiroga said passengers or crew members facing medical emergencies while on a ship waiting out the storm will be serviced by a medical helicopter that can reach them if needed.
Quiroga also expressed his concern about the thousands of cars owned by the cruise passengers which are parked in the lots surrounding the port. With torrential rain and flash flooding likely, damage to the vehicles is a possibility.
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