tropical storm/hurricae website

[ganurse]

does anyone have the website to check the locations of the storms?

 

[Lloyd Dobler]

http://www.orlandoweather.com/hurricanes/index.html#

I use this site to keep track of things. It has a java map which illustrates the path and severity of all the current storms. It also has historical storm data going back several years.

 

[ganurse]

what do you think of hurricane francis

 

[Lloyd Dobler]

Hard to say at this point. It looks like it will strengthen to a category 3 over the next day or so. The projected path has it missing the leeward islands. I can see it causing problems in the Bahamas if it doesn't turn northward. On another thread, someone suggested that next week's eastern might become a western. There might be something to that, although I think by Saturday the 4th, it may be through the Bahamas, if that's the way it's going to go. If anything, it might cause problems on embarkation day in Port Canaveral.

Disclaimer: I am not a meteorologist, nor do I play one on TV....

 

[NAT&MAGSMOM]

There are tons of places to track/keep up with the storms.

The one we use here at the Fire Department/EOC is
nhc.noaa.gov. That's the National Hurricane Center site.

There is also one I like, weatherunderground.com. It has basically the same info, but it has the computer models that are run several times a day. I just like to look at them.

Have a great time on your cruise..
Phyllis

 

[msmickminn]

Going on our first cruise on the 19th. What happens when there is bad weather like a hurricane? Is the cruise cancelled or changed? Does the insurance cover that? What about if you are all ready out to sea?
Have waited and saved a long time and am traveling from LA and am anxious.

 

[Krystina'sMommy]

Originally posted by msmickminn
Going on our first cruise on the 19th. Have waited and saved a long time and am traveling from LA and am anxious.

Hi! We are also on the Sept 19th Wonder Cruise! Come say hi on the thread for Sept 19th cruisers on the Cruise Meets board. We are traveling from South TX & are also worried/wondering what the weather will be like when our time comes (only 3 weeks away!). See you there!

 

[CM_Mom]

Here's the link I like. http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/ You can click on specific info on all current storms. If you scroll to the bottom of the page, there are maps you can print out to track the storm.

With DD working on the ship, you can believe I watch these guys carefully. Nothing I can do of course, but I like to stay informed.

I don't think that Disney has ever cancelled a cruise because of weather but there have been times where they rerouted to different ports so be prepared to be flexible.

To paraphrase a poster several weeks ago, "Only a fool would sail into a hurricane and the Disney captains are NOT fools." I think you can count on all Disney captains to make decisions based on the safety of the ship and passengers.

The Magic is currently on the Eastern route so next week (Aug 29 - Sept 4) they will be on the Western. It will be interesting to see what happens by the 4th.

 

[wnissen]

Originally posted by msmickminn
Going on our first cruise on the 19th. What happens when there is bad weather like a hurricane? Is the cruise cancelled or changed? Does the insurance cover that? What about if you are all ready out to sea?
Have waited and saved a long time and am traveling from LA and am anxious.

Hi, we are cruising on the Western on September 25th! The short answer is, anything can happen. When hurricane Charley came through, some ships had to leave port early to escape the storm, and huge numbers of people didn't get on. If something like that happens and you miss the ship, the cruise is almost always refunded in full, and commonly they will give a credit towards a future cruise. However, especially if you bought airfare separately, they will not reimburse you for the price of airline tickets or hotels. If that would ruin your vacation, travel insurance is a good thing to get (and it's not too late). We like TravelGuard, but there are lots of others. In the case of Charley, the Magic left early and several hundred people had to get on at Key West. I don't know if Disney reimbursed for hotels or the lost day of the cruise.

Once you're on the water, the ship is going to avoid big storms if at all possible. Most of the time it's not a safety issue (this ship can weather almost anything), but rather comfort. They will try to keep to calm seas and sunny skies, if at all possible. So yes, you could end up visiting the western Caribbean on an eastern cruise, and vice versa. The term the folks on the board use is "mystery cruise," because you're never sure where the next port is until they announce it the night before. Just tell yourself, "It's hurricane season, and the crew is doing the best they can to give me the best cruise possible." I mean, who would really want to be in St. Martin with 20 mph winds and pouring rain, even if it were safe to do so?

Enjoy your cruise!

Walt

 

[ganurse]

you guys have been helpful. will the ship still leave if its raining and no winds. kind of worried about sept 4..i really hope the storm turns by then..

 

[CM_Mom]

Another site you might want to check out is http://www.wunderground.com/tropical/ This site has links to the following stuff.
Tracking Map | 5 Day Forecast Map | Historical Map | Public Advisory | Marine Advisory | Discussion | Satellite Map | Strike Probability | Strike Probability Map | Wind Map | Coordinates | Computer Models

The Computer Models link shows the different paths for the various computer models.

Now we can all hope for the one that turns north.

 

[ganurse]

bump

 

[Dave_from_Marietta]

Another good site is www.pbpost.com/storm.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Yes--ships will leave in the rain--as it rains frequently all summer--not everyone gets to leave in sunny skies

On the hurricane Frances thread--someone called DCL and was told alternate Disembarkation/Embarkation points for Saturday could be Ft. Lauderdale, Miami, or even Tampa.

So there a backups to backups to backups--NO WORRIES--your cruise will happen--it's just the where it will start and where it will go that are in question

Looking more dismal for the Thursday (Wonder?) 3 day cruisers as Frances will be on top of their Bahamian getaway. My cute idea is that they will be doing the Carr-Gulf--ean itinerary.

My house is 35 minutes south of PC--so if y'all can't get to PC for your cruise and have to change ports--remember, that my house may be in danger as some other DISers--so enjoy your cruise, while we get a little waterlogged , hopefully that's all we get.

Joking aside--I've been through Hugo and had several near misses--I actually think there is a hurricane magnet on my house this time around--so join the "Turn Baby Turn" club and pray this thing shifts drastically out to sea.

 

[CM_Mom]

Lisa, we'll all throw in some prayers for your safety and that of everyone else in the path of Frances. Checking the latest computer models on http://www.wunderground.com/tropical/ isn't really encouraging but things can change.

Is Bermuda ever a cruise destination? Seems like it's the safest direction for the Wonder later this week at this time. This will be an interesting week for all of us Dis and weather watchers.

 

[ganurse]

bump

 

[Monstro]

Originally posted by Lloyd Dobler
http://www.orlandoweather.com/hurricanes/index.html#

I use this site to keep track of things. It has a java map which illustrates the path and severity of all the current storms. It also has historical storm data going back several years.

This is a good site. I like it.

This decision is going to come down to the wire. We fly out tomorrow at 3:00 MST. I didn't think it would come to this.

I'm having a hard time with the idea of taking my kids into the path of a hurricane. Anyone else?

 

[zeke11]

I feel for you. It does seem a bit difficult to be actually going *to* the severe weather rather than *away* from it.

Please let us know what happens and I wish you a safe trip.

Kris

 

[CM_Mom]

Monstro, I would check the projected path tomorrow morning and definitely call DCL or your TA to see if DCL has made any decisions. Maybe they will have better info by then. I understand the concern about taking your family into the path of a hurricane.

Another thing I would do is reconfirm your lodging reservations for Thursday and Friday nights. There were some postings earlier about some hotels near the coast closing.

Everyone making hard decisions right now is in my prayers.

Once you get on the ship you will have a MAGICAL time - no matter where you go. And from what I've read, San Juan and St. Thomas didn't have much damage because the storm was pretty far from them.

 

[Monstro]

CM_Mom

Thanks! That was my plan. Our hotel reservations are at the airport. I'm pretty sure we're good there. I've already paid for them.