In its Tuesday morning synopsis for mid-Atlantic waters the US National Weather Service warned that Hurricane Florence would approach the waters of its track towards the Carolinas (details below) as a major hurricane late Tuesday into Wed, move northwest Wednesday night through Thursday night, and then slowly move inland Friday through Saturday night. Hurricane Florence is forecast to be centred near 30.5N 72.2W at 14:00 EDT Wednesday, 32.2N 74.5W at 02:00 EDT Thursday, 34.3N 77.1W at 02:00 EDT Friday, then inland as a tropical storm early on Saturday. Florence is forecast to move further inland and weaken to a tropical depression by early on Sunday. The US National Weather Service said that “all marine interests should closely monitor the latest forecasts from the National Hurricane Center.”
Meanwhile, Royal Caribbean has made a slight modification to an upcoming Grandeur of the Seas (IMO 9102978) trip to keep the ship out of the path of Hurricane Florence. Royal Caribbean Chief Meteorologist James Van Fleet issued an update today that the September 8th sailing of Grandeur of the Seas will switch to an overnight in Nassau, Bahamas itinerary to, “ensure we stay out of any potential NorthEast Quadrant, if the track of Florence unexpectedly shifts.” 1996-built, Bahamas-flagged, 73,817 gt Grandeur of the Seas is owned by Grandeur of the Seas Inc care of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd of Florida, USA. It is entered with Steamship Mutual (Smuab) on behalf of Grandeur of the Seas Inc. It is entered for hull & machinery with Norwegian Hull Club.