Back-to-back hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico in the late summer damaged vessels, tested contingency plans and caused extended port shutdowns. But authorities say impacts from hurricanes Harvey and Irma will likely be measured in months rather than years.
Although it approached Florida as a Category 5 storm, Hurricane Irma caused limited damage to the state’s 14 public ports when it made landfall in early September, according to Doug Wheeler, president and CEO of the Florida Ports Council.
Texas wasn’t as lucky. Strong winds and unprecedented rainfall from Hurricane Harvey in late August closed key ports in Houston and Corpus Christi for days, delaying shipments of oil, chemicals and other products worth tens of millions of dollars. Shipping channels required dredging in some places, and much of that work was ongoing as of mid-October.
In most cases, shipping resumed within a week after the storm, albeit with draft restrictions, oneway transits and other limitations that also continued into October in some areas, including the busy oil port at Corpus Christi.
“I don’t think there is a permanent issue,” said Jim Kruse, director of the Center for Ports & Waterways at the Texas A&M Transportation Institute. “Nothing got damaged to the point where it won’t recover. It’s maybe as long as a five- or six-month impact. We have been through several hurricanes and tropical storms, but what made this different was it was so widespread. There was so much water everywhere.”
Hurricane Harvey made landfall north of Corpus Christi on Aug. 25 as a Category 4 storm, causing at least a dozen vessels to break away or run aground near Port Aransas (see story on page 33). The Port of Corpus Christi closed on Aug. 24 and remained that way for a record six days. Many of the region’s refineries also shut down for a time after losing power.
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Mariner's role still unknown as autonomous shipping gains speed
Mariners’ role still unknown as autonomous shipping gains speed
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Casualties
NTSB: Dredge hit Texas gas pipeline, causing fire that killed four
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Bay State brothers find industry niche by making old into new
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Signals
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New year in a new world: Navigating COVID's maritime realities
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