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Port Tampa Bay Reopens Swiftly After Hurricane Debby

Debby nears landfall off Florida
Courtesy NOAA

Published Aug 5, 2024 9:36 PM by The Maritime Executive

 

Port Tampa Bay has reopened after the passage of Hurricane Debby, which brushed past the port's coastline before strengthening on its way north. The captain of the port has issued an all-clear for Tampa's commercial waterways, and navigation should resume shortly. 

"We want to express our sincere appreciation to those who helped our port prepare and recover from the impact of the storm," the port said in a statement. 

The port's landside facilities remained open throughout the storm. Tampa is essential to Florida because it handles nearly half of the state's petroleum supply, and its operations are doubly important during a natural disaster, when first responders and citizens need reliable access to energy. 

Commercial vessels are already queuing to return to Tampa Bay, including product tankers and two cruise ships, the Margaritaville at Sea vessel Islander and Carnival Cruise Line's Carnival Paradise. Waterside operations are expected to resume Tuesday. 

Debby strengthened into a hurricane on Sunday and made landfall on Monday morning near the town of Steinhatchee, Florida. The storm brought winds of about 70 knots and a storm surge of 6-10 feet, plus heavy rains. Flooding was reported throughout the Big Bend region, a sparsely-populated area of woods and marsh on the east end of the Florida Panhandle. It left downed powerlines and flooded roads in its wake, but no fatalities have been reported to date. 

Debby quickly lost strength over land and was downgraded to a tropical storm once more by the afternoon. Its track should pass over the border into Georgia, then out over open waters of the Atlantic by Tuesday. The storm is expected to turn north again soon after it heads offshore, then make a second landfall over South Carolina with storm-level winds of up to 50 knots. 

In anticipation of storm-force winds, the Georgia Ports Authority plans to shut most operations for the day on Tuesday and reopen Wednesday, after Debby has passed. 

The biggest risk to life and property is from heavy rainfall and flash flooding in inland areas, warned the National Hurricane Center. "Given the sluggish forward motion of Debby, extremely large amounts of rainfall over the Southeastern U.S. [are] anticipated," NHC said in a forecast advisory Monday. The "potentially historic" rains will last throughout the week, and some isolated areas could see totals of up to 30 inches over several days.