Cruise industry expects delay to 2021 season in Maine

AUGUSTA, Maine – The cruise ship industry in Maine is preparing for a delay to the state’s 2021 season due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The U.S. cruise ship business was placed under a “no sail order” from the director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in March. A framework for resumption of operations replaced that order in October.

CruiseMaine, which is part of the Maine Office of Tourism, met earlier this week to get ready for the coming season. CruiseMaine executive director Sarah Flink said the organization’s goals include helping ports in the state with regulatory compliance amid the pandemic.

Flink said “the beginning of our season is still several months away and may very well be delayed further.”

Flink also said that resumption of cruise operations in the state will mean co-operating with tour operators, medical facilities, shore-side workers and other stakeholders.

In other pandemic-related news:

THE NUMBERS

The rate of infection continued to rise in Maine.

The latest average positivity rate in Maine is 5.55%. State health departments are calculating positivity rate differently across the country, but for Maine, the AP calculates the rate by dividing new cases by test specimens using data from The COVID Tracking Project.

The 7-day rolling average of the positivity rate in Maine has risen over the past two weeks from 2.13% on Dec. 3 to 5.55% on Dec. 17.

Public health authorities in the state have reported more than 18,000 cases of infection and a total of 281 deaths from the virus.

RESTAURANT LICENSE

The owners of Sunday River Brewing Co. are challenging a state decision not to renew their license.

Two Brothers LLC cited constitutional arguments in its appeal and accused the state of singling out the restaurant because of “outspoken dissatisfaction” with executive orders imposed by Democratic Gov. Janet Mills.

The restaurant, which is operated independently of the Sunday River ski resort, contends it’s in “100% in compliance” with rules, attorney Edward Dilworth III told the Sun Journal.

The state has suspended Two Brothers’ license several times since co-owner Rick Savage defied the governor and gave out her cellphone number on national television. The restaurant’s license is due to expire Saturday.