National Hurricane Center adds new experimental weather forecast elements for “Blue Water” Mariners

The National Hurricane Center was happy to report that they have been able to successfully add new experimental weather forecast elements for "Blue Water" Mariners. The following elements are now available on our Marine Graphical Composite Forecast Map:

· 30-m Winds, · 50-m Winds, · Wave Heights in meters, and · Cumulative Maximum Winds over five days.

Details about these new experimental new capabilities are attached and also available on the NHC Website:

https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/news/Whats_New_Marine_Composite_Page.pdf

To access the Marine Graphical Composite Forecast Map:

https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/marine/

or

For more information you can reach Chris at chris.landsea@noaa.gov

U.S. Mariner Mental Health Needs during COVID-19 Survey

The U.S. Committee on the Marine Transportation System (CMTS) COVID-19 Working Group (C-19 WG) encourages mariners from all segments of the U.S. maritime industry to take ten minutes to anonymously complete the “Mariner Mental Health Needs during Covid-19” online survey at https://redcap.link/mariners.

The confidential survey asks mariners a variety of questions about COVID-19, mental health, and their experiences and feelings when aboard a vessel during the challenges of this worldwide pandemic. No mariner identification data will be collected. Survey participation from a significant portion of the mariners in each industry segment is critical to understanding how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected their mental health. The survey is available from January 22 through May 31, 2021.

Results from the survey will be shared with federal agencies, vessel owners/operators, mariner unions, maritime training institutions, seafarer welfare organizations and MTS stakeholders to facilitate development of effective solutions that benefit our mariners’ mental well-being.

Mariner unions, vessel operators, vessel owners, mariner training institutions and industry associations are requested to encourage and facilitate the prompt participation of their mariners in this survey. MTS stakeholders are requested to widely distribute this announcement within the U.S. maritime industry.

The survey is being conducted independently by Dr. Marissa Baker, Assistant Professor & Industrial Hygiene Program Director, University of Washington School of Public Health. Individual responses will be kept confidential at the School. The survey allows mariners to skip any question which they do not wish to answer.

This survey is supported by Centers for Disease Prevention & Control (CDC) and the COVID-19 Working Group (C-19 WG) of the federal interagency U.S. Committee on the Marine Transportation System (CMTS). The C-19 WG serves as the CMTS forum for facilitating high-level interagency discussion, communication, and actions in support of the MTS under and after COVID-19. The C-19 WG has published the following resources for mariners and the U.S. Marine Transportation System:

• CMTS COVID-19 Working Group Nov 18, 2020 Webinar: COVID-19 Testing Strategies for U.S. Merchant Mariners - Slides

• Catalog of COVID-19 Federal Guidance and References for the U.S. Maritime Industry

• Catalog of COVID-19 Best Management Practices for the U.S. Maritime Industry

• Catalog of Mental Health Resources for U.S. Merchant Mariners and Critical Workforce in the Marine Transportation System

The Ship Operations Cooperative Program (SOCP) - whose members include vessel owners/operators, mariner unions, maritime academies, maritime training institutions, classification societies, other maritime industry stakeholders and government agencies - is also actively supporting this project to enhance the mental well-being of U.S. mariners.

For more information on this survey, please click here. Please email any questions, comments, or concerns regarding this mariner survey to Dr. Marissa Baker, University of Washington, at bakermg@uw.edu and Nuns Jain, Staff Lead, C-19 WG, at C19WG@cmts.gov.

CMTS COVID-19 - Listening to Industry

The U.S. Committee on the Marine Transportation System (CMTS) COVID-19 Working Group (C-19 WG) is hosting this virtual Industry Listening Session to directly hear from all segments of the maritime industry regarding issues and impacts on maritime operations and the workforce resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. The C-19 WG invites maritime industry stakeholders to articulate their current unresolved concerns and any recommendations for further action by the C-19 federal interagency working group to address ongoing industry challenges.

The C-19 WG serves as the CMTS forum for facilitating high-level interagency discussion, communication, and actions in support of the MTS under and after COVID-19. Please refer to https://www.cmts.gov/topics/working_group for the current C-19 WG activities and resources developed for the MTS.

MTS stakeholders who intend to speak at this session are requested to email C19WG@cmts.gov by January 11 so that the C-19 WG can arrange an equitable speaking opportunity for interested speakers from all maritime industry segments and the public.

Please note that this Listening Session is intended for the C-19 WG members to directly hear stakeholder input without engaging in a dialog.

~ To Access the Listening Session ~

To Join: https://usdot.webex.com/join/nuns.jain

Telcon: 404-443-2170; Access Code: 60061206#

Note: Please log-in at the above link 30 minutes in advance to download any plug-ins and test your system’s compatibility with Webex. For more information, please contact C19WG@CMTS.GOV.