Port Fourchon Hurricane Damage

Last year I called VTS Galveston and after confirming I was a supply boat he just said come on in. It’d be a nice change of scenery to work outa there for a bit.

Pilots have been calling OSVs all morning, starting to get groceries and make crewchanges.

The LNGs can load directly from trailers, I don’t know if you have to be a a fuel dock or any dock is OK.

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Looks like the causeway is undamaged

https://storms.ngs.noaa.gov/storms/ida/index.html#17/29.15167/-90.18551

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I looked at the Lousiana traffic highway & accident webpage & it didn’t show any damage but it did say a flood gate bridge farther north that leads to Fourchon was still closed.

On this thread I read opinions from a few weeks to a year for it to be rebuilt but I am more curious as to why all of it should it be? I was under the impression the GoM oil patch had some upticks in '17, '19 & now but never fully recovered from the 2015 crash. Were all the docks spaces being utilized before the Hurricane Ida? There weren’t that many players who owned docks in Fourchon when I worked out of there & it would make sense to me to only rebuild enough to keep 80-90% utilization to keep rates & rent up compared to intentionally building a vast 2023 ghost town.

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I suspect Venice will be it for the big OSV’s
Cameron never recovered from Rita & Monkey island cut is to shallow
Icy for crew boats and utility boats only
Morgan City to shallow up to Eugene Island light infrastructure mainly gone in Morgan City 8 hour run in from the sea bouy
Houma irrigation ditch too shallow
Grand isle …… gone
Theodore and Galveston too far away
Sabine & Port Arthur no infrastructure and to far away
I imagine they’ll fix up Fourchon as it it the best location and with Edison Chouest bankrolling it it will happen pretty quick

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I’ve seen some 265’s and below take Freshwater to Iberia recently. Say, a 5 ± hour run. But your right, they’re gonna have a “band aid” on Fourchon really fast just like after Gustav.

I really doubt Fourchon will be abandoned for another port. Temporarily, yes. Long term…No. Capdes 101 made some very good points.

Not to show too much shade but I have heard stories about the abilities of some of these OSV operators. Using DP to dock in PF, traffic jams in PF, ending up on the jetties, etc

Will there be issues with some of these types being able to actually run up a river or canal to get to somewhere other than Fourchon?

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Guess we will find out. If a huge swarm of those OSVs end up calling upon venice as a port, that will definately create a cluster fuck added to the ship traffic and the anchorages on the river i would think.

Meh, we’ll be ok. Keep it “in the middle”. Unless I unfortunately have to work out of Venice in which i’ll run outside the channel the whole way so I don’t have to talk to the pilots.

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I can see it now sideways in the Jump that DP 3 won’t save them now

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Got our first post storm job today as a Flotel in Mississippi Canyon, Mobilizing in Galveston tomorrow. I did a number of runs to New Iberia before the slowdown on a 205’, quite a few mud bumps as I recall while drawing 11’ to 13’. I can’t imagine running something bigger up there.

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Fourchon’s already open anyway but if you have go to Iberia again one day try to time it for high tide or at least flood. 13’ is cutting it pretty close though like you said. Congrats on getting the job, hope it lasts a long time.

I could make it into the Jump on DP 2 auto but why? It sucks enough DP’ing at the rig.

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Bad, but I ran into a welding type fabrication buddy in Lafayette yesterday driving to Fourchon right now to weld on some shit. I’ll be taking barite etc. as soon as we get there. Company man alteady calling.

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Just got word today to start lining up crew change for Wednesday in Fourchon.

Slip B only got a few feet of water so all the cranes and forklifts are ok and they are cleaning up the docks right now.

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It took years after Katrina for New Orleans to get back to normal if you’re the type of person who thinks they fully recovered. A family member of mine who was in Mexico Beach, Florida recently said there’s still evidence of their direct hit hurricane. Fourchon, Lousiana? I’d wouldn’t be surprised if those Cajuns with their out of state transplant helpers don’t have that place back to they way it was in 6 months. Grand Isle will probably take a lot longer though?

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