SEATTLE (AP) — The Seattle cruise season was hit with a major blow Thursday after Canada’s minister of transport announced a continued ban on pleasure craft and cruise ships from entering Canadian Arctic waters until February 2022.
It marks the second year in a row that Seattle’s roughly billion-dollar cruise season has been canceled, KIRO-TV reported. Canada made the decision to make sure Canadians and transportation workers would be safe during the pandemic.
“As Canadians continue to do their part to reduce the spread of COVID-19, our government continues to work hard to ensure Canada’s transportation system remains safe,” said minister of transport, the honorable Omar Alghabra.
“Temporary prohibitions to cruise vessels and pleasure craft are essential to continue to protect the most vulnerable among our communities and avoid overwhelming our health care systems. This is the right and responsible thing to do,” he said.
