Kennedy Ship Details and Seafarer Feedback

BUZZARDS BAY –The federal Maritime Administration has decided to use the Massachusetts Maritime Academy training vessel T/S Kennedy in the recovery efforts related to Hurricane Harvey in Texas. MMA spokesman Chris Ryan said the Buzzards Bay school received word on Friday that their ship would be called into service and head to the Gulf of Mexico. The Maritime Administration owns the vessel, which is operated by the college. The exact nature of the Kennedy’s upcoming mission will be discussed further next week. The ship is used by the MMA for their semester at sea term at beginning of each year. Students learn all aspects of running the ship while also taking classes. The T/S Kennedy was used by the Federal Emergency Management Agency in 2012 to assist in recovery efforts in New York in the days after Superstorm Sandy. https://www.capecod.com/cape-wide-news/mass-maritime-academy-training-vessel-to-be-used-in-hurricane-harvey-recovery-effort/

The Massachusetts Maritime Academy’s T.S. Kennedy returned to Buzzards Bay Sunday after completing the month and a half sea term. About 600 cadets handled the full operation of the vessel during the trip, which included two passes through the Panama Canal and dropping off humanitarian aid in Haiti. “It’s always a big rush to get off to catch up with family, friends and loved ones,” said Admiral Francis McDonald, the president of the Massachusetts Maritime Academy. http://www.capecod.com/newscenter/t-s-kennedy-returns-to-buzzards-bay/

Massachusetts Maritime Academy's training ship is heading to New Jersey to help with superstorm Sandy recovery efforts. Adm. Richard Gurnon, president of the state college, says government officials ordered the federally-owned T.S. Kennedy to the mid-Atlantic to serve as an off-shore hotel for relief crews working to clean up the destruction. He tells the Cape Cod Times (http://bit.ly/SkG7Ou ) the 540-foot ship will depart for Elizabeth, N. J., on Sunday for a monthlong stay. The ship will act as a self-contained hotel for emergency workers, power crews and others helping get the area back on its feet. The vessel can hold a maximum of 700 people, including about 30 crew. Read more: http://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/Mass-college-s-training-ship-aids-Sandy-recovery-4003215.php#ixzz2BBHNf4JT