The bad news?

The somewhat dazed and disoriented captain and officers have since steamed across the “pond” and solidly “taken the bottom” in what Ocracoke locals fondly refer to as “The Ditch “ (the narrow entrance to Silver Lake (Ocracoke’s fabled harbor).

Satellite photographs taken early Wednesday clearly show the container ship completely blocking the entrance.

When the captain was asked to explain what happened he said, “It’s a well-known adage of the sea that when the draft of the vessel exceeds the depth of the water, the vessel can safely be considered to be ‘hard aground’ and we’re starting to understand this first hand.”

A local politician who wishes to remain anonymous “because people can be so damn critical “ said, “Well so much for ferry service to Cedar Island and Swan Quarter for the foreseeable future. I’ve been saying all along we need to dig a tunnel to the island!”