Today in Great Lakes History

[yachtsmanwilly]

Dangerous weather conditions on Lake Michigan

12/29 - Milwaukee, Wis. – Coast Guard Sector Lake Michigan has urged anyone going on or near the water to use extreme caution and be aware of the weather that will be affecting the area over the next few days.

The National Weather Service in Milwaukee issued a storm warning for southern Lake Michigan through midnight Monday and a gale warning for the entire lake until Tuesday morning.

Winds are expected to gust to more than 60 mph across the lake, and waves are forecast to build to more than 20 feet in some areas. These strong winds, high waves and mixed precipitation will create dangerous conditions for anyone on the water.

The risk is also high for those who venture out on the lakefront due wave action and the potential for coastal flooding in some areas.

This fall, the Coast Guard responded to multiple instances of people being swept off of waterfront structures, such as jetties or piers, during periods of large wave action all across Lake Michigan. Unfortunately, many of those cases resulted in fatalities.

“The forecasted conditions will result in dangerous conditions along Lake Michigan," said Cmdr. Leanne Lusk, chief of response at Sector Lake Michigan. "The Coast Guard urges mariners to monitor National Weather Service reports and take appropriate safety precautions for these conditions."

Any mariners who do encounter hazardous conditions or people in distress are requested to contact the Sector Lake Michigan Command Center at 414-747-7190, marine radio channel 16 or call 911.

USCG



Coast Guard wraps up Argo challenge

12/29 - Port Clinton, Ohio – The Argo never should have set sail on Lake Erie. The New York harbor barge was not designed to withstand Great Lakes storms, and after loading in Sault Ste. Marie and heading for New Jersey, it ran into a storm that packed 58-mph winds.

That was in October 1937, and when the barge disappeared beneath 50 feet of water — its two crewmen rescued by the tugboat Syosset — it sunk into obscurity as one of 2,000 Lake Erie shipwrecks.

Nearly 78 years later, an Ohio dive group known as CLUE, for Cleveland Underwater Explorers, informed the Coast Guard that it had found the sunken Argo while searching for an 1840s schooner. It was about nine miles north of Kelleys Island, just south of the U.S.-Canadian border.

The sunken barge wasn’t the only thing CLUE discovered. The divers also noticed a sheen on the water and a strong odor of solvent. There was a leak coming from the Argo that turned out to be benzol, a solvent made of benzene, toluene and xylene with trace amounts of petroleum.

The discovery of a potentially toxic substance leaking into Lake Erie triggered an emergency containment and cleanup effort that took two months, involved 13 federal, state and Canadian agencies plus private salvage companies, and cost about $5.3 million.

Lt. Cmdr. Tony Migliorini, commanding officer of the U.S. Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit in Toledo, said the cleanup, completed in mid-December, posed some unique challenges.

“For me, personally, it was one of the most complex undertakings — and for several reasons,” Migliorini said Wednesday. “One of the biggest reasons was that we were working with a vessel that we really didn’t have a lot of information about. We didn’t have plans available for the Argo. We didn’t have a crew from a recent sinking. We were really working with a lot of unknowns.”

Not only did they lack information on the 104-year-old barge, there also was little known about the solvent it was carrying. News stories after the 1937 sinking reported that the barge carried 100,000 gallons of benzol, but the amount could not be verified.

After nearly eight decades under 50 feet of water, how much benzol was still held in the eight tanks aboard the Argo? How much of a threat did a benzol leak pose to people and the environment?

“We’re not sure what they were using the benzol for. It’s something used in the seal manufacturing industry,” Migliorini said. “Benzene is a known carcinogen. It also has the properties of a solvent, so it’s a bit corrosive. It’s similar to paint thinner.”

The coast guard established a safety zone around the barge with a radius of 1 nautical mile as it conducted tests. No vessel was allowed to enter, pass through or anchor in the safety zone.

A Unified Command was established for the coast guard and the Ohio EPA. Among the groups that joined in the project were NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service) and T and T Salvage Inc.

“It is hard to give a good estimate of exactly what was released,” Migliorini said. “We were able to retrieve a little over 30,000 gallons of water-and-benzol mix, most of which we believe to be water. There was a little amount of benzol, maybe a few thousand gallons.”

He said divers “hot tapped” the sunken containers, drilling holes into the benzol tanks and placing valves in the holes, then using hoses to pump out any product. Divers wore specialized suits that provided positive air pressure to blow any chemicals away from their skin if their suits became contaminated.

The weather was fairly mild for most of the time the project was underway, from October through mid-December, but working 50 feet below the surface was still challenging, Migliorini said.

The benzol/water mix was pumped out of the barge, into tanks and then transferred to a disposal facility. The portable tanks were then decontaminated.

Normally the government tracks down responsible parties to pay for such spills, but that was not possible with the long-ago sinking of the Argo. The Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund covered $5.2 million of the costs and the hazardous material Superfund contributed another $450,000, according to the coast guard.

Migliorini said the coast guard and other agencies involved in the Argo containment train together regularly, which paid off when they faced a genuine environmental threat.

“We train and practice quite frequently. We have a standing committee for environmental issues,” he said.

Migliorini was satisfied with the success of the Argo project, especially with the fact that there were no injuries.

“Basically, it was a really well-coordinated event. We had a lot of different players there and it went as smooth as it could,” he said. “None of our responders were hurt, which is our priority no matter what. We minimized the impact to the public. Nobody was affected. It was as safe an operation as you can have.”

Times Herald



B. F. JONES was launched December 29, 1906, as a.) GENERAL GARRETSON.

KINSMAN INDEPENDENT was launched in 1906, as a.) WILLIAM B. KERR (Hull#72) at Chicago, Illinois, by Chicago Ship Building Co. for the Weston Transit Co.

Kinsman's new GEORGE M. HUMPHREY was christened on December 29, 1926.

GOLDEN HIND was laid up for the last time on December 29, 1985, at Toronto, Ontario.

On 29 December 1813, ARIEL (4-gun armed schooner, 112 tons, built in 1813, at Erie, Pennsylvania, as part of Perry's fleet) ran aground in a squall at Black River (now Buffalo) and was burned by the British.

CAROLINE (wooden sidewheeler, 71 foot, 46 tons, built in 1822, at New York City, New York) was chartered to transport arms and munitions to Navy Island near Buffalo. On 29 December 1837, she was commandeered by about 60 Canadian rebels under the command of a Royal Navy officer at Schlosser on the Niagara River. In the fight that followed, she was set afire, abandoned and allowed to drift down the river. Some sources say that she went over the falls. This incident caused hostile feelings along the U.S. northeastern frontier for many months.

1935: The Norwegian freighter AGGA came to the Great Lakes as early as 1923 and returned on several occasions until at least through 1934. It had gone aground in the St. Lawrence on October 27, 1924 and again on November 25, 1925. The 1905-vintage cargo carrier was wrecked on this date at Gunnorstenarne, Sweden.

1974: The Swedish freighter RAGNEBORG was newly built when it came to the Great Lakes in 1947 and was a regular inland trader through 1963. The vessel was sailing as c) CHAVIN when the engine broke down and it was towed into Puerto Cortes, (not sure if it was Costa Rica or Honduras), and beached. It never sailed again and was still there as late as 1978.

1979: A spark from a welder's torch spread from the conveyor belt and gutted the pilothouse and officer's quarters of the NICOLET at Toledo. The vessel was rebuilt with a new pilothouse at Lorain and returned to service on April 4, 1981.

[yachtsmanwilly]

On December 30, 1987, the THOMAS WILSON, under tow in the North Atlantic heading to be scrapped, parted her towline and sank near position 34.08'N by 61.35'12"W (approximately in line with Cape Hatteras, North Carolina) early the next day.

GEORGE M. HUMPHREY (Hull#796) was launched December 30, 1926, for Kinsman Transit Co. at Lorain, Ohio, by the American Ship Building Co. Renamed b.) CAPT JOHN ROEN in 1945, c.) ADAM E. CORNELIUS in 1948 and d.) CONSUMERS POWER in 1958, scrapped at Taiwan in 1988.

The first steel carferry, PERE MARQUETTE, was launched in nearly completed form on December 30, 1896. The ship was built for the Flint & Pere Marquette Railroad (predecessor to the Pere Marquette) and entered service just a few weeks later.

1981: VISHVA DHARMA came through the Seaway when new in 1970. The vessel was in a collision on this date with the ADMIRAL S. ALTINCAN and sustained damage to the forecastle and sides. The ship reached Istanbul, Turkey, enroute to Russia on January 7, 1982. The damage was repaired and it survived until scrapping at Bombay, India, in 1988.


BADGER in the drydock with ALPENA astern

bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/shorelinemedia.net/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/24/c24edffc-a0c1-11e5-8ab0-7fdc13745a31/566c023b25be2.image.jpg?resize=760%2C428

[yachtsmanwilly]

12/31 - As the U.S. Department of Commerce starts slapping tariffs on steel dumpers, imports are finally starting to fall. Preliminary steel imports plunged by 23 percent in November, according to the American Iron and Steel Institute.

The United States imported 2.3 million net tons in November, which is down 22.7 percent as compared to October. Finished steel imports fell 15.6 percent in November to 1.9 million net tons.

Cut length plate imports rose 42 percent in November, and oil country tubular goods rose by 12 percent.

Imports captured 25 percent of the overall market share in November, the lowest it's been all year. Foreign-made steel has attained a record 29 percent market share so far this year, leading to layoffs and mill idlings nationwide.

Last year, cheap imports, which are often subsidized by foreign governments, took a record 28 percent of the market share in the United States. Service centers, some of the largest buyers of steel, have said they would prefer to buy American but if they don't buy a certain amount of cheap imports they will be beat by competitors on price.

So far this year, the United States has imported 36.2 million tons of steel, an 11 percent decrease as compared to the same period in 2014. Finished steel imports total 29.3 percent, a 5 percent decline.

Reinforcing bar, standard pipe, line pipe and wire drawn imports have all risen by double digits.

Imports are on pace to reach 39.6 million tons this year, including 32 million tons of finished steel products that don't require any further processing at finishing lines or steel centers in the United States.

To put that number in perspective, U.S. steelmakers typically produce 90 million to 100 million tons of steel a year.

NW Indiana Times


Carferry Badger returning to Ludington Wednesday night

12/31 - Ludington, Mich. – The SS Badger was being towed back to Ludington from Sturgeon Bay, Wis. Wednesday after about a month there for inspections and maintenance work. As of 1:45 p.m., the Badger was shown crossing into Michigan waters being towed and pushed by the Selvick Marine Towing tugs Donny S and Jimmy L, which towed the 410-foot carferry to Wisconsin Nov. 29. According to Terri Brown of Lake Michigan Carferry, the Badger was expected to arrive about 6:30 p.m.

Ludington Daily News, Richard Teichen


The whaleback Barge 126 was built at West Superior, Wis., and launched on Dec. 17, 1892. The 264 foot long vessel left on its first trip on May 9, 1893, with a cargo of wheat for Buffalo.

The ship served the American Steel Barge Co. until joining the Bessemer Steamship Co. in 1899 and then the Pittsburgh Steamship Co. in 1901. Barge 126 was sold on April 20, 1905, and left the lakes, via the St. Lawrence, for the east coast coal trade under the name b) Baden. It did not last the year.

It was 110-years ago, on Dec. 31, 1905, that Baden stranded in Buzzard's Bay, MA while on a voyage with coal from Newport News, Va., to New Bedford, Ma. The ship was a total loss and the six sailors on board perished.



In 1905, B. F. JONES (Hull#15), 530 x 56 x 31 with a capacity of 10,000 tons, slid down the ways at Great Lakes Engineering Works, Ecorse, Mich. The JONES was built at a cost of $400,000 for Jones and Laughlin Steel. She was declared a constructive total loss after a collision with the CASON J. CALLAWAY in the St. Marys River on August 21, 1955. Most of the hull was scrapped at Superior, Wis., in 1956. Part of the hull became the crane barge SSC-1. Her forward cabins and hatch crane and covers were installed on the SPARKMAN D. FOSTER.

In 1952, a total of 35 boats were laid up for the season at Cleveland. The WILLIAM FAIRBAIRN, GEORGE STEPHENSON, and ANDREW S. UPSON had storage cargoes of flax, the MICHAEL GALLAGHER had a storage cargo of wheat, and the remaining 31 vessels were empty.

In 1941, at the close of the shipping season, the Great Lakes fleet consisted of 513 boats of U.S. Registry and 279 boats of Canadian Registry.

At 4:00 p.m., 31 December 1895, the PURITAN (wooden propeller passenger/package freight steamer, 172 foot, 289 gross tons, built in 1887, at Benton Harbor, Michigan) burned at the dock in Oak Hill (Manistee), Michigan. She was a total loss.

Upon suggestion from the U.S. Maritime Commission, surplus World War II cargo vessels, many of which had laid up on the James River, were made available for sale under the Great Lakes Vessel Sales Act of 1950 (enacted September 28, 1950) to be converted for Great Lakes use. The act allowed Great Lakes fleets to purchase up to 10 surplus ships by December 31, 1951, and receive a 90% cost subsidy to convert and refurbish them for lakes use. The first such conversion occurred when the Cleveland-Cliffs Iron Co. of Cleveland, Ohio bought the NOTRE DAME VICTORY (later CLIFFS VICTORY) on December 10, 1950.

GEORGE M. HUMPHREY of 1953 was laid up for the last time at the old Great Lakes Engineering Works slip at River Rouge, Mich., beginning December 31, 1983.

The QUEDOC, a.) NEW QUEDOC, was laid up for the last time on December 31, 1984, at Toronto, Ont., alongside the SENATOR OF CANADA.

On 31 December 1884, ADMIRAL (wooden propeller steam tug, 49 gross tons, built in 1883, at Chicago, Ill.) had her boiler explode in Chicago harbor. All four of the crew was killed.

In 1884, the PERE MARQUETTE NO 1 ran aground at Ludington, Mich.

December 31, 1919 - The entire Ann Arbor carferry fleet was tied up in Frankfort, Mich., due to bad weather.

On 31 December 1889, H. M. Loud of Oscoda, Mich., sold the 551-ton wooden schooner ANGUS SMITH to Mitchell Brothers of Marine City, Mich., for $16,000. The vessel was built in 1871.

1905: The whaleback Barge 126 had left the Great Lakes earlier in the year and was renamed b) BADEN. It stranded at Buzzard's Bay, Mass., enroute from Newport News, Va., to New Bedford, Mass., with coal and was a total loss. The crew of six was also lost.

[yachtsmanwilly]

On January 4, 1978, IRVING S. OLDS was involved in a collision with the steamer ARMCO while convoying in heavy ice in the Livingstone Channel of the lower Detroit River. The OLDS hit a floe of heavy ice, came to a complete stop and the ARMCO, unable to stop, hit the OLDS' stern.

In 1952, the car ferry SPARTAN (Hull#369) was launched at Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin by Christy Corp.

1966: FARO, a Liberty ship that had visited the Seaway in 1965, ran aground in heavy weather off Nojima, Japan, enroute from Muroran, Japan, to Keelung, Taiwan, in ballast. It had to be abandoned as a total loss. It was sold to Japanese shipbreakers in 1967 and broken up.

2012: FEDERAL MIRAMICHI was disabled by a mechanical problem during stormy weather on the English Channel, 12.8 miles northwest of Guernsey enroute from St. Petersburg, Russia, to Paranagua, Brazil, with 22,900 tons of urea. French authorities, fearing the ship could blow ashore, dispatched a tug and the vessel was towed into Cherbourg for repairs. It has been a frequent Seaway trader since 2006.

For the second year in a row the tanker GEMINI (steel propeller tanker, 420 foot, 5,853 gross tons, built in 1978, at Orange, Texas) was the first vessel of the year in Manistee, Michigan. She headed to the General Chemical dock to load 8,000 tons of brine for Amherstburg, Ontario. The vessel arrived at Manistee in 2002, on January first, and Captain Riley Messer was presented a hackberry cane, crafted by local resident Ken Jilbert. A similar cane was presented to the vessel Saturday morning. Sold Canadian in 2005, renamed b.) ALGOSAR (i).

In 1939, the CHIEF WAWATAM ran aground on the shoals of the north shore near St. Ignace, Michigan.

On Jan 3, 1971, BEN W. CALVIN ran aground at the mouth of the Detroit River after becoming caught in a moving ice field.

In 1972, TADOUSSAC cleared Thunder Bay, Ontario, for Hamilton with 24,085 tons of iron ore, closing that port for the season.

1945: While not a Great Lakes event, what is considered the deadliest marine disaster in world history occurred on this date. The little-remembered event claimed the German passenger liner WILHELM GUSTLOFF loaded with over 10,000 refugees and naval personnel fleeing Germany in the latter stages of World War Two. It was torpedoed by a Russian submarine on the Baltic Sea and a reported 9,343 lives were lost. Another 1,239 reached safety.

1979: KOIKU MARU first visited the Seaway in 1967. It ran aground near Tartous, Syria, in stormy weather overnight and had to be abandoned as a total loss



Superior shipyard lands major project

1/3 - Superior, Wis. – repowering project the likes of which hasn’t been seen at Fraser Shipyards since the 1980s is taking place in Superior, where the yard will convert the 56-year-old Herbert C. Jackson to a diesel-propulsion system.

The six-month project is a welcome centerpiece to the winter lay-up that coincides with the seasonal close of shipping on the Great Lakes beginning Jan. 15.

“This is a huge step forward for our shipyard and what we hope is the first of many large projects,” said Tom Curelli, Fraser vice president, in a news release from the Jackson’s owner, the Interlake Steamship Co. of Ohio.

Curelli figured the project would require 65 to 75 full-time employees. An ongoing $10 million revitalization of the yard — the last $2.9 million coming from a state of Wisconsin grant — was cited as a major reason Fraser Shipyards is being looked at again for larger jobs.

“Fraser has invested considerably in its infrastructure and its people to do a project of this size,” said Mark Barker, Interlake president, in the news release. “We felt Fraser has proven its ability to do this repower.”

Included in the improvements were the addition of 2,000 feet of new dockage and facility-wide electrical upgrades.

The Jackson is a 690-foot vessel that regularly carries almost 25,000 tons of iron ore between Marquette, Mich., and Detroit. Its repowering marks the fourth steam-to-diesel conversion for Interlake’s 10-vessel fleet since 2006 as it strives to reach new emission requirements. The Jackson’s aging steam turbine with twin boilers had been converted from coal-burning to fuel oil in 1975.

“We have a long-term vision for this industry and made the decision 10 years ago to invest in new technology that will allow us to reduce our carbon footprint and environmental impact while increasing our reliability for our customers,” Barker said in the company’s release.

The Jackson’s conversion effort is part of $110 million U.S. vessel operators will spend on maintaining and modernizing ships this offseason, said the Lake Carriers’ Association in a late-December news release.

Maintenance and repair work will constitute $60 million of that total while project work, such as repowering or installing exhaust scrubbers, will take up the other $50 million. The work comes despite a second-half to the shipping season that saw a sharp downturn in iron ore movement on the Great Lakes.

“Members are moving forward with projects that will keep their vessels safe and efficient,” said James H.I. Weakley, president of the Lake Carriers’ Association, in a news release, while acknowledging that six of the 56 U.S.-flag vessels were withdrawn from service in November due to steel dumping.

“The dumping of foreign steel into the U.S. market has severely impacted cargo movement during the final months of 2015,” Weakley said.

The arrival of the Jackson at the 125-year-old Fraser shipyard signals the start of the winter lay-up, when vessels across the lakes will undergo scrutiny not often afforded during the season, when the vessels run 24/7 and stop only long enough to load or unload.

Conveyor systems that are part of self-unloading vessels will be inspected and worn belts replaced. Navigation, firefighting and lifesaving equipment is checked over and replaced or upgraded. Several vessels will be rotated into dry dock as required by law to allow the U.S. Coast Guard and others to inspect the hull below the waterline. Fraser generally gets a handful of vessels into its docks and other docks throughout the ports of Duluth and Superior. While Interlake did not issue a dollar figure on the Jackson’s power conversion, it is part of a 10-year, $100 million modernization effort for the company.

“We are honored to have been selected for this project,” said Fraser president and chief operating officer James Farkas. “Our team is excited and so is our surrounding community to have the Herbert C. Jackson in our shipyard and to be part of such a transformation.”

The Jackson will be outfitted with twin engines totaling 6,250 brake horsepower — giving what was the company’s smallest powered vessel enhanced propulsion capabilities to go with exhaust economizers that harness waste heat and energy from the main engine exhaust and produce “free steam” to help heat the vessel throughout. The engines later could be powered by liquefied natural gas if infrastructure is built out around the lakes.

After successful sea trials, the Jackson is expected back on route in late June. The shipping season on the Great Lakes resumes following lay-up in March.

Duluth News Tribune


Detroit’s Fort Street bridge reopens after 2 1/2 years

1/3 - Detroit, Mich. – The Fort Street bridge over the Rouge River closed for repairs in the summer of 2013. After several delays, the span was supposed to reopen last June, then August and then September, but it finally reopened New Year’s Day after 2 1/2-years.

WDIV





73-year-old Great Lakes steamship Alpena will sail on after dock fire

1/1 - Sturgeon Bay, Wis. – It'll take more than a yard fire to finish off the Alpena.

The venerable steamship, launched Feb. 28, 1942, was heavily damaged in a dry dock fire this month at Fincantieri's Bay Shipbuilding yard in Sturgeon Bay, Wis. The fire, which engulfed the aft end, caused an estimated $3 million in damage to the oldest Great Lakes steamship still in active service.

Preliminary investigation results point to faulty equipment on the aft port windlass, a type of winch used to hoist the anchor and haul in mooring lines.

"There was a heating element in that which appears to have failed, overloading a circuit back into the electrical control room in the very aft end of the boat," said Tim Dietman, Sturgeon Bay assistant fire chief.

"From what we understand, that aft windlass is not a regularly used piece of equipment," he said "It's used pretty much once a year when they go to layup for the winter; when they have to secure down."

"I'm not sure if it was original or had ever been changed."

www.mlive.com/news/index.ssf/2015/12/ss_alpena_fire.html#incart_river_home

www.mlive.com/news/index.ssf/2015/10/jb_ford_duluth_scrap.html

www.mlive.com/news/saginaw/index.ssf/2015/10/man_drowned_in_mystery_of_sink.html

[yachtsmanwilly]

The keel was laid January 5, 1972, for ALGOWAY (Hull#200) at Collingwood, Ontario, by Collingwood Shipyards, Ltd.

The wooden tug A. J. WRIGHT caught fire on 5 January 1893, while laid up at Grand Haven, Michigan. She burned to the water's edge. Her loss was valued at $20,000. She was owned by C. D. Thompson.

In 1970, PETER REISS broke her tail shaft while backing in heavy ice at the mouth of the Detroit River.

On January 5, 1976, Halco's tanker CHEMICAL TRANSPORT cleared Thunder Bay, Ontario, closing that port for the season.

1976: A.S. GLOSSBRENNER struck bottom entering Port McNicoll and had to be unloaded immediately due to the extensive hull damage. The ship was repaired at Port Weller Dry Docks in the spring. The vessel became b) ALGOGULF (ii) in 1987 and c) ALGOSTEEL (ii) in 1990.

1982: The Norwegian freighter NORHOLT first came through the Seaway in 1962 and made a total of 15 inland voyages. It was renamed b) SALVADOR in 1966 and returned once in 1967. The ship went aground as c) SAN JUAN off Shadwan Island enroute to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on this date. It was refloated January 22, 1982, towed to Suez Bay and laid up. Fire broke out on August 26, 1982, and the ship was abandoned and later beached. It was taken over by the Suez Canal Authority in 1983 and scrapped


1/5 - Cleveland, Ohio – Great Lakes Shipyard has completed a multi-vessel drydocking and repair contract for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Detroit District Floating Plant, and all vessels were redelivered on Dec. 28. This was the first time the Detroit District Floating Plant has been drydocked using Great Lakes Shipyard’s 700 metric ton capacity Marine Travelift. The shipyard hauled out tug Demolen and deck scow BC-6576 on Oct. 26 and Crane Barge Veler on Oct. 27.

In addition to drydocking the vessels, work included bin wall fabrication and installation; deck mat renewals; underwater hull cleaning and maintenance; inspection of propulsion and steering systems; sea valves maintenance; bearing inspections; steel repairs, and other routine maintenance and repairs. The scope of work also included renewal of four large deck hatches on the Veler.

Great Lakes Shipyard

[yachtsmanwilly]

1/6 - Owen Sound, Ont. – The two ships moored for winter at the Owen Sound harbor will undergo some improvements over the next few months.

Algoma Central Corporation's lake freighter Algoway, which arrived recently at the port, is scheduled for some general maintenance work, Peter Winkley, the company's chief financial officer said Monday.

“A handful” of people, all of whom are from the Owen Sound area, will do the work, he said.

Meanwhile, renovations have already begun on the MS Chi-Cheemaun's dining room area. Susan Schrempf, chief executive officer of Owen Sound Transportation Company, which owns the vessel, said design drawings for the upgrade have been completed and the space has been gutted.

A tender has been issued for the renovation job. “It will be going from a cafeteria to a fine dining area,” she said in an interview.

Schrempf said the project is on track to be finished by March 15, which is well before the ship's sailing season begins May 6. The Chi-Cheemaun's kitchen will not be changed, but the dining room will be completely overhauled.

There will be different stations where people can select their food, she said, and new tables and chairs will be purchased. It will also be decorated in such a way as to create a fine dining atmosphere.

Last May, a First Nations-themed vinyl decal was installed on the ferry's smokestack as part of the first of a two-phase project to update the ship's exterior.

Schrempf said another decal, which will wrap around the front of the bow, will be installed in the spring of 2017 while the vessel is dry-docked for that winter's layover. The ship, which is dry-docked once every five years, is slated to be sandblasted and painted before the new decals are added.

This is likely the last time the Algoway will be in Owen Sound for the winter, as the ship is scheduled to be replaced in 2017, according to Winkley.

He said the 44-year-old, 650-foot freighter, which transports mostly salt and aggregates, will be scrapped and replaced with a ship that is being built in Croatia.

The new vessel, which will be about the same size as the Algoway, will be one of Algoma's Equinox class freighters. The state-of-the-art ships have been designed to optimize fuel efficiency and operating performance thus minimizing environmental impact, the company has said.

Owen Sound Sun Times





Lake Superior makes unusual winter jump

1/6 - Duluth, Minn. – The level of Lake Superior made an unusual jump in December thanks to heavy rains, snowfall and unseasonably warm temperatures across the region. The big lake rose nearly a half-inch in December, a month it usually drops three inches.

The lake received its highest water supply for December in 116 years of accurate records, according to the International Lake Superior Board of Control.

Lake Superior now sits nine inches above its normal Jan. 1 level and one inch below the level at this time last year.

The level of lakes Michigan and Huron rose three inches in December, a month the lakes usually drop two inches. Those lakes now sit 12 inches above their long-term average and two inches higher than the Jan. 1 level of 2015.

Duluth received 3.7 inches of rain equivalent in December, more than the usual 2.5 inches, while Marquette received more than double the usual precipitation — 4.87 inches compared to 2.3. The warmer temperatures kept rivers open and caused much of the snow that did fall to melt, pushing more water into the lake that would usually be locked up on shore until spring. The unusually warm December temperatures — with little difference between lake and air temperatures — spurred less-than-usual evaporation and thus less lake-effect snow than usual.

Water levels of the upper lakes generally decline from September to March and then rise from April to August.

Duluth News Tribune





Ice-free Great Lakes a welcome change from last two winters

1/6 - Windsor, Ont. – Normally, the Great Lakes average one per cent ice coverage for the month of December but mild weather means the North American Ice Service reports open water throughout the system and calls for minimal ice coverage for Lake St. Clair and Lake Erie through mid-January.

“We can actually move ships out of here much easier,” said Windsor harbour master Peter Berry. “We still move salt and home heating fuel in the winter. It really doesn’t hurt my feelings that we don’t have any ice.”

Last winter’s brutally cold weather conditions saw ice coverage on the Great Lakes soar way above the normal long-term average of 53.2 per cent, topping out at 92.5 per cent.

Berry watched freighters take on a payload and then sit at the dock, sometimes for as long as 10 days, waiting their turn for an icebreaking cutter to escort them through the system. Both the U.S. and Canadian coast guard services were busy all winter freeing up vessels stuck in ice or providing escorts from one port to another.

Since keeping the Detroit River navigable is crucial to the winter shipping season, icebreaking does not cost the Windsor Port Authority anything.

“We don’t pay for icebreaking,” Berry said. “We’re like the 401 of the Great Lakes, you have to plow us or you’re not going to go anywhere else. If the Detroit River freezes over, any connection between Lake Huron and Lake Erie disappears. You’ve got to keep the Detroit River moving.”

The Canadian Coast Guard prepares two vessels, the Samuel Risley and the Griffon, for winter duty in this area by mid-December regardless of current ice conditions.

“We are ready when the ice comes,” said Johnny Leclair, a Canadian Coast Guard fleet director for the central and Arctic region. The two vessels are available for water rescues, environmental response and buoy maintenance.

The cost savings of an ice-free lake system are minimal, according to Leclair. There could be some savings in fuel costs but that won’t be realized until the end of the icebreaking season.

A mild start to winter is “a welcome change from the last two years,” Leclair said. “The last two years have been quite hectic. We were heavily solicited.”

The last two springs, the Canadian Coast Guard had to bring in icebreakers from Eastern Canada to help prepare the system for traffic associated with the opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway in April.

The long-term forecast calls for “below normal lake ice coverage through the early half of this winter.”

The Windsor Star





Obituary: Richard L. “Dick” Moehl

1/6 - Richard Moehl, who helped found and organize the Great Lakes Lighthouse Keepers Association in 1983 and served as its volunteer president for 27 years retiring in 2012, has died, according to an obituary published in the Ann Arbor News on December 30, 2015.

During his tenure with GLLKA he was instrumental in working with Boy Scouts of Troop 4 of Ann Arbor restoring the St. Helena Island Light Station in northern Lake Michigan working out of Mackinaw City. Moehl helped scouts from Troop 4 earn 29 Scout service projects at the light station, three on the retired icebreaker Mackinaw and one at McGulpin Point Light Station.

In 2000, then-governor John Engler Honored Moehl as the George Romney Volunteer of the year. Retiring from Beacon Investment Company after 32+ years in 1999, Moehl was commodore of the Huron Portage Yacht Club in 1975 where he became club champion in the Fireball and Sunfish classes.

He was very proud of earning his 100-ton merchant marine master's license and operating his Coast Guard credentialed 46-foot Cake & Ice Cream, primarily in historic lighthouse restoration and preservation work in the Straits of Mackinac. He was called to Washington, D.C. a number of times to testify about various lighthouse issues and was somewhat of a pioneer in fostering national and state legislation to facilitate historic restoration procedures for lighthouses.

A memorial will be held in the spring in Mackinaw City, Mich. In place of flowers donations may be made to Eagle Scout projects BSA Troop 4, Ann Arbor (attn. Frank Oldani) 1025 Scio Hills Ct., Ann Arbor, MI 48103 and for Dick's vision for maritime heritage preservation in Emmet County, to The Dark Sky Coast Association P.O. Box 493, Harbor Springs, MI 49770.


While under tow heading for scrap, the HARRY R. JONES went aground at Androsan, Scotland, on January 6, 1961, and it wasn't until February 15 that she arrived at her final port of Troon, Scotland.

January 6, 1999 - The Dow Chemical plant in Ludington, Michigan, announced a plan to close its lime plant, eliminating the need for Great Lakes freighters to deliver limestone.

In 1973, the JOSEPH H. THOMPSON ran aground at Escanaba, Michigan, after departing that port.

1976: The former GLADYS BOWATER was sailing as c) AGINOR when it caught fire and had to be abandoned off southwest Sicily. The hull was towed to Palermo, Italy, with serious damage and then to Piraeus, Greece, where it was laid up unrepaired. But the ship was resold, rebuilt and returned to service as d) ALEXANDRA in 1977. It was scrapped at Gadani Beach, Pakistan, as e) LAMYAA in 1985.

1979: OTTO NUBEL first came to the Great Lakes in 1953 and returned regularly until the final four trips in 1959. The ship was sailing as b) MARIA III when there was an explosion in the engine room on January 6, 1979, near Tamomago Island, Spain. A fire followed and the vessel went aground where it was abandoned as a total loss.

[yachtsmanwilly]

Rand announces appointments for U.S., Canadian fleets

1/7 - New York, N.Y. – Rand Logistics Inc. has announced the company has appointed Captain Paul J. Joaquin and Captain Gerald “Gerry” J. Ray as vice presidents of operations for the U.S. and Canadian fleets, respectively, effectively immediately.

The two will have executive responsibility for the coordination, execution and optimization of vessel operations to fulfill annual operating plan commitments. This includes workforce and resource planning, fleet safety, regulatory and environmental compliance, vessel expense management and driving operating excellence initiatives.

Both Joaquin and Ray joined the company in 2001. Joaquin is a graduate of the Great Lakes Maritime Academy in Traverse City, Mich., where he received a degree in Marine Technology. He is a U.S. Coast Guard licensed pilot of all waters west of Cape Vincent. Ray is a graduate of Georgian College in Owen Sound, Ont., where he received a diploma in Marine Navigation Technology, and holds several licenses and certifications specific to the marine industry.

Rand Logistics





Mild December stretches ferry season on Erie

1/7 - Catawba Island, Ohio – When the calendar read Jan. 5 in the past two years, the ferry docks here were empty and ice had either shut off the main lifeline between the village of Put-in-Bay and the rest of the world, or its stranglehold on the lake was rapidly developing.

Not so this time around, since it is definitely winter but someone forgot to tell Lake Erie about it. Open water and the absence of ice means the Miller Boat Line is continuing to ferry food, building materials, and passengers a few miles across the lake to South Bass Island and back.

“We’re chugging right along,” said Billy Market, who operates the Miller Line with his brother, Scott, and sister, Julene. “It’s been good for the islanders to get back and forth over the holidays, and it’s been a big factor in all of the construction going on right now. The run of milder weather has enabled them to get a lot of materials over to the island.”

Market said by this time last year, the ferry fleet was mothballed in the Put-in-Bay harbor, and at this time two years ago, there was ice nearly a foot thick around some of the islands.

As fickle as she can be, the big lake might bring the curtain down on the ferry season soon if a sustained cold snap begins to ice her edges, but the water temperature was 38 degrees on Monday and the big boats were still churning across the open water between Catawba Point and the Lime Kiln Dock on the southwestern tip of South Bass Island.

Market said the extended season of ferry runs has helped the three major construction projects on the island continue to progress. There is a large expansion under way at one of the downtown hotels, and two condominium developments taking place.

Market said that one day last week there were four semi-tractor trailer rigs lined up at the ferry ramp in the morning, ready to transport their cargo across the water to the island.

“Usually, a lot of this construction goes on in the spring and everyone is in kind of a panic mode, but the more we can haul this fall, the less panic there should be in the spring,” he said. “Spring will still be very busy — it always is — but these runs into the winter months should help lessen the spring rush.”

Market said many of the subcontractors working on the major projects on the island will commute back and forth on the ferry, while some of the construction workers will ride over to the island to start the week, work four 10 or 12-hour days, and then return home.

Besides feeding the construction work, the winter ferry runs also keep the shelves stocked at the island stores. Once the ferry service shuts down for the season, food supplies must be flown in, which adds significant cost to everything the 400-500 full-time residents of the 1,600-acre island need.

“The logistics of it are much easier, since you can bring a truck load over on the boat, but everything has to be hand-loaded onto a plane. But once the lake freezes over, that’s the only option.”

The Miller Boat Line also ferries propane to the island, while fuel for the gasoline pumps comes via a separate small tanker boat. The mail arrives by airplane, while Miller transports the package service from UPS and other couriers.

The Miller Line made more than 5,700 ferry runs in 2015, transporting nearly 78,000 passengers and close to 12,000 vehicles. From the middle of May to the middle of September, there were 28 ferry trips a day on weekends, and 26 daily throughout the week. There was a single ferry run on Christmas Day, and one on New Year’s Day.

“We are very fortunate we have not had to deal with a lot of ice on the lines, the deck, and the docks so far. We are sort of the lifeline of the island, so we need to run as long as we can,” Market said.

“If it stays like this, it isn’t so bad, but once it does turn cold, I hope it stays cold. The best thing for us is once the weather changes, it needs to stay that way for about two months.”

Market said the ferry crews are looking forward to time off, since their season started on April 8. The final run of the 2014 season came on Jan. 2, 2015. The previous season, the ferry was shut down for a full four months.

Ferry runs to nearby Kelleys Island from the dock at Marblehead by the Kelleys Island Ferry Boat Line Service are scheduled for Mondays and Wednesdays at 8 a.m. and 4 p.m., with return trips from the island 30 minutes later.

The ferry service is closed Tuesday and Thursday, while on weekends five daily runs are scheduled, weather permitting.

Toledo Blade





Lake Huron water level continues to rise

1/7 - Above average precipitation in the month of December has led to higher than normal water levels in Lake Michigan-Huron for this time of year.

According to Lauren Fry, lead water level forecaster for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Detroit District, preliminary estimates show Lake Michigan-Huron received 154 percent of average precipitation in December.

Couple that with lower than average evaporation during that span and you have the main reasons behind the reported three inch increase in water levels over the past month. Lake Michigan-Huron’s level is also two inches higher than it was one year ago.

“We’ve actually had a pretty wet December,” Fry said.

“Normally at this time of year we’d be looking at a period of slowly declining levels, so it’s somewhat rare,” she said of the three-inch increase. “It has happened in the past where we’ve had a positive change in water levels at this point, but much more often than not, that’s not the case.”

Fry said Michigan-Huron is predicted to fall one inch in the next month due to the normal seasonal decline and a meteorology forecast for the month of January that shows drier than average output for the region.

It wasn’t too long ago that Lake Michigan-Huron hit a record monthly low of 576 feet January 2013. In contrast, the lake’s current water level of 579.4 feet is nearly three-and-a-half feet higher.

Michigansthumb.com


07 January 1974 - EDMUND FITZGERALD (steel propeller bulk freighter, 711 foot, 13,632 gross tons, built in 1958, at River Rouge, Michigan) lost her anchor in the Detroit River when it snagged on ice. It was raised in July 1992. The anchor weighs 12,000 pounds and now resides outside the Dossin Great Lakes Museum on Belle Isle in Detroit, Michigan.

On January 7, 1970, the e.) ONG, a.) REDHEAD of 1930, had her Canadian registry closed. The tanker had been sold for use as a water tender at Antigua in the Lesser Antilles and had departed Toronto on December 1, 1969.

1924: The rail car ferry ONTARIO NO. 1 had a rough overnight crossing of Lake Ontario. The ship was diverted to Toronto with three feet of ice on the deck and anchored off Port Credit. With no seagate, it had to sail into the wind and could not make its docking at Cobourg as scheduled.

1943: ORNEFJELL came to the Great Lakes beginning in 1933 and returned as b) AKABAHRA after being sold in 1937. It was torpedoed and sunk on the Mediterranean in position 37.07 N / 4.38 E.

1977: BARFONN had visited the Seaway beginning in 1959 and returned as b) ORIENT EXPLORER in 1967 and as c) AEGEAN in 1971. It caught fire at Colombo, Sri Lanka, as d) TONG THAY and became a total loss. The vessel was taken to Singapore Roads, laid up, sold for scrap and arrived at Kaohsiung, Taiwan, for dismantling on March 24, 1978.

[yachtsmanwilly]

1/8 - Duluth, Minn. – The American Iron and Steel Institute reported this week that U.S. steel mills are now running at just 60 percent of capacity, with the other 40 percent idled as foreign steel continues to trade into the domestic market.

The most recent 60.2 percent capacity level is down from 60.9 percent the week before and 75.1 percent at this time one year ago. Except for a brief dip during the 2009 global recession, that 60.2 percent capacity level is the lowest in at least the last quarter century.

The institute also reported that raw steel production by U.S. manufacturers dropped by another 1.1 percent during the week ending Jan. 2 after dropping 4.4 percent the week before.

The 1,440,000 tons of steel produced last week is down nearly 20 percent from the 1,798,000 tons produced during the same week one year ago.

For all of 2015, U.S. steel production hit 86,843,000 net tons, or about 71 percent of capacity. That's down 9.3 percent from the 95,706,000 net tons in 2014 when the industry ran at nearly 78 percent capacity.

About 29 percent of all finished steel sold in the U.S. in 2015 was made overseas.

All of those numbers are not good news for Minnesota's taconite iron ore industry that supplies the raw material for the largest U.S. steelmakers. And that unused capacity is the big reason why seven of the state's 11 major iron ore related operations are closed or about to close with their employees laid-off — there's simply no demand for their product.

Minnesota officials in Washington are working to curb those imports, noting that demand has remained fairly strong for steel in the U.S. — with record auto sales and strong consumer buying — but that too much of that demand is being met with steel made in foreign nations and being sold in the U.S. below cost.

"The steel industry is feeling so much pain today because it is completely decoupled from the modest growth occurring in the rest of the economy," Lisa Harrison, spokeswoman for the American Iron and Steel Institute, told the News Tribune. "This is a result of the continuing surge in dumped and subsidized imports coming into the U.S. market from around the world. "

Minnesota and Iron Range officials hope that increased trade sanctions and enforcement in 2016 will help stem the tide of foreign steel and increase U.S. capacity. Steel industry officials agree.

"A more effective U.S. trade policy is needed to level the playing field as well as preserve and strengthen our nation's manufacturing base," the institute notes, although Harrison said the only long-term solution is for China to stop subsidizing its steel mills and stop making more steel than the world needs.

There was some good news in this week's report.

Raw steel production in the Great Lakes region increased 2.4 percent from 568,000 tons the previous week to 582,000 tons in the week that ended Jan. 2. It's those mills that are the primary consumer of Minnesota taconite.

In another positive move for the U.S. based industry, the institute reported Wednesday that steel imports were down 5 percent in December compared to November imports, based on U.S. Commerce Department data. Imports were also down some from 2014 levels at year's end.

Imported steel made up about 28 percent of steel sold in the U.S. in November and about 29 percent for all of 2015.

In December, the largest finished steel import permit applications were from South Korea, Turkey, Japan, China and Brazil.

The American Iron and Steel Institute represents North American steel producers. The institute's member companies represent over three quarters of both U.S. and North American steel capacity.

There was a glimmer of hope for the first few days of 2016 as iron ore prices on the global spot market inched back above $40. Iron ore edged up 16 percent from a low of $37 in mid-December to above $43 to end last week.

That ended this week when the Chinese stock market tanked, and ore prices immediately began to fall. Prices sat at about $41 on Wednesday. That compares to $68 per ton one year ago and as high as $190 per ton in 2011.

Experts predict stagnant prices in the range of $30-$40 per ton for the foreseeable future, with a Reuters poll last month suggesting the iron ore price could fall below $30 per ton in 2016. Some analysts agree that prices could fall below $30 per ton as global production continues to far outpace demand.

While the global spot price doesn't directly affect some Minnesota producers who mine for their own blast furnaces — such as U.S Steel and ArcelorMittal — it does impact companies like Cliffs Natural Resources and Magnetation that don't make steel and must sell all their ore to other customers.

The cheap global price of ore also helps to hold down the cost of steel production in China and other nations compared to U.S. costs.

Cliffs downgraded by Moody's, Deutsche Bank

On Tuesday Moody's Investors Service downgraded Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. "Corporate Family Rating" and "Probability of Default Rating" to Caa1 and Caa1-PD from B1 and B1-PD respectively. Moody's changed its overall outlook on Cliffs from "under review" to "negative."

Deutsche Bank also downgraded its rating of Cliffs from "hold" to "sell."

Cliffs, which late last month announced it had sold its last remaining coal mine interests, announced Tuesday that its board of directors has decided to reduce cash outflow by paying the final dividend on the Mandatory Convertible Preferred Stock in common shares of its stock instead of cash.

Duluth News Tribune





Thunder Bay shipping season draws to a close

1/8 - Thunder Bay, Ont. – The shipping season on the Great Lakes is drawing to a close, but the Thunder Bay Port Authority is already looking ahead to what next year might bring.

The warm winter weather means freighters are encountering little to no ice as they cross Lake Superior, and that has the potential to create water level problems in the future, said Tim Heney, the chief executive officer of the Thunder Bay Port Authority.

"One of the concerns when we have no ice cover, like it looks like we're going to have this year, is that it can cause lake levels to drop more than usual because of evaporation," he said.

Instead, this season is ending on an unusual note when it comes to water levels, Heney explained.

"To see it bounce up in December is very unusual, because it usually drops about three inches on average in December." said Heney.

"We just don't want to see a return to the levels back in 2007, when we are at the all-time low, but it looks like that's not going to happen anytime soon," said Heney.

The lack of ice makes no difference in the length of the shipping season, said Heney, adding there are only three more vessels, which need to load up, before the season comes to a close.

CBC News



On 08 January 2004, McKeil Marine’s CAPT. RALPH TUCKER was the first vessel of 2004 to arrive at the port of Manistee, Michigan. Once docked at the General Chemical facilities, Captain Bill Sullivan and Chief Engineer Otto Cooper were each presented with hand-carved Hackberry canes. This was a notable way for the vessel to start her last year of operation. Later that year she was sold for scrap.

JOHN HULST (Hull#286) was launched in 1938, at River Rouge, Michigan, by Great Lakes Engineering Works for the Pittsburgh Steamship Co.

On 8 January 1877, the tug KATE FELCHER burned at East Saginaw, Michigan. Her loss was valued at $3,000, but she was insured for only $2,000. She was named after the wife of her owner, the well-known Capt. James Felcher of East Saginaw.

In 1939, several tugs helped release the CHIEF WAWATAM, which had been aground since January 3. In 1974, BENSON FORD, of 1924, became beset by ice in Western Lake Erie.

January 8, 1976, LEON FALK JR. closed the season at Superior, Wisconsin, after she departed the Burlington-Northern ore docks.

1996: The research ship CALYPSO, a converted wooden minesweeper, served noted deep-sea diver Jacques Cousteau for many years. It came to the Great Lakes in 1980 and explored several wrecks including the EDMUND FITZGERALD and GUNILDA. It sank at Singapore following a collision on this date. The hull was refloated but never repaired. Subsequently, there were disputes over ownership, with a later report saying the vessel would be displayed at the Bahamas as a tourist attraction.

[yachtsmanwilly]

On this day in 1952, EDWARD B. GREENE was launched at the American Shipbuilding yard at Toledo, Ohio. The 647-foot vessel joined the Cleveland Cliffs fleet. After lengthening over the winter of 1975-1976 and conversion to a self-unloader in 1981, the GREENE sailed briefly as the b.) BENSON FORD for Rouge Steel. She sails today as the c.) KAYE E BARKER of the Interlake fleet.

ONTADOC (Hull#207) was launched January 10, 1975, at Collingwood, Ontario, by Collingwood Shipyards, Ltd. For N.M. Paterson & Sons. Renamed b.) MELISSA DESGAGNES in 1990.

On January 10, 1977, the CHESTER A. POLING, b.) MOBIL ALBANY) broke in two and sank off the coast of Massachusetts.

January 10, 1998 - Glen Bowden, former co-owner of the Michigan-Wisconsin Transportation Company (MWT) died.

In 1974, the W.C. RICHARDSON was towed from her winter berth in Toledo to assist in lightering the grounded a.) BENSON FORD.

On Jan 10, 1978, the tanker JUPITER became stuck in 3 to 5-foot ridged ice off Erie, Pennsylvania. The U.S.C.G. tug OJIBWA was sent from Buffalo, New York, to free her, but she too became beset in the ice 3 miles from the JUPITER's position. The JUPITER was lost after an explosion at Bay City in 1990. The OJIBWA is now the tug GEN OGLETHORPE in Savannah, Georgia.

On 10 January 1898, Alexander Anderson of Marine City was awarded a contract to build a wooden steamer for A. F. Price of Freemont, Ohio, Isaac Lincoln of Dakota, and Capt. Peter Ekhert of Port Huron, Michigan. The vessel was to be named ISAAC LINCOLN and was to be 130 feet long and capable of carrying 400,000 feet of lumber. The contract price was $28,000. Her engine and boiler were to be built by Samuel F. Hodge of Detroit. The vessel was launched on 10 May 1898, and her cost had increased to $40,000. She lasted until 1931 when she was abandoned.

1967: PRINDOC (iii) was laid up for the winter at Cardinal, Ontario, when it broke its moorings in a storm and drifted down the St. Lawrence. The shipkeeper was able to get the anchor down and they held just above the Iroquois power dam, averting a major problem.

1970: IOANNA stranded near Sete, France, in a gale while inbound from Barcelona, Spain and had to be sold for scrap. The ship had been a Seaway trader as a) A.J. FALKLAND in 1959 and returned as b) PETER in 1960 and 1961.

1971: CATTARO came through the Seaway in 1959 for the Ellerman's Wilson Line. It caught fire in the engine room at Galatz, Romania, as b) VRACHOS and had to be beached. It was subsequently broken up for scrap.

1977: The tanker CHESTER A. POLING broke in two and sank off the coast of Massachusetts in a storm after an explosion in the forward pump room. Two members of the crew were lost. The ship had been a Great Lakes trader as a) PLATTSBURG SOCONY and as b) MOBIL ALBANY.

1981: SOL RIVER came to the Great Lakes in 1968. It ran aground as f) LIZA near Combi, Lemnos Island, Greece. The hull broke in two and sank January 15. The ship was carrying phosphate enroute from Sfax, Tunisia, to Kavalla, Greece, when it went down on the Aegean Sea with the loss of 5 lives.

2001: The Cypriot freighter ARETHUSA first came through the Seaway in 1987. Fire broke out in the engine room and spread to the bridge and accommodation area while the ship was in the northern Great Belt. The vessel, enroute from Casablanca, Morocco, to Gdansk, Poland, with phosphate, was towed to Gydnia, Poland, after the blaze was extinguished. Repairs to the 28-year-old vessel were not worthwhile and it arrived at the scrapyard at Aliaga, Turkey, for dismantling on March 26, 2001.

The steamer ROBERT S. McNAMARA, under tow, reached her intended destination of Santander, Spain on January 11, 1974, for scrapping.

In 1970, IRVING S. OLDS was the last ship of the season at the Soo Locks as she followed the PHILIP R. CLARKE downbound.

In 1973, ROGER BLOUGH collided with PHILIP R. CLARKE after the CLARKE encountered an ice pressure ridge and came to a stop in the Straits of Mackinac.

On 11 January 1962, ARCTURUS, formerly JAMES B. WOOD, was under tow of the Portuguese tug PRAIA GRANDE on the way to Norway to be scrapped when she foundered off the Azores at position 46.10N x 8.50W.

January 11, 1911 - ANN ARBOR NO 5 arrived in Frankfort, Michigan, on her maiden voyage.

On 11 January 1883, The Port Huron Times reported that a citizens' committee met to help Port Huron businesses. "A. N. Moffat decried the taxation of vessel property. High taxation of vessel property had driven much of it away from Port Huron. He cited the case of Capt. David Lester of Marine City who came to Port Huron a few years ago to live and would have brought here one of the largest fleets on the Great Lakes, but when he found what taxes would be, returned to Marine City."

1919: The laker CASTALIA left the lakes in two pieces and was rejoined at Lauzon, Quebec, for a new career on the Atlantic in 1918. The ship broke in two 65 miles off Sable Island, Nova Scotia, and the crew was rescued by the BERGENFJORD.

1962: The retired Interlake Steamship Company bulk carrier ARCTURUS was under tow of the tug PRIA GRANDE for scrapping in Europe when it sank in the Atlantic in position 46.10 N / 8.50 W.

1965: CELIA B. made 15 trips through the Seaway in 1959-1962 under Liberian registry. The vessel arrived at Willemstad, Netherlands Antilles, as f) SEA MAID with engine damage and having lost its propeller. The ship was ultimately deemed not worth repairing and arrived at Rotterdam, Netherlands, under tow for scrapping on June 22, 1966.

1974: The first FEDERAL HUDSON to visit the Great Lakes was sailing as d) GOLDEN KING when it struck the wreck of the THETIS off Chittagong, Bangladesh, while inbound from Singapore Roads. It was beached in sinking condition and sustained water damage at high tide. The vessel was refloated on February 13, 1974, and taken to Chittagong to unload and get repaired. It was scrapped at Kaohsiung, Taiwan, as d) CHAR HSIUNG in 1980.

1981: ARNA began Seaway trading in 1965. It stranded off Shimonoseki, Japan, as b) IQBALBAKSH and was declared a total loss. The vessel was sold to South Korean shipbreakers and arrived at Busan, under tow on August 2, 1981.

1993: EUROJOY was anchored off Cadiz, Spain, when a spontaneous combustion fire broke out in the cargo of coal that had been bound for Turkey. The ship was listed as a total loss and sold for scrap but was repaired. It sailed additional years until scrapping at Alang, India, as g) LENA II in 1998. It first visited the Seaway as a) ATLANTIC CHALLENGE in 1971 and returned as b) ANGEBALTIC in 1981, c) ASTURIAS in 1986 and e) EUROJOY in 1990.


1/11 - Duluth, Minn. – Looking out over the deck of the lake freighter Edwin H. Gott, Ellora Hammerberg surveyed a landscape just outside Detroit that was blackened with the soot and oil of industry.

“We just pulled up to Zug Island on the Detroit River,” Hammerberg said into her cellphone. “It’s just below and it’s not very pretty.”

As third mate aboard the 1,000-foot freighter, Hammerberg, 25, is living out a dream. A Duluth East High School graduate, she was called to the profession in her teens. Several seasons of a part-time job with the local Vista Fleet gave her an up-close look at the port of Duluth-Superior.

“Watching the big boats come into the harbor, it just fascinated me,” she said. “It also fascinated me that people didn’t pay attention to how important they are to keeping the economy and everything going.”

Hammerberg is not alone in her observation. Students in the Transportation and Logistics Management major at the University of Wisconsin-Superior call what they study “the great hidden empire.”

“Because if it works right, which it does most of the time, you don’t notice,” said Richard Stewart, the longtime director of the program who sailed for 15 years, finishing as a master of oceangoing vessels.

But for an industry that is experiencing a graying of its workforce, it’s imperative that people like Hammerberg find their way to it. Hers is among the fresh faces in an industry known for its scruffy beards.

In a 2012 study, titled “Transportation & Logistics 2030,” the world’s largest professional services firm, PricewaterhouseCoopers, analyzed the growth of commodities and product movement around the globe against the backdrop of an aging workforce. It found that 35 percent of the American workforce was approaching retirement age; Stewart calls this generation of aging baby boomers the “pig in the python.” The industry, the study summarized, needed to make top priorities out of improving its image and training and developing younger workers.

The study also found the industry was dominated by men, with women making up between 20 and 30 percent of the workforce globally — and only 10 percent of its management.

“It’s an archaic industry for its propensity to include only men,” said Kate Ferguson, who last year joined the Duluth Seaway Port Authority as its director of business development. “But I’m seeing more and more younger professionals and women. There’s been an infusion.”

Ferguson, 32, grew up in Michigan on the shores of Lake Huron. For years, she lifeguarded and would use her binoculars to check out the lake freighters pulling into dock at the local LaFarge cement terminal.

She went to UWS to play hockey first and later soccer. It was an adviser who steered her into the burgeoning Transportation and Logistics Management major. “It was an awakening,” Ferguson said. “It was right in front of me my entire life. ‘That’s what I want to do.’”

The first thing Stewart did was try to talk her out of it. Since its inception at the university in 1998, and Stewart’s arrival in 1999, the major has grown from three students to what it is now, pushing 90 — and Stewart has made it a point of first trying to talk each of his students out of the program.

It’s a 24/7 job, he’ll tell them. Managers are expected to get out into the field. They need to be willing to take a call at 4 a.m. on a Sunday to hear, “We’ve got a problem?” and respond with, “Give me the details.”

“If I can’t talk them out of it,” Stewart said, “they can stay.”

Blessed with support from the entire cluster of transportation industries in the Twin Ports — maritime, rail, air, truck and pipeline — the hallmarks of the UWS major are its internships and on-site visits that allow students to “caress the steel,” Stewart said.

These are boom times for Stewart’s graduating students, who typically have three to four jobs from which to pick. A study Stewart and UWS just submitted for peer review reveals one of the reasons for their prosperity: Of more than 600 colleges and universities surveyed, the UWS study found only 170 offered degrees in some combination of supply chain management or transportation and logistics.

The rise of the global economy has created a tremendous expansion of the need for transportation and logistics, Stewart said, but “at the same time we haven’t been putting a lot of people in the workforce.”

Most students, like Ferguson, transfer into the program once they’re already on campus, Stewart said. He explained that while moving goods around the world is a noble profession, the industry’s image problem comes from the fact that it’s not one people talk about in the way parents and their children discuss, say, getting into the medical or engineering fields, or other career-oriented professions.

“I have people all the time quizzically ask me, ‘Why aren’t people entering this field as freshmen?’” Stewart said. “But you always tell your kids to do what you think is important. So if you’re not telling them, who will?”

Since starting with the local Port Authority in July, Ferguson has been working side-by-side with the person she was hired to replace, longtime trade development director Ron Johnson.

Ferguson came with credentials that included time spent at Essentia Health, the Great Lakes Fleet and Canadian National Railway. She described the overlapping time spent working alongside Johnson as one of “downloading for him and uploading for me.”

“She’s really going to have a full plate,” said Johnson, who retired Friday. “She’s a very smart, aggressive and talented person.”

The Port Authority website bills Ferguson as its “first point of contact for companies pursuing domestic and international trade opportunities.”

Johnson was noted for his work trying to create more agricultural shipping in the port after the grain industry’s peak in the late 1970s, and helping to keep Duluth from becoming nothing more than a residual port.

A Marine and later a graduate of the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management, Johnson first learned about transportation and logistics growing up on a dairy farm in Carlton County and later working for the Junction Oasis truck stop in Carlton. The settings offered valuable and practical lessons, he said.

He called the Great Lakes “the fourth coast,” joining the East, West and Gulf coasts, but added it’s tough work generating business given that the lakes’ shipping industry largely shuts down part of the year.

“We need the best, as far as the best talent, to get the word out,” he said.

Now charged with drumming up business for a Port Authority that soon will feature a nearly $18 million refurbished dock for general and project cargoes, Ferguson is eager to help diversify the cargoes coming into the Duluth port.

She said she couldn’t yet talk about specifics, but she’s optimistic and said there are opportunities on the horizon. The new employees coming into the industry, she said, are bringing with them more skills when it comes to data crunching and analysis.

When asked to assess her own strengths, Ferguson said, “I’m someone who has always brought energy and enthusiasm to the table.”

Back aboard the Gott, Hammerberg was getting ready to go on duty in the pilothouse.

“I’m the one in the front window, piloting the vessel — when to turn, what (coordinates) to steer on,” she said, “On the river, the captain still stands by.”

Hammerberg graduated in 2009 from Duluth East before attending the Great Lakes Maritime Academy in Traverse City, Mich. Whereas programs like the major at UWS will produce the next generation of managers, the maritime academies located near ports across the country will train its operators.

Job placement is nearly 100 percent out of the Great Lakes Maritime Academy, Hammerberg said, recalling the vessel operating companies and unions that would come to the academy and pitch their opportunities to the next wave of seafarers.

Following a mandatory sea project in the summer of 2014, Hammerberg graduated and chose to go to work for the Duluth-based Great Lakes Fleet, now owned by CN, because it stood out as a good fit for her. She’s spent little time back home in Duluth since — one of the trade-offs for a life on the water.

“I live on the boat more often than anything else,” she said. “You learn to see the world from a different point of view from what a lot of people see. When you’re away you fully appreciate being home. You don’t take a lot of the things for granted that people normally do.”

Hammerberg recently got engaged to another graduate of the maritime academy and together they’re going to make a home base out of Traverse City.

Looking out at Zug Island, she resisted the temptation to go ashore. There are safer places. Asked about the maritime industry’s future when it comes to filling its wave of retirees, Hammerberg stuck to her specialty.

“Honestly, I’m not 100 percent positive,” she said. “A lot of companies are changing and trying to become more efficient. But the office deals with all the numbers. Me, personally, as third mate, I’m keeping it running.”

Duluth News Tribune


Public offered last look inside at B.C. Cobb power plant

1/10 - Muskegon, Mich. – On Saturday Jan. 8, Consumers Energy offered the public a rare glimpse at the inner workings of the soon-to-be-closed B.C. Cobb power plant in Muskegon. The first-come, first-served guided tours turned out to be very popular, with all slots reserved by 10 am. However the very gracious volunteer staff issued at least 80 stand by tickets, and it appeared that all those who were willing to wait for a tour were able to be accommodated, with the last tour starting about 4 pm.

B.C. Cobb is the only Consumers Energy plant that receives all its coal via lake freighter. It’s last shipment was delivered by the James R. Barker back on November 8th, 2015.

The tours were limited to the "turbine deck" the main floor of the primary galley in the power plant. Unfortunately, due to security regulations, no photography was allowed inside the plant. Visitors were shown the 5 primary boilers as well as the 5 turbine generators. Two boilers and two turbines are currently active. In spite of the near freezing temperatures outside, the air temperature on the turbine deck was 92 degrees. Visitors were also shown the interior of the now inactive control room for Units 1,2 and 3, including a display showing the real time status of Unit 4, and a schematic of the boilers and turbines. The volunteers, mostly long time plant employees, were willing to answer all questions about the plant and others throughout Consumers system.

Units 1 and 2 of the plant first came on line in 1948 burning Eastern coal. Units 1, 2 and 3 produced 60 Megawatts each. They were retired in 1990, but converted to natural gas and reactivated in 2000. They were permanently shut down in 2008. Units 4 and 5 are still active and now burn Western coal. They produce 160 MW each. Due to their age and more stringent environmental emission regulations, they will be retired in April 2016. At that point decommissioning and demolition of the power plant will begin, with work expected to be completed by the end of 2018. The exiting substation next to the plant will remain in operation. The possibility of reusing the property for other maritime uses is being investigated.

A quick drive along the eastern shore at dusk found the following vessels wintering in the harbor: tugs Ethan George and Robert W. Purcell (both out of the water on blocks), tugs Fischer Hayden and Barbara Andrie in the slip near the Andrie headquarters building, Drummond Islander II and several work barges south of the Andrie slip, the vessels LST-393, Port City Princess, Paul H. Townsend, Trieste, tug Zeus, and barges McKee Sons and Cleveland Rocks at the Mart Dock, an unidentified work tug and barges working at Heritage Landing, and the tug Candice Elise next to the Milwaukee Clipper. With the exception of the Drummond Islander II and perhaps the unidentified tug, all have spent winters in Muskegon in the past several years.

California lawyer buys St. Clair Inn

1/10 - St. Clair, Mich. – The St. Clair Inn officially sold last week, and community leaders say they’re glad to see the historic building potentially returning to its former glory.

City officials said California lawyer and businessman Jeff Katofsky, managing member of Nevada limited liability company Planet Clair LLC, purchased the property, which is on the St. Clair River.

The company is assessing the property with plans to reopen it as a hotel and restaurant. According to the St. Clair County register of deeds, the purchase was mortgaged for $4.1 million.

Katofsky said he has been studying the inn and has been in negotiations for three to four months, and he’s been to the area several times. By Friday, Planet Clair had owned the property for two days.

“I fell in love the first time I drove up and saw it,” he said. “Before I even walked in the door it was something that I knew that I wanted to do.

Officials had talked over the purchaser’s references, and expectations for what could be done to the inn — something Bohm called a cornerstone for St. Clair. And after spending time with Katofsky, he said he appeared to have “the ability and the wherewithal” to take the development on.

“Make no mistake, to rehab the St. Clair Inn, it’s a huge undertaking,” Bohm said. “It’ll cost a lot of money — millions of dollars. I was most impressed that he fully understood that. He wasn’t going to come in and fix it (and) not do it cheaply.”

Katofsky declined to discuss finances for the project, though he said because every day “that property is now costing money,” it’s in his best interest to move ahead quickly in finalizing plans.

He said he didn’t yet know the full scope of needed renovations, and that it’s too soon to set a timeline for rehabbing the property — or for opening it to the public.

“I’m sure there are things that we haven’t seen yet. What I can tell you is it’s going to be beautiful again,” Katofsky said. “If you ask me that question in 120 days, I could probably give you a better answer to that. There’s a lot for us to learn and understand before we can take a hammer anywhere.”

Vacant for two years and long for sale, the 90-year-old inn at 500 N. Riverside Ave. and surrounding property has been subject to an ownership dispute and a countywide effort to bring its redevelopment back to the forefront.

Port Huron Times Herald


1/10 - Hamilton, Ont. – Have you ever dumped your goldfish in Hamilton Harbor? Here's the bad news: it's been breeding.

Researchers at the Royal Botanical Gardens (RBG) have counted as many as two million large and small goldfish this year, fish that are likely descendants of people dropping unwanted pets in the water. Now there are so many that they're throwing another wrench into attempts to rehabilitate the bay.

This year, the RBG team has counted as many as 2,500 large goldfish and two million young, said Tys Theysmeyer, head of natural lands with the Royal Botanical Gardens. They seem to be thriving thanks to climate change, and poor water conditions that have discouraged native species from flourishing.

RBG spotted handfuls of them dating back to the 1990s, Theysmeyer said. But lately, the problem has worsened.

"People used to actively release goldfish into the bay a lot," he said. "In the last five years, their numbers have been rising and rising." The growing goldfish population isn't limited to Hamilton. The province says they've been a problem in other areas of the lower Great Lakes, in particular the north shore of Lake Erie.

In Hamilton, the numbers are rising from a perfect storm of water conditions. Warmer water temperatures mean that new fish species such as the goldfish can survive, where decades ago it might not have. Theysmeyer says pressures on water quality in the bay, such as contaminated overflow from the city, have also caused a decline in native fish species, leaving more room for goldfish.

Native fish such as northern pike, freshwater drum and several sunfish and minnow species are in short supply, Theysmeyer said. He estimates that only two species — namely yellow perch and blue gill — are showing up in greater numbers.

"A couple of native fish have been on the rise," he said. "But goldfish win."

This year in particular, RBG has seen large schools of goldfish in the area. The RBG and Hamilton Conservation Authority tried to collect some, and "we collected thousands," said Jennifer Bowman, an RBG aquatic ecologist.

RBG has contacted the Department of Fisheries and Oceans and Ministry of Natural Resources, Bowman said, about "how they would want to move forward and if they want to take action."

The presence of goldfish throws the ecosystem off balance, Bowman said. "Goldfish are not balanced."

"All of Hamilton Harbor is turning into a dirty goldfish bowl."

Carp are a larger problem facing the harbor, and one the RBG and other organizations have tried to tackle for years. Carp are bigger than goldfish, so big that their feeding and spawning actions can uproot and crush aquatic plants.

They're also bottom feeders, which means they forage in the soft sediments of a river mouth marsh environment, the RBG says. And while RBG has built an extensive barrier to keep carp out of its marsh, the species is still an issue in the harbor.

But goldfish are increasingly prevalent. Theysmeyer said their presence is a good example of how humans shouldn't mess with an ecosystem. "If you let your pets go, strange things can happen in the wild."

The future looks brighter for native fish species. The city is spending millions in improvements to the Woodward Avenue Wastewater Treatment Plant, cited as one of the major impediments to water quality. The feds have also started cleaning up Randle Reef, a large underwater mass of toxic material in the bay.

Theysmeyer hopes those actions will improve native fish numbers and the goldfish won't be quite so dominant.

But "until that happens, goldfish will be king."

CBC



Lakes/Seaway iron ore trade down 8.5 percent in 2015

1/9 - Cleveland, Ohio – Shipments of iron ore on the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway totaled 54.4 million tons in 2015, a decrease of 8.5 percent compared to 2014. Shipments slipped 7.8 percent compared to the trade’s 5-year average.

Loadings at U.S. ports totaled 47.1 million tons, a decrease of 12.4 percent compared to 2014, and 10.3 percent off their 5-year average.

Loadings at Canadian Seaway ports totaled 7.3 million tons, an increase of 29.8 percent compared to 2014, and 11.6 percent ahead of their 5-year average.

Lake Carriers’ Association





Lake Erie's lack of ice means shipping companies save money this winter

1/9 - Windsor, Ont. – A lack of ice on Lake Erie is making life easier for shipping companies this winter. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in the U.S. tweeted Thursday that the lake had been declared 99 per cent ice free earlier this week.

Peter Berry, the harbormaster for the Windsor Port Authority, in Windsor, Ont., said as a result of these conditions, there has been no need to call in the Canadian Coast Guard to help with ice jams this season. Last February, nearly 81 per cent of all the Great Lakes' surface area was covered with ice.

"We don't have to work with the Coast Guard at this point for issuing ice notices or having icebreakers go out to work with the ships," he explained in a telephone interview on Thursday night.

"At 99 per cent, the ice that they are speaking of, that one per cent is mostly shoreline ice, which wouldn't affect commercial shipping," said Berry, adding that means big savings for those companies.

The Detroit River is a major shipping channel. It helps link Lake Superior, Lake Huron and Lake Michigan to Lake Erie and eventually Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence Seaway. Berry said the low ice levels have also meant that Coast Guard equipment has suffered less wear and tear this winter.

"The impact economically ... is the fact that those repairs do not need to occur and neither do those expenses," he said.

When there is more ice on the lake, it takes time for icebreakers to do their work. But with no ice this winter, there are no such delays to contend with.

"You look at the movement of things such as salt, which is something that moves right through till February most times," said Berry. "Instead of the ships having to wait to leave the salt dock for six to 10 days, they're able to leave as soon as they're full and get through most areas of the lake."

CBC





$3.6 million cut from federal budget for dredging Cleveland Harbor

1/9 - Cleveland, Ohio – The dispute between the Port of Cleveland and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers heated up again this week after Army brass obtained a cut of more than $3 million in funds budgeted for dredging the Cuyahoga River shipping channel.

Port of Cleveland President & CEO Wil Friedman wrote to Senators Sherrod Brown and Rob Portman on Tuesday to express his dismay at the "troubling actions" of the Army Corps and to seek their assistance in recouping the money.

At the root of the dispute are the Army Corps' ongoing efforts to dump dredged sediment from the river channel directly into the open Lake Erie, rather than to continue its longstanding practice of storing the sediment in lakefront containment dikes. Port officials and the Ohio EPA contend the sediment is potentially toxic and unsuitable for open-lake disposal.

"We believe that this action will only complicate and endanger 2016 Cuyahoga River navigation channel dredging," Friedman wrote in the letters to Ohio's U.S. senators.

In response to Friedman's complaints, Army Corps spokesman Bruce Sanders said the money contained in last month's congressional end-of-the-year federal budget signed into law by President hateful muslim traitor "is sufficient to dredge Cleveland Harbor in accordance with federal dredging regulations."

Sanders added that the Army Corps is awaiting a response to its request for certification that would allow it to dispose of dredged sediment in the open lake.

Last year, the Ohio EPA rejected the Army Corps' request for open-lake certification. That decision was enforced in an order by U.S. District Court Judge Donald Nugent. Ohio EPA officials said they would not change that decision this year.

In the original federal budget, $9.54 million was earmarked for dredging Cleveland Harbor, Friedman said. But unknown to port officials or the Ohio congressional delegation, Army Corps brass advised a congressional Appropriations Committee to cut the budgeted money for dredging the harbor to $5.94 million -- a reduction of $3.6 million, he said.

"In short, we believe that this request was made as an attempt to circumvent" Nugent's order banning open-lake disposal, Friedman wrote in the letters. Nugent's order only applied to 2015 dredging, but Friedman said he would ask the judge for an extension of that order to cover 2016 also.

To make up for the $3.6 million shortfall, Friedman asked Brown and Portman to seek the necessary money from a $273 million Army Corps fund set aside for operations and maintenance of federal harbor and channel projects.

The annual dredging of sediment that builds up in the Cuyahoga River is necessary to keep the channel waters deep enough for large commercial ships.

The Army Corps' actions come at a time when activity in the Cleveland Harbor is its busiest in decades, with a more than 500 percent growth since 2014 in shipping containers moving through the docks, and a 300 percent increase in overall tonnage, Friedman said.

Cleveland Plain Dealer

[yachtsmanwilly]

CHI-CHEEMAUN (Hull#205) was launched January 12, 1974, at Collingwood, Ontario, by Collingwood Shipyards, Ltd.

GRAND HAVEN was gutted by fire on January 12, 1970, during scrapping operations at the United Steel & Refining Co. Ltd. dock at Hamilton, Ontario.

MENIHEK LAKE (Hull#163) was launched January 12, 1959, at Collingwood, Ontario, by Collingwood Shipyards, Ltd. She was used in a unique experiment with shunters in the Welland Canal in 1980. She was scrapped at Gijon, Spain in 1985.

On January 12, 1973, the VENUS had an engine room explosion shortly after unloading at Kipling, Michigan, near Gladstone on Little Bay De Noc, causing one loss of life.

On 12 January 1956, ANABEL II (probably a fish tug, 62 tons, built in 1928) was destroyed by fire at her winter lay-up at the Roen Steamship Co. dock at Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin.

January 12, 1911 - ANN ARBOR NO 5 hit the rocks close to the south breakwater when entering Manistique harbor, tearing off her starboard shaft and wheel.

The wooden steam barge O.O. CARPENTER (127.5 foot, 364 gross tons) was sold by the Jenks Shipbuilding Company on 12 January 1892, to Mr. H. E. Runnels and Capt. Sinclair for $26,000. The vessel had been launched at Jenks yard on 13 May 1891.

The new EDWIN H GOTT departed Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, in 1979, for final fitout at Milwaukee. 1970: BARON BERWICK made one trip inland in 1959 and returned as b) FILTRIC in 1967. The latter was abandoned 5 miles south of Cape Finistere on the northwest coast of Spain after the cargo shifted. The vessel was enroute from Copenhagen, Denmark, to Alexandria, Egypt, and it drifted aground the next day as a total loss.

1971: The West German freighter BRANDENBURG sank in the Straits of Dover, 7 miles south of Folkestone, England, after apparently hitting the wreck of TEXACO CARIBBEAN which had gone down the previous day following a collision. The former had been through the Seaway in 1969.

1979: A propane explosion aboard the tug WESTERN ENGINEER at Thunder Bay resulted in extensive damage. Two were injured. The ship was never repaired and noted as broken up in 1980.

1985: ATLANTIC HOPE first came inland when it was fresh from the shipyard in 1965. It was gutted by a fire in the accommodation area in position 9.22 N / 60.37 W as b) ALIVERI HOPE. The ship was abandoned but towed to Barbados and eventually into Mamonal, Colombia, on October 14, 1985, for dismantling.


1/12 - Catawba, Ohio – After a unseasonably warm start to the winter which allowed Lake Erie’s waters to remain open for passage, Miller Ferry has finally announced that it will no longer run for the remainder for the winter.

Initially scheduled to run a 10:30 a.m. trip to Put-in-Bay today, harsh winter weather conditions proved too much for the morning run on Monday. Miller Ferries to Put-in-Bay and Middle Bass Island closed for rest of winter season.

While the extended season certainly made for longer hours for Miller crews, the warmer weather up to this point has allowed Miller ferry to help boost production on many large island construction projects.

Norwalk Reflector


1/12 - The crane barge William H. Donner, a former lake vessel that has been used for many years as a cargo transfer vessel at Marinette, Wis., has been moved across the River to K&K Warehousing in Menominee, Mich., where it will eventually be cut up for scrap.

Crews have been working since mid December at Fuel & Dock in Marinette putting together a new ground-based crane that will be used to unload future deliveries of pig iron ingots to the dock. Its unknown if a second similar crane will be added in the future.

The 524-foot-long Donner, built in 1914 at Great Lakes Engineering Works for the Mahoning Steamship Co., and which later sailed for Bethlehem Steel, carried the same name her entire career. She last operated as a powered vessel in 1969.