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Post by yachtsmanwilly on Apr 13, 2017 6:02:21 GMT -5
4/13 - Thunder Bay, Ont. – The plan to bring the Alexander Henry home has officially set sail. City council unanimously gave the Lakehead Transportation Museum Society its approval in principle for a plan that would tow the ship to the city's waterfront, where it would become a tourist attraction at the former Pool 6 grain elevator site.
Museum society treasurer Wally Peterson said council support is essential to moving provincial funding applications forward and allowing for the group to issue tax receipts to donors who want to see the icebreaker ship brought home to the Port Arthur shipyards where it was built in the 1950s.
"It means we can go to the insurance companies and say, 'yes we're getting it,' so we can get hard and fast quotes," Peterson said. "We can go to the people who are going to do the tow and start actually getting firm and sound commitments because without a commitment from the city, we were waiting."
The ship that broke ice across the Great Lakes from 1959 to 1984 is currently docked outside of Kingston, Ont. The Alexander Henry was displaced from that city where it was displayed for decades and used as a bed and breakfast. The federal government sold the land where it was docked, leading to a countdown that would either see it sunk in Lake Ontario or scrapped by the end of June unless $250,000 can be raised and a plan was put in place to tow it across the Great Lakes one last time.
"With June 29 pending, we had to get this going and that was a hard, hard, hard deadline," Peterson said.
Some councillors were hesitant to support the group's request for $125,000 from the city in December but all cast their votes in principle to support its efforts. "It's a win-win situation either way, whether it becomes part of a transportation or the underwater marine museum, it's going to work," said Westfort Coun. Joe Virdiramo.
Coun. Iain Angus compared the decision council faces to that of the USS Midway, an aircraft carrier turned tourist attraction that's docked in San Diego.
"That ship was the subject of much debate in the community for the price of $100,000 people thought they couldn't afford and now that ship brings in millions to that community," Angus said. "Different magnitude, but just an example of how when you have a vision and you work towards it, it pays off in the long term."
Northwood Coun. Shelby Ch'ng called her reluctant support "an act of faith" in city administration, who has been working with the project's advocates since a business plan presented last year met criticism and disapproval around the council table.
"I still haven't seen a business plan and I'm very uncomfortable voting 'yes' on something that I haven't seen any numbers on. I've asked this a number of times and I know it's bits and pieces here and there but I just want to see it," Ch'ng said.
Sudbury.com
4/13 - The Coast Guard is proposing a change in the way it calculates Great Lakes pilot rates by adding a metric favored by shippers and ports. The agency for the first time will account for the weighting factor, so that larger ships yield higher pilotage fee revenues than smaller ones.
“The result of the adjustment would be a reduction in the hourly pilotage rates in the Great Lakes region from amounts proposed” last October for the 2017 shipping season, the Coast Guard said in its Supplemental Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (SNPRM) published April 5. “This action does not change the total amount of projected revenue we deem necessary for the pilot associations to provide safe, efficient, and reliable service, but would have the practical effect of reducing the actual amount of money paid as pilotage fees by shippers by approximately 28 to 32 percent.”
The agency originally sought a 14 percent rate increase primarily to cover eight new pilots needed because of workload and fatigue factors as well as the number of older pilots approaching retirement. Meanwhile, the 2016 rates remain in effect.
Under the new calculations, the current hourly rate on the St. Lawrence River, for example, would go from $580 to $592, instead of $757 in the October proposal. Rates on lakes Huron, Michigan and Superior would go from $264 to $215, instead of $280.
The Coast Guard establishes rates for Great Lakes pilots while rates elsewhere in the country are set at the local level. The rates must be reviewed annually. Both sides have spoken up on the weight issue.
“It is abundantly clear that the use of the weighting factor when invoicing for services needs to be included in revenue projection calculations,” Michael Broad, wrote on behalf of the U.S. Great Lakes Pilotage Users Coalition. “Not doing so is an unacceptable error in principal. This can no longer be ignored and must be corrected immediately.”
Pilots want the Coast Guard to keep the status quo on weighting factors, “at least until actual data suggests that changes are necessary and appropriate,” pilot group presidents Capt. John Boyce, St. Lawrence Seaway Lakes Pilots Association, Capt. Dan Gallagher, Lakes Pilots Association, and Capt. John Swartout, Western Great Lakes Pilots Association, said about the October proposal. “Over the last decade, the pilots have consistently failed to reach target compensation even with the weighting factors included. Changing this practice would exacerbate an already-unfortunate situation and risk further contributing to the pilot attraction and retention difficulties.”
Meanwhile, ports and shippers last year sued the Coast Guard seeking a 2016 rate reduction of at least 20.6 percent, arguing the agency’s calculations were flawed and the increases arbitrary and capricious. The Coast Guard set the average annual pilot compensation at $326,000, up from $235,000 and recommended more pilots and up to 10 days off a month.
Pilots associations have joined the suit on the Coast Guard side. Comments on the SNPRM must be submitted by May 5.
Workboat
4/13 - Legislation that would loosen boating restrictions along the U.S.-Canadian border in the St. Lawrence River has cleared the Canadian Senate.
State Sen. Patricia A. Ritchie, R-Heuvelton, is sponsoring the U.S. version of the bill. Under current law, boaters must report to Canadian customs to legally be in Canadian waters at anytime. A few years ago, a U.S. boater traveling along the Gananoque Narrows was told by Canadian border agents that he needed to pay a $1,000 fine or face arrest, having his boat towed to Canada and be forced to pay $25,000 in penalties.
Now, legislators on both sides of the border want to ease the rules so boaters can travel freely, which they hope will also spur more tourism.
“I have been proud to advocate for passage of this important measure, which I hope will continue to advance and soon become law,” Sen. Ritchie said in a statement. “Through this legislation, we can make it easier for people to enjoy our shared waterways and strengthen the relationship that exists between our two nations.”
The Canadian bill is sponsored by Senator Bob Runciman and Member of Parliament Gordon Brown.
Watertown Daily Times
13 April 1872 - The schooners MARY TAYLOR and ANTELOPE wooden were racing to Oswego, New York, trying to beat a large block of drifting ice. The ice won and blocked the harbor entrance. The ANTELOPE became icebound about a quarter of a mile from the piers and remained there for one day. The MARY TAYLOR got within 500 feet of the pier and remained there for five days until the tug MAJOR DANA broke through the ice.
RICHARD REISS lost her boom April 13, 1994 when it collapsed at Fairport, Ohio.
On 13 April 1872, the wooden schooner-barge JOSEPH PAIGE was launched at the Wolf & Davidson yard in Milwaukee. Her dimensions were 190 feet x 32 feet x 12 feet, 626 gross tons.
The passenger/package freight vessel OCEAN was launched at Andrews & Sons shipyard in Port Dalhousie, Ontario, on 13 April 1872. She was placed in service on 27 April 1872, loading iron at Kingston for Chicago.
1917: The steel canaller STRATHCONA was built at Dundee, Scotland, in 1900 and came to the Great Lakes that summer. The ship had several owners before being requisitioned for war service in 1915. It was stopped by U-78 near Ronaldshay, England, while traveling from Tyne, England, to Marseilles, France, with a cargo of coal on this date in 1917. Enemy bombers attacked sinking the ship. Nine crew members were lost while another 3 were taken prisoner.
1937: The Norwegian freighter REIN was a frequent pre-Seaway caller to the Great Lakes. It had been built in 1900 and was inland as early as 1908. The ship was carrying wood pulp when it was wrecked off Helman Island, 2 miles south of Wick, Scotland, while traveling from Lyngor, Norway, to Preston, UK on this date in 1937. REIN was a total loss.
1956 Winds and ice pushed the ore laden GEORGE M. HUMPHREY on a shoal in Whitefish Bay en route from Superior to Zug Island. The vessel was salvaged and taken to Lorain for repairs.
1959: GLENEAGLES was proceeding through ice in Lake Erie when it abruptly stopped. The trailing WESTMOUNT could not stop as quickly and rammed the stern of its CSL fleetmate. GLENEAGLES had to be towed to Lorain for repairs that included a new rudder.
2010: The rebuilt ALGOBAY went aground while upbound in the St. Marys River on its first trip to the upper lakes. The vessel had to go to Port Weller Dry Docks for repairs.
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Post by yachtsmanwilly on Apr 14, 2017 6:06:05 GMT -5
Great Lakes gain mind-boggling amount of water in last 12 days 4/14 - Grand Rapids, Mich. – The Great Lakes' water levels are rising. The entire Great Lakes system has gained an incredible amount of water just in the first 12 days of April. Recent wet weather, combined with the seasonal lake level rise due to earlier snowmelt, are causing the Great lakes to rise. Read more and see a video at this link: www.mlive.com/weather/index.ssf/2017/04/great_lakes_gain_mind-boggling.html 4/14 - In another rite of spring, international commerce has returned to Northwest Indiana. The Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor, the region's gateway to distant shores, celebrated its version of opening day Wednesday by welcoming its first ocean-going vessel of the season. The 413-foot general cargo carrier BBC Mont Blanc brought wind turbine parts to the deepwater Lake Michigan port in Portage and Burns Harbor. She departed Thursday evening for Thunder Bay, Ont. "The arrival of the first ocean ship of the new year is an exciting time not only for our port, but also for our port companies and numerous other regional businesses that rely on the cargoes these vessels carry," said new Port Director Ian Hirt, who started in March. "For northwest Indiana, the opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway each spring is always a symbol of optimism because it reestablishes a direct connection to global markets and new business opportunities." Port officials presented the ceremonial "Steel Stein" to welcome Russian Captain Nikolay Gombalevsky, who helms a crew of 15 sailors on the Mont Blanc, a German-owned ship that's flagged to Antigua and Barbuda in the Caribbean. The ship carried over a cargo of nearly 900 tons of wind turbine tower sections shipped from Marin, Spain and bound for a wind farm in Illinois, and will ship out Thursday to drop off a huge transformer in Thunder Bay, Ontario. About 30 workers from the International Longshoremen's Association and International Union of Operating Engineers are unloading the massive parts, which Hirt said should herald a resurgence in wind turbine shipments, which tapered off after a big gust of them blew through three or four years ago. Hirt also expects an increase in steel slabs from Russia to NLMK's mini-mill at the port this year. Get breaking news sent instantly to your inbox In his new role, Hirt hopes to boost shipping volumes and recruit more businesses to take over the remaining 110 acres of vacant space at the Lake Michigan port. Private businesses, mainly steel processors and Cargill's grain-shipping operations, currently occupy about 500 acres there. About 2.6 million tons of cargo passed through the Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor last year, capping the highest three-year total in its 59-year history. Northwest Indiana Times.com 4/14 - Port Sheldon Township, Mich. – Ottawa County welcomed a sign of spring Wednesday, as the Port Sheldon buoy camera returned to Lake Michigan. Crews with LimnoTech deployed the buoy cam Wednesday morning, after pulling it from the water before winter set in. About 25 buoy cams float in the Great Lakes, monitoring conditions including wind speed, wake heights and water temperatures. They play an important role for the community, especially boaters. “Just one guy this morning in South Haven said that the buoy saves him trips to the lake. He doesn’t live on the lake, so he uses the buoy to check conditions. He checks the buoy before getting out of bed in the morning; it saves a lot of time. “It’s also a safety thing. NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) uses it to forecast better… to have eyes on the water and what’s going on,” explained LimnoTech project engineer Ed Verhamme. The buoy anchored off the shore of Port Sheldon is historically the most popular buoy in the entire Great Lakes. Its recordings, which are available online for free, were viewed 30,000 times last year after community donations helped pay for its late launch. WOOD TV Chemical spill closes four Lake Michigan beaches 4/14 - A U.S. Steel plant in Portage, Ind., has spilled wastewater containing a potentially cancer-causing chemical into Burns Waterway, a tributary about 100 yards from Lake Michigan. The leak prompted the closure of four beaches and a riverwalk at the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, and Indiana American Water in Ogden Dunes—the nearest municipal water source—to shut down its water intake and switch to a reserve water supply, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which is overseeing the spill, announced. U.S. Steel reported the leak on Tuesday morning. The company informed the EPA that its release has been stopped at the source. The amount of spilled wastewater is still unknown. The wastewater discharge, apparently caused by a pipe failure, contains hexavalent chromium (chromium-6), which is used for industrial processes. The toxic chemical was made famous by the environmental activist and 2000 movie of the same name, "Erin Brockovich." Incidentally, as Chicago Tribune pointed out, President Donald Trump's administration has proposed a budget that would quash efforts to crack down on the dangerous pollutant nationwide. According to the Associated Press, a U.S. Steel preliminary investigation determined that an expansion joint failed Tuesday in a pipe at the Portage facility. This allowed wastewater from an electroplating treatment process containing chromium-6 to escape into the wrong wastewater treatment plant at the complex. That wastewater eventually flowed into the Burns Waterway. Andy Maguire, the EPA's on-scene coordinator, told the AP that testing is continuing at the intake areas and other nearby points, but hexavalent chromium from the spill has so far not been found in Lake Michigan. Chromium-6 is used in chrome plating, wood and leather treatments, dyes and pigments and the water in cooling towers of electrical power plants. The chemical has long been known to cause lung cancer when airborne particles are inhaled. Recent science has also shown that, when ingested, it can cause stomach cancer. A 2008 study by the National Toxicology Program found chromium-6 in drinking water caused cancer in rats and mice. 14 April 1965 The GEORGE A. SLOAN (steel propeller bulk freighter, 603 foot, 9057 gross tons, built in 1943, at River Rouge, Michigan) was the first commercial vessel through the Soo Locks. The SLOAN (now MISSISSAGI) received Sault Ste. Marie's official tri-centennial flag to fly all season. The Sault Ste. Marie Chamber of Commerce in turn received the Pittsburgh Fleet flag, and it flew below the United States flag on the flagpole on top of the Ojibway Motor Hotel all season. On 14 April 1872, the MESSENGER (wooden propeller passenger/package freight steamer, 150 foot, 444 gross tons, built in 1866, at Cleveland, Ohio) left Manistee, Michigan in a storm for Milwaukee, Wisconsin. After battling ice flows near shore, she made it to open water but the heavy seas snapped her rudder post. She was unmanageable and four members of the crew left in the yawl to try to get help. Although they were only a few miles from port, the men struggled for hours against the wind, waves and ice before they finally made it back to Manistee, Michigan, where they got a tug to go out and tow the MESSENGER in for repairs. On April 14, 1961, FORT CHAMBLY departed Toronto, Ontario, on her maiden voyage bound for the Canadian Lake head. Interlake Steamship's COLONEL JAMES PICKANDS (Hull#791) sailed on her maiden voyage April 14, 1926, clearing Lorain for Toledo, Ohio, to load coal. CSL's steamer GLENEAGLES lost her self-unloading boom April 14, 1977, while unloading at the CSL stone dock at Humberstone, Ontario. Renamed b.) SILVERDALE in 1978, she was scrapped at Windsor, Ontario, in 1984. On April 14, 1984, vessels around the Great Lakes were battling one of the worst season openers for ice in recent memory. The ERNEST R. BREECH (now OJIBWAY) and HERBERT C. JACKSON spent the entire day battling ice off the Duluth entry, while the St. Clair River was choked with ice. On 14 April 1873, The Port Huron Daily Times gave the following report of shipbuilding work going on in Port Huron: "Mr. Fitzgerald is up to his eyes in business with a large barge in process of construction and a good sized schooner still on the stocks. Mr. Thomas Dunford has in hand the repairs of the large scow T S SKINNER and she is being rapidly healed of the damage done to her in the collision with the INTERNATIONAL last fall. At Muir's yard the [schooner] canaller on the stocks is rapidly approaching completion. At the [Port Huron] Dry Dock Company's yard, they are busy as bees docking and repairing vessels and work upon the new tug for Moffat & Sons is [being] pushed ahead very rapidly." Unfortunately, later that year the "Panic of 1873" struck and all shipyard work was stopped while the country tried to recover from that economic depression. 1965: Fire broke out in the #2 hold of the CAPETAN VASSILIS en route from Madras, India, to Rotterdam with a cargo of sunflower seeds while 60 miles off the Mediterranean island of Crete. The crew abandoned the vessel and it sank on April 16. The ship had been built at Superior, Wisconsin, as TULLY CROSBY in 1944 and returned to the lakes as c) SPIND in 1952-1953, as d) HEILO in 1953 and e) CAPETAN VASSILIS in 1956. 1977: CANADIAN OLYMPIC ran aground in the St. Lawrence off Heather Point near Brockville. The ship was loaded with ore and en route from Sept Iles to Ashtabula. The navigation channel was blocked. The vessel was lightered to MAPLEHEATH and released at 1057 hours on April 16. The ULS self-unloader spent three weeks at Port Weller Dry Docks undergoing repairs to the damage. |
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Post by skycheney on Apr 14, 2017 19:49:48 GMT -5
Great Lakes gain mind-boggling amount of water in last 12 days 4/14 - Grand Rapids, Mich. – The Great Lakes' water levels are rising. The entire Great Lakes system has gained an incredible amount of water just in the first 12 days of April. Recent wet weather, combined with the seasonal lake level rise due to earlier snowmelt, are causing the Great lakes to rise. Read more and see a video at this link: www.mlive.com/weather/index.ssf/2017/04/great_lakes_gain_mind-boggling.html Wow!! 5 trillion gallons in 12 days. That's hard to even comprehend. |
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Post by yachtsmanwilly on Apr 17, 2017 6:40:35 GMT -5
17 April 1871 - The wooden brig ST. JOSEPH was carrying lumber from Ludington, Michigan, to Chicago, Illinois. Her hold was filled and lumber was stacked on deck so she was indeed overloaded. A gale developed and the deck load shifted, then was lost. ST. JOSEPH became waterlogged in mid-lake. Her crew remained with her until 19 April when the propeller ST. LEWIS found them 35 miles southwest of Pentwater, Michigan, and took them there. The tug ALDRICH towed the waterlogged brig in for repairs.
The first vessels through the Straits of Mackinac for the 1870 season were the CITY OF BOSTON and the CITY OF NEW YORK, both owned by the Northern Transportation Company. They passed through the Straits on 17 April 1870. The following day they passed Port Huron but could only go as far as Algonac, Michigan, since the St. Clair River had an ice jam which raised the water level by two feet and was causing flooding.
The Collingwood-built, 610-foot aft section of the JOHN B. AIRD passed up bound through the St. Marys Falls Canal on April 17, 1983, in tow of the tugs WILFRED M. COHEN and JOHN MC LEAN heading for Thunder Bay, Ontario, where it was assembled with the 120-foot bow section.
Canada Steamship Lines a.) STADACONA (Hull#24) was launched April 17, 1929, by Midland Shipbuilding Co. Ltd. She was renamed b.) NORDALE in 1969 and was scrapped at Port Colborne, Ontario, in 1983. She was the first vessel scrapped at the old Algoma Steel Dock in Port Colborne.
April 17, 1970 - CITY OF FLINT 32 was sold to the Norfolk & Western Railway for $100,000.
On 17 April 1840, the wooden side-wheeler CATARAQUI was burned to a total loss during a great fire, which destroyed much of the waterfront area of Kingston, Ontario.
On 17 April 1874, CHARLES J. KERSHAW (wooden propeller, 223 foot, 1,324 gross tons) was launched at the Ballentine shipyard at Bangor, Michigan.
1961: FREEMAN HATCH was built at Sturgeon Bay and completed in December 1942. It left the Great Lakes the following spring for service for the British Ministry of War Transport. It was sold and renamed b) CHARLES M. in 1950 and became c) HOUSTON in 1953. The vessel was sunk on this date in 1962 during the attempted, anti-Castro, Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba.
1982: CHEMICAL TRANSPORT ran aground in the St. Lawrence near Dark Island as channel markers were out of position due to the wind and ice conditions. The vessel lightered some cargo to fleetmate JAMES TRANSPORT and then went to Sorel for repairs. In 2009, the ship was reported as lying burned out and derelict near Lagos, Nigeria, after an explosion and fire as c) REAL PROGRESS on June 1, 2001.
1990: RESERVE ran aground in the St. Marys River while downbound with a load of iron ore for Toledo on this date in 1990. The ship stranded in a snowstorm and had to be lightered to the WILLIAM R. ROESCH before going to Fraser Shipyard for repairs.
1997: ALGOLAKE got stuck on Vidal Shoal, St. Marys River while bound for Algoma Steel with a cargo of iron ore. The ship was lightered and released. After unloading, the vessel went to Thunder Bay for repairs.
16 April 1907 - In a blinding snowstorm, the LOUIS PAHLOW (wooden propeller package freighter, 155 foot, 366 gross tons, built in 1882, at Milwaukee, Wisconsin) was towing the DELTA (wooden schooner, 134 foot, 269 gross tons, built in 1890, at Algonac, Michigan) on Lake Michigan. She went off course and ran onto the rocks at the Clay Banks, six miles south of Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin. The DELTA made it to anchorage before she also grounded. The Lifesaving Service rescued both crews. Both vessels were eventually freed, repaired and put back in service.
On 16 April 1872, the THOMAS W. FERRY (wooden schooner, 180 feet) was launched at the J. Jones yard at Detroit, Michigan. She cost $40,000 and was owned by P. J. Ralph & Son and A. C. Burt.
ALGOWOOD departed on her maiden voyage April 16, 1981, from Owen Sound, Ontario, in ballast for Stoneport, Michigan, taking on limestone there for Sarnia, Ontario.
ALGOLAKE's sea trials were held April 16, 1977.
BURNS HARBOR's keel was laid at Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, as (Hull#720) for Wilmington Trust Co., Bethlehem Steel Co., manager, on April 16, 1979.
CEMENTKARRIER (Hull#175) of the Furness Shipbuilding Co. Ltd at Haverton Hill-on-Tees, England, was launched April 16, 1930, for Canada Cement Transport Ltd.
Reiss Steamship Co.'s a.) W.K. BIXBY entered service on April 16, 1906. Renamed b.) J. L. REISS in 1920 and c.) SIDNEY E. SMITH JR in 1971. She sank in a collision with the Hindman steamer PARKER EVANS under the Blue Water Bridge on June 5, 1972.
On April 16, 1986, U.S. Steel's steamer WILLIAM A. IRVIN was sold for $110,000 to the Duluth Convention Center Board.
On 16 April 1870, the fore-and-aft schooner L.W. PERRY was launched at the Fitzgerald & Leighton yard in Port Huron, Michigan. She was owned by J. L. Woods of Lexington, Michigan and commanded by Capt. M. Hyde. Her dimensions were 128 foot keel, 133 foot overall, 26 foot beam and 9 foot depth. She cost $29,000 and was built for the lumber trade.
On 16 April 1873, DAVID BALLENTINE (wooden propeller, 221 foot, 972 gross tons) was launched at Bangor, Michigan. She was built by Thomas Boston.
1897: The wooden schooner INGEBORG FORREST was a total loss in a spring gale near the entrance to Pentwater, Michigan, on this date in 1897.
1906: EUGENE ZIMMERMAN was upbound with coal on its maiden voyage when it collided with the SAXONA in the Mud Lake section of the St. Marys River on this day in 1906. The new bulk carrier was hit on the port bow and sank. The hull was raised on May 20, repaired and returned to service. It was renamed b) GRAND ISLAND in 1916 and last operated in 1960. After work as a grain storage hull named c) POWEREAUX CHRIS, the vessel was towed to Hamburg, West Germany, for scrapping in 1964.
1959: T.R. McLAGAN of Canada Steamship Lines ran aground on a shoal off Amherst Island, Lake Ontario, and was released on April 18.
15 April 1907 - The Rutland Line’s OGDENSBURG (steel propeller package freighter, 242-foot, 2329 gross tons, built in 1906, at Cleveland, Ohio) was carrying 50,000 bushels of corn, a big consignment of flour and general merchandise from Chicago to Ogdensburg when she stranded on Point aux Barques on Lake Huron in a storm. Although she was leaking in her forward compartment, she was freed after some cargo was jettisoned.
15 April 1907 - The Welland Canal opened for the season with the first vessel being the SAMUEL MATHER (steel propeller bulk freighter, 530 foot, 6,751 gross tons, built in 1906, at Wyandotte, Michigan) carrying coal from Cleveland, Ohio to Prescott, Ontario.
On 15 April 1881, the Market Street Bridge in Mount Clemens, Michigan, was taken down to allow the newly built VIRGINIUS to pass down the Clinton River to Lake St. Clair, where she was taken in tow by the CITY OF NEW BALTIMORE. The VIRGINIUS was towed to Port Huron where her engine was installed and she was fitted out for service.
Misener's CANADA MARQUIS (Hull#257) of Govan Shipyards Ltd, Govan, Scotland, was launched April 15, 1983. Renamed b.) FEDERAL RICHELIEU in 1991, c.) FEDERAL MACKENZIE in 1991, d.) MACKENZIE in 2001 and CSL's e.) BIRCHGLEN in 2002.
American Steamship Co.'s SAM LAUD was christened April 15, 1975.
On April 15, 1977, the CONALLISON's, a.) FRANK C. BALL of 1906, self-unloading boom collapsed while unloading coal at the Detroit Edison Trenton, Michigan, power plant in the Trenton Channel on the lower Detroit River.
W. W. HOLLOWAY suffered a fire in the fantail while in dry dock following her re-powering at AmShip on April 15, 1963, causing $15,000 damage.
Pittsburgh Steamship's steamer J. P. MORGAN JR left Lorain in ballast April 15, 1910, on her maiden voyage to load iron ore at Duluth, Minnesota.
Masaba Steamship's steamer JOE S. MORROW entered service April 15, 1907.
The steamer JOHN P. REISS left Lorain, Ohio on her maiden voyage on April 15, 1910 with coal for Escanaba, Michigan. She was the first of three bulkers built in 1910 for Reiss interests. The other two were the steamers A. M. BYERS and the PETER REISS.
The tanker IMPERIAL COLLINGWOOD began service April 15, 1948.
On April 15, 1955, American Steamship's steamer DETROIT EDISON entered service, departing Manitowoc, Wisconsin, for Port Inland, Michigan, on her maiden trip.
On April 15, 1985, the e.) WILLIAM CLAY FORD, formerly d.) WALTER A. STERLING and presently f.) LEE A. TREGURTHA) departed Fraser Shipyards for the D. M. & I. R. ore docks in West Duluth for her first load in Ford Motor Company colors.
April 15, 1930 - While going up the Manitowoc River to dry dock, the WABASH rubbed the parked steamer THEODORE ROOSEVELT and damaged her upper works forward.
On 15 April 1862, ELISHA C. BLISH (wooden propeller tug, 81 foot, 107 tons, built in 1857, at Black River, Ohio) sank near shore at Algonac, Michigan, when a steam pump was accidentally left in an open position and she flooded. She was raised and lasted another two years when she "went missing" on Lake Huron.
On 15 April 1872, The Port Huron Daily Times announced that the HURON was chartered by a circus company for the season. They intended to perform at many lakes ports throughout the summer.
1967: MAPLE HILL began visiting the Great Lakes in 1959. The British-flag freighter had been built at Montreal in 1943 as a) FORT VERCHERES and was renamed c) DIOPSIDE in 1966. It collided with and sank the Swedish freighter IREVIK in the Baltic Sea on this day in 1967. MAPLE HILL was renamed d) ENTAN in 1969 and arrived at Hirao, Japan, for scrapping on June 30, 1970.
1987: An attempt to steal navigation equipment using a cutting torch resulted in a fire that caused major damage to the upper deck of the GRAND RAPIDS. The retired Lake Michigan carferry had been idle at Muskegon since 1971. It was eventually sold for scrap in 1989 and broken up at Port Maitland, ON in 1994.
Coast Guard recovers operator off grounded, flooding vessel near Ludington
4/16 - Chicago, Ill. – A boat crew from Coast Guard Station Ludington, Michigan, assisted an operator off of his vessel that he grounded off Big Sable Point Saturday.
The operator was on his way from Pentwater, Michigan, to Traverse City, Michigan, aboard a 76-foot pleasure craft when he noticed his vessel was taking on water so he decided to ground the vessel in about 3 feet of water.
The boat crew, which was already underway on patrol when the Coast Guard Sector Lake Michigan command center directed it to assist, arrived on scene in about 20 minutes. The operator was removed from the vessel after it began listing about 15 degrees.
There were no injuries and no report of pollution. A commercial salvage company is planning to place boom around the vessel Sunday and position a barge with a vacuum pump to remove all of the fuel and oil from the vessel.
USCG
4/16 - Blanc-Sablon, Que. – Crews are assisting a Newfoundland and Labrador ferry that has been stuck in the ice-choked waters near Quebec for more than 24 hours. The Canadian Coast Guard tweeted Friday afternoon that an icebreaker is escorting the Apollo ferry to port after being stranded near Blanc-Sablon, Que., since Thursday.
The ferry departed from St. Barbe on Newfoundland’s northern peninsula Thursday morning, but the normally less than two-hour trip to Blanc-Sablon was delayed when the ship got stuck in the ice in the Strait of Belle Isle. The coast guard sent an icebreaker to help the ferry, but says it could not help the vessel due to a mechanical issue.
An operations manager with Labrador Marine says all 70 passengers on board the ferry are safe, food is available and there were cabins for people to sleep in overnight. The delay has caused a “major disruption” to people’s travel plans over the Easter weekend.
The Canadian Press
4/16 - Two Harbors, Minn. – For the first time since 1981, people who visit Two Harbors will have a chance to see a tugboat working in the port, as tug service has returned to Agate Bay.
The last tugboat that serviced Two Harbors was the Edna G., which still is docked in Agate Bay as a museum. Now the Edna G. has some company as the Nancy J. is docked on the north side of Canadian National Railway Ore Dock 1. The Nancy J. is owned and operated by Heritage Marine in Duluth and its owner, Mike Ojard, has a long history with tugboats — and specifically the Edna G.
Ojard grew up on the Edna G. His father was the chief engineer and his uncle was the captain, and he went to work with his dad every day. “There was no mother in the family, so it was just me and my dad,” Ojard said. “I would go to work with him and I knew that Edna from stem to stern.”
As a tribute to the Edna G., the four tugboats currently in the Heritage Marine fleet all are painted the same color as the historic tug, and Ojard is now picking up where his family left off by providing tug service for Two Harbors once again.
Tug service has returned to Two Harbors because CN wants to better serve its customers that visit the Two Harbors port, said CN spokesman Patrick Waldron. According to Ojard, when there is a strong north-northeast wind, it can be hard for some of the larger vessels to navigate into the port.
“A lot of times they have to run across the lake and sit near the Apostle (Islands) anchored or come all the way to Duluth and anchor and wait for the weather to die down,” he said.
Though weather is the main reason the tugboat will be used, Ojard said that it also will be used when the ore boats are having bow thruster problems. “If CN and Key Lakes Inc. and the rest of the shipping companies are not moving pellets and product they don’t get paid, so that’s why they made the decision to move to a tug service,” he said.
The current contract between CN and Heritage Marine is for one year, with the hope that time delays will begin to lessen with the tug on hand.
Ojard wasn’t the only one happy to see tug service return to Two Harbors — so was former Edna G. crew member John Klug. “It’s the right color,” Klug joked as he made the comparison to the Edna G. Klug, 70, worked on the Edna G. from 1972 to the day it was retired. He said he often goes down to the parking lot near the boat ramp along Agate Bay in the summer to watch the boats, and he hopes to be able to catch the Nancy J. in action this summer.
“It’s good to see it and I think that’s one of the most powerful tugs on the lake,” Klug said.
Ojard started Heritage Marine from the bottom up about 10 years ago, and said he wishes he would have started it earlier. “It’s very rewarding and a lot of hard physical work, but it’s something I really enjoy doing,” Ojard said. “I’m not a kid anymore, either. I’m 71 years old… so you’ve got to have a love for it.”
Before starting Heritage Marine, Ojard spent 11 years as a teacher and owned three businesses, but his passion is with his tugboat service. Ojard started his business with just one tugboat, and around mid-June this year he will be adding a fifth one. The tugboat business has been a family affair for Ojard, so naturally all of the tugs are named after family members — with the Nancy J. being named after his wife.
Along with running his business, Ojard has recently joined Two Harbors’ Edna G. Commission is hopes of using his knowledge of the tug to help the city find a way to pull the deteriorating, historic tug out of the water. The commission is actively working on finding a feasible way to save the historic tug and put the Edna G. on land.
Duluth News Tribune
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Post by yachtsmanwilly on Apr 18, 2017 5:27:29 GMT -5
18 April 1907 - At least 20 freighters were anchored at De Tour, Michigan, waiting for the frozen St. Marys River to break up. The vessels found their provisions running low after waiting for about a week and they bought everything edible in De Tour. The U.S. Lighthouse Service Tender ASPEN (steel propeller tender, 117 foot, 277 gross tons, built in 1906, at Toledo, Ohio) was sent to Cheboygan, Michigan to get more provisions. De Tour did not have railroad facilities at this time and therefore was compelled to stretch the provisions from the last boat in the fall through winter until a boatload of supplies was delivered in the Spring. On 18 April 1889, the CITY OF RACINE (wooden propeller passenger/package freight steamer, 220 foot, 1,041 tons) was launched by Burger & Burger at Manitowoc, Wisconsin, for the Goodrich Transportation Company. The vessel was ready for service three months later. Her total cost was $125,000. On her maiden voyage April 18, 1980, the AMERICAN MARINER left Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin in ballast for Escanaba, Michigan to load 31,322 gross tons of taconite pellets for Ashtabula, Ohio and arrived there on April 26th. Hall Corp. of Canada’s b.) MONTCLIFFE HALL began trading on the Great Lakes on April 18, 1978. Renamed c.) CARTIERDOC in 1988 and d.) CEDARGLEN in 2002. Built in 1959 in Germany as the a.) EMS ORE, she was purchased by Hall Corp. in 1977. Converted to a bulk carrier with the addition of a forward cargo section at Davie Shipbuilding in Lauzon, Quebec. PATERSON (Hull#231) was launched April 18, 1985, by Collingwood Shipyards Ltd. She was the last straight deck bulk freighter built on the Lakes and was built to the maximum size permitted to lock through the Seaway. Renamed b.) PINEGLEN in 2002. Johnstown Steamship's a) MIDVALE (Hull#167) of Great Lakes Engineering Works was launched April 18, 1917. Renamed b.) BETHLEHEM in 1925 and scrapped at Santander, Spain in 1974. Problems occurred on the ALASTAIR GUTHRIE's first trip of the year on April 18, 1979, when she began taking on water in the engine room while loading grain at the International Multifoods elevator at Duluth, Minnesota. Her stern settled to the bottom of the slip with 12 feet of water in the engine room. Upper Lakes Shipping's RED WING was sold for scrap on April 18, 1986. On April 18, 1960, the ROBERT C. STANLEY struck Vidal Shoal in St. Marys River about 1.5 miles above the Soo Locks, and tore a hole in her bottom. Superior Steamship Co.'s a.) SINALOA (Hull#609) of the West Bay City Shipbuilding Co., was launched April 18, 1903, as a straight deck bulk freighter. Renamed b.) WILLIAM F. RAPPRICH in 1924, c.) SINALOA in 1927. Converted to a self unloader in 1931. Renamed d.) STONEFAX in 1960. Scrapped at Santander, Spain in 1971. April 18, 1936 - Albert W. Ackerman, chief engineer of the Pere Marquette car ferries for 35 years, died (Friday afternoon) at the Paulina Stearns hospital. On 18 April 1848, the wooden schooner TRIBUNE went missing in lower Lake Michigan. Her fate was unknown until native fishermen discovered her masts standing upright off Cathead Point in November 1849. All 10 of her crew were lost. On 18 April 1885, the schooner-barge ELEANOR was launched at Mount Clemens, Michigan. Her dimensions were 185 foot overall, 32 foot beam and 11 foot 3 inch depth. She had three spars and was the consort of the steam barge A WESTON. She was built for the Tonawanda Barge Line and was named after Capt. William Du Lac's wife. 1945 The steel barge GEORGE T. DAVIE, en route from Oswego to Kingston with 1,100 tons of coal and under tow of the SALVAGE PRINCE, began leaking and sank off Nine Mile Point, Lake Ontario, in 85 feet of water. The hull was located by divers in 1999. The ship had once been part of Canada Steamship Lines. 1989 ENERCHEM AVANCE spent 7 hours aground in the St. Marys River below the Soo Locks on this day in 1989. At last report the ship was under Nigerian registry as e) ERINGA. 4/18 - Cleleland, Ohio – They're called Boatnerds, people who relish the commercial ships that navigate the Great Lakes, delivering iron ore, coal and other aggregates from one port, or one lake, to another. All of us have a little bit of Boatnerd in us. The site of a floating, steel-hulled monster nudging its way up the Cuyahoga River is especially captivating. Now that the ice (what little we had this year) has melted away and the shipping season has begun with the opening of the Soo Locks between Lake Superior and Lake Huron, we offer up a colorful look at several of the boats that call the Great Lakes home. Read more and view photos at this link: www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2017/04/see_20_monster_boats_of_the_gr.html |
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Post by yachtsmanwilly on Apr 20, 2017 4:40:56 GMT -5
4/20 - Washington, D.C. – Water levels on the Great Lakes are likely to remain above the long-term average through the spring and summer, according to forecasts assembled by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Environment and Climate Change Canada and the US Army Corps of Engineers. But none of the Great Lakes are expected to reach record high water levels set mostly in the 1980s or 1950s. While each lake is unique, they all tend to follow a similar cycle based on seasonal changes. Water levels typically reach their seasonal low during the winter months before increasing in the spring due to snowmelt and precipitation. Water levels tend to peak during the summer months, before beginning to drop in the fall and early winter. There are three main factors that impact lake water levels, said Drew Gronewold, physical scientist with NOAA’s Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory: the precipitation over the lakes, evaporation of water on the lakes into vapor, and the runoff that comes into the lakes. These variables, in turn, are affected by changes in air and water temperatures. For example, Gronewold said the timing of big runoff pulses is dependent on the amount of snow building up in the winter months and when it melts in the spring. A water level decline in the fall is generally driven by evaporation, as air temperatures drop while surface water temperatures are still relatively warm. While water temperatures were relatively warm during the fall and winter months of 2016-2017 – leading to a lack of ice cover – evaporation amounts have been typical for this time of year due to a relatively mild winter air temperatures, Gronewold said. These recent conditions, coupled with historical data, lead agencies to expect the water level rise to remain fairly typical this spring and into the summer. As water levels are already above their long-term average for this time of year, researchers expect that they’ll remain above average in the coming months, Gronewold explained. There is still plenty of uncertainty, he added, as the amount of snow on the ground is less than it has been in some recent winters. It’s also difficult to predict continental-wide meteorological and climate patterns that impact Great Lakes weather patterns and temperatures. These can range from an El Niño effect like the one seen in the winter of 2015-2016 or a “polar vortex” that hit the region in the winters of 2013-2014 and 2014-2015. This uncertainty is expressed as a range of possible water levels in the forecasts released by the US Army Corps and Fisheries and Oceans Canada. Great Lakes water levels also can be influenced by human management. Hydropower plants and a gated dam on the St. Marys River are used to manage outflows from Lake Superior into Lake Michigan-Huron, while a hydropower plant on the St. Lawrence River is used to manage outflows from Lake Ontario. Outflows through these structures are managed binationally by boards and according to orders and criteria established by the IJC. Nonetheless, the control of water flows through these lakes is limited, and weather conditions and water supplies remain the most significant factor affecting water levels. Water levels are measured based on the International Great Lakes Datum, defined as the height above sea level at Rimouski Quebec on the St. Lawrence River. Agencies have been measuring lake levels since the 1860s, with more reliable levels going back as far as 1918. They base the lakes’ long-term average water levels on that information. “We expect a range of water level conditions depending on water supplies,” said Jacob Bruxer, senior water resources engineer with Environment and Climate Change Canada. “There’s a lot of variability and uncertainty in weather and water supply forecasts, particularly when looking beyond a few weeks’ time, so we don’t try to forecast any specific trends and instead consider a full range of water supply scenarios that could be expected.” According to recent forecasts, through September 2017 Lake Superior is likely to remain at or above seasonal averages, with a small chance of falling below its long-term average in July. There is less uncertainty for the spring months; water levels were about 5.5 inches (0.14 meters) above the long-term average by the end of March, and by May that range could be between 2.7 inches to 10 inches above the average (0.07 meters to 0.27 meters). By September, water levels could be as high as 1 foot (0.3 meters) above the long-term monthly average for Superior. Lake Michigan-Huron, considered as one lake hydrologically, was about 9.4 inches (0.24 meters) above the March long-term average by the end of the month. By September, Michigan-Huron is expected to remain above the long-term average, in a range of 1-16 inches (0.02-0.4 meters). Gronewold said Michigan-Huron saw water levels fall slightly more during the fall months of 2016 than is typical, but that is unlikely to make a discernible difference during this spring and summer. Higher-than-average water levels are anticipated on Lake Erie, which has seen water levels on the rise in recent months, reaching more than 17 inches (0.44 meters) above the long-term average by the end of March. Water levels are expected to continue to remain above average this spring, before starting to fall around June to a range of 3.9-16 inches above average (0.10-0.41 meters). Lake Ontario has a slight chance of being just barely below its long-term average going into summer, but will more likely be above it by up to 15 inches (0.38 meters). The forecasted peak is in May, when water levels could be 3.9-21 inches above average (0.10-0.55 meters). Water levels are then expected to fall at about the same degree as they usually do, according to the long-term average. The US Army Corps publishes 12-month forecasts for Lakes Erie, Huron-Michigan and Superior, as well as Lake St. Clair, based on current conditions and similar historical weather data. Uncertainty grows substantially more than six months out, but most outcomes for Lakes Erie and Michigan-Huron suggest a greater likelihood of continued higher-than-average water levels through the year. Lake Superior also has a better chance of higher-than-average water levels, but faces a substantial possibility of being below that long-term average, too. International Joint Commission 4/19 - Escanaba, Mich. – The last load of ore was shipped from Escanaba, Mich., Tuesday aboard the steamer Wilfred Sykes. Dock owner Canadian National (CN) Railroad announced in March the facility would be closed due to low activity at the dock since the closure of the Empire Mine last year. Ore has been shipped from the Escanaba port for 165 years. It was the only iron ore port on Lake Michigan and allowed ore to shipped earlier and later in the shipping season, after the Soo Locks closed for the season. The port was also an alternative for ore shipments in the region if the Soo Locks were damaged or shut down. The Sykes, operated by Central Marine Logistics for ArcelorMittal, arrived in the morning and departed in the mid-evening, headed for Indiana Harbor, Ind. 4/19 - Escanaba, Mich. – The last load of ore was shipped from Escanaba, Mich., Tuesday aboard the steamer Wilfred Sykes. Dock owner Canadian National (CN) Railroad announced in March the facility would be closed due to low activity at the dock since the closure of the Empire Mine last year. Ore has been shipped from the Escanaba port for 165 years. It was the only iron ore port on Lake Michigan and allowed ore to shipped earlier and later in the shipping season, after the Soo Locks closed for the season. The port was also an alternative for ore shipments in the region if the Soo Locks were damaged or shut down. The Sykes, operated by Central Marine Logistics for ArcelorMittal, arrived in the morning and departed in the mid-evening, headed for Indiana Harbor, Ind. J.W. Westcott crew helps save drowning pregnant woman 4/19 - Detroit, Mich. – After an allegedly suicidal pregnant woman jumped into the Detroit River, and two Detroit police officers and an EMS worker jumped in to save her, the woman is in stable condition and the baby boy she was carrying is safe after being delivered via C-section, authorities said. It was just before 11 p.m. Monday night when authorities received a 911 call that a woman fell into the water at Riverside Park, which is on Detroit’s west side, below Jefferson and at the end of West Grand Boulevard. Two Detroit police officers jumped in to help. A boat owned by the J.W. Westcott Co., which handles marine-based mail delivery for the freighters that use the Port of Detroit, made a major assist. Ryan Gazdecki, 32, a senior captain at the J.W. Westcott company, had just finished his 3-11 p.m. shift when he heard the commotion at the park. "I ran down to where things were happening, and saw one person coming out of the water, and asked if anyone else was down there," Gazdecki said on Tuesday. "There was, a woman who was struggling." Gazdecki sprinted some 500 yards to where the pilot boat Huron Maid was docked near the Westcott office. He got the boat in position and Dispatcher Joe Buchanan threw a life ring to the woman, which she grabbed. They pulled her onto the boat and out of the water. The Huron Maid, Gazkecki said, has a "really low freeboard," which makes it easier to place someone who has been pulled out of the water. A medic who had "exhausted all of his energies" was also pulled up onto The Huron Maid, Gazdecki said. For Gazdecki, who is in his 13th season with the company, this was the third save he's taken part in. In the end, the two police officers, the medic and the woman were all taken to Detroit Receiving Hospital to be treated for hypothermia, said Dave Fornell, deputy fire commissioner for the Detroit Fire Department. The medic was treated and released, while the woman and the two officers were in stable condition at last report. The baby boy is fine. Whether the woman will face charges was not immediately known, said Officer Jennifer Moreno, a Detroit Police Department spokeswoman. “Right now, our concern is getting her the help she needs,” Moreno said. Detroit News 4/19 - Hamlin Township, Mich. – Crews on Lake Michigan still haven’t been able to recover a yacht from where it ran aground north of Ludington over the weekend. Saturday, a man was taking the 76-foot yacht from Pentwater to Traverse City, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. When he realized the boat was taking on water, he ran it aground in about three feet of water near Big Sable Point. The boat started to tip about 15 degrees to the side, but the Coast Guard was soon able to retrieve the man. He wasn’t hurt. Monday, the yacht remained abandoned in the water. The Coast Guard said waves more than four feet high kept commercial salvage crews from getting close enough to deploy a boom around and pump fuel off the boat. Coast Guard pollution responders out of Grand Haven will oversee the recovery. There are no reports of pollution so far. 4/19 - Muskegon, Mich. – The beribboned bottle neck that christened the USS LST 393 will be part of a display celebrating the ship's 75th "birthday" this summer. The ship was christened by an 11-year-old shipbuilder executive's daughter, Lucy Sorenson Pape, in 1942. Pape has the neck of the champagne bottle to be displayed with other artifacts that mark the World War II ship's beginnings, and the beginning of its 13th year as the USS LST 393 Veterans Museum. Opening for the season will be on Saturday, April 29. It will be open weekends through May 20, and then will be open every day through mid-September. The museum closes for the winter at the end of September. On June 3, the museum will celebrate "D-Day Plus 73," as the 73rd anniversary of D-Day, June 6, 1944, approaches. The event will include dozens of World War II reenactors with authentic garb and weaponry who will defend the LST in"Air Raid Muskegon" during a warbird flyover. Read more and see photos at this link: www.mlive.com/news/muskegon/index.ssf/2017/04/wwii_ship_to_reunite_with_chri.html 4/19 - People in the Thousand Islands are watching the high spring waters of the St. Lawrence River. Upstream, residents are trying to protect their shoreline property from potential flooding as water levels continue to rise on Lake Ontario. Residents along the lakeshore are preparing for flooding. Sodus Town Supervisor Steve LeRoy maintains the higher than normal levels are the early effects of the recent agreement between the U.S. and Canada to change the way Lake Ontario water levels are controlled. After years of heated debate and revisions, the plan went into effect several months ago. Leroy’s a vocal critic: "The effects of that plan are evident. We're already seeing a very possible flood. We know at 247 feet above sea level we'll begin to flood. I believe we're within two inches of that now, and the water's still coming up," Leroy said. Keith Korawlewski of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers does not believe the new management plan is a factor in the rising lake levels. "Basically what we've been seeing so far since the implementation of Plan 2014 is that the levels as would have been likely similar (before) to what we are seeing right now," he said. "The biggest factor has been the wet spring that we have had, including the rainfall we have had in the last couple of weeks." Town supervisor Steve LeRoy said sandbags are being filled to create a break-wall to protect against surges from passing boat traffic or high winds. North Country Public Radio 4/19 - Chicago, Ill – The Coast Guard is reminding people who plan outdoor recreation activities about the continued dangers of cold water despite warmer air temperatures. As temperatures approached 80 degrees in some areas of the Midwest Saturday and Sunday, people took to the water, and the Coast Guard responded to multiple cases on the Great Lakes involving boaters in distress, including four people who were rescued from dangerously cold water. “As the air temperatures continue to get warmer, it’s important to remember that the water temperature throughout the Great Lakes is still very cold and dangerous," said Cmdr. Leanne Lusk, search and rescue coordinator for Coast Guard Sector Lake Michigan in Milwaukee. "Hypothermia can set in very quickly. If you plan to go out on the water, the Coast Guard recommends you dress for the water temperature to increase your cold-water functional time should an emergency arise.” USCG 19 April 1884 - The KASOTA (wooden propeller bulk freighter, 246 foot, 1660 gross tons, built in 1884 at Cleveland, Ohio) was launched by Thomas Quayles & Sons at Cleveland, Ohio for Capt. Thomas Wilson of Cleveland, Ohio. The hull was painted green with white bulwarks and upper works. On 19 April 1956, the newly-converted cement carrier E.M. FORD had her steering equipment break when she was abeam of Harsens Island on the St. Clair River. She plowed head-on into the down bound freighter A.M. BYERS which was loaded with dolomite for Buffalo, New York. The BYERS sank in just 17 minutes and the FORD anchored. No lives were lost. Sea trials were completed for Upper Lakes Shipping's CANADIAN TRANSPORT on April 19, 1979, and she departed Port Weller Dry Docks Ltd., on her maiden voyage the next morning. The GEORGE A. STINSON's self-unloading boom collapsed onto her deck due to a mechanical failure on the night of April 19, 1983, at Detroit, Michigan. No injuries were reported. She continued hauling cargoes without a boom most of the year until it was replaced on September 20. She sails today as b.) AMERICAN SPIRIT. On April 19, 1951, the CLIFFS VICTORY began her much publicized 1,000 mile journey up the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers through the Illinois Waterway pushed by a towboat to Lockport, Illinois where two Great Lakes Towing Co., tugs took up the tow through the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. Hall Corp. of Canada's a.) HUTCHCLIFFE HALL (Hull#261) by Canadian Vickers Ltd., Montreal, Quebec, was launched April 19, 1954. Pittsburgh Steamship's steamer RICHARD TRIMBLE (Hull#707) of the American Ship Building Co., Lorain, Ohio, was launched April 19, 1913. She was scrapped at Duluth, Minnesota between 1978 and 1981. On April 19, 1950, the WILFRED SYKES entered service, departing Lorain, Ohio for Toledo to load coal on her maiden voyage. The SYKES also became the largest vessel on the Great Lakes, taking the honor from Pittsburgh Steamship Company's LEON FRASER class (the "Supers"), which had held it since June 21, 1942. April 19, 1917 - ANN ARBOR NO 5 broke off her starboard shaft and bent the rudder stock on the rocky corner of the old Goodrich dock in Manitowoc, Wisconsin. On 19 April 1880, the Port Huron Times reported the results of a severe gale: "The schooner CHRIS GROVER, ashore near Oscoda, Michigan, is reported going to pieces. The crew is aboard. The schooner ATHENIAN, lumber laden, is reported to have gone ashore off Au Sable and to be a complete wreck. The schooner HATTIE JOHNSON is abandoned on Goose Island shoal. The cabin and part of her deck are gone. The stern is gone from her mizzen and the gale probably broke her up completely and her outfit and cargo may prove a total loss." The GROVE and the JOHNSON were later recovered and put back in service. On 19 April 1884, EUROPE (wooden propeller, passenger/package freight vessel, 136 foot, 628 gross tons, built in 1870 at St. Catharines, Ontario) was almost totally destroyed by fire at St. Catharines. The remains of her hull were later rebuilt as the barge REGINA. 1915: PALIKI of the Algoma Central Railway fleet was carrying steel rails to Chicago when it ran aground on Simmons Reef near the Straits of Mackinac. 1922: LAMBTON, a steel lighthouse tender, was last seen on the date by the MIDLAND PRINCE. It was lost with all hands on Lake Superior somewhere south of Michipicoten Island while delivering lighthouse keepers to their stations. Wreckage was later located but no bodies were ever found. 1927: DAVID S. TROXEL was damaged in a storm on Lake Superior. Plates and rivets worked loose and there were problems with the rudder. The ship was renamed c) SONOMA later in 1927 and was scrapped by Stelco in Hamilton as d) FRED L. HEWITT in 1962. 1938: REDRIVER had loaded coal at Charlotte, NY and was crossing Lake Ontario when it ran aground, due to fog, near Point Petre. 1939: VALLEY CAMP ran aground on Cole's Shoal, near Brockville, due to fog and part of the cargo of coal had to be lightered before the ship was refloated with the help of the tug SALVAGE PRINCE on April 24. 1940: SANDLAND battled through heavy ice to open the port of Port Colborne on this date in 1940. The ship had a cargo of scrap steel from Detroit for the Algoma Steel mill. 1956: A.M. BYERS was loaded with limestone and bound from Drummond Island to Buffalo when it sank in the St. Clair River following a collision with the E.M. FORD on this date in 1956. The ship was hit on the port side abreast of the pilothouse but all on board were rescued. The ship was later salvaged and repaired becoming b) CLEMENS A. REISS (ii) in 1959 and c) JACK WIRT in 1970. |
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Post by yachtsmanwilly on Apr 21, 2017 6:57:53 GMT -5
4/21 - Quebec, Que. - A ship that transports people and supplies to Quebec's Lower North Shore was forced to abandon its efforts to get to the isolated community of Blanc Sablon, near the border with Labrador, after extraordinarily thick ice made the journey impossible. Three Canadian Coast Guard icebreakers tried to clear a path through the ice for the Bella Desgagnés to the community beginning last Friday, but all efforts failed.
"Not being able to complete the mission successfully, it's hard on everyone," said Julie Gascon, assistant commissioner for the Canadian Coast Guard, Central and Arctic Region.
The Bella Desgagnés had been trying to bring nine passengers and much needed supplies, including perishable goods, to the village, which has no connection by road to the rest of Quebec. On Tuesday, the ship was forced to make an emergency trip to St. Barbe, Nfld., because a diabetic passenger was running out of insulin after an unexpected five days at sea.
"The time was very long. Very stressful, too," said the passenger, Jordan Nadeau, who was travelling from nearby Harrington Harbour. He had only expected to the journey to Blanc Sablon to last one day, and was down to his last day's worth of insulin when the ship made the detour.
The light icebreaker, CCGS Earl Grey, was the first to attempt to cut a path to the shore. When it failed, the medium-sized CCGS Henry Larsen was called in, which also couldn't get through. The coast guard then sent the strongest icebreaker it has, CCGS Terry Fox, but the ice proved too thick.
Chunks of glaciers from Greenland are crowding the narrow Strait of Belle Isle, the coast guard said, and could cause problems for weeks. Blanc Sablon Mayor Armand Joncas said he has not seen ice like it in 25 years.
"The Bella Desgagnés was designed for 18 inches of fresh ice — ice that was made this year — but the ice we got here is maybe a couple thousand years old," he said.
When the ship abandoned hope of reaching Blanc Sablon yesterday, it brought Nadeau and three other passengers back to Newfoundland. From there, they were to catch a flight to Blanc Sablon.
Five other passengers were taking a round-trip voyage and are returning with the ship as it heads back to the coastal communities of La Romaine and Rimouski. Food and supplies will be either be flown to Blanc Sablon, or transported there by truck on a road that links the community to Labrador, Quebec's ferry agency said.
CBC
4/21 - St. Catharines, Ont. – Drivers waiting to cross the Welland Canal bridges have had to be more patient than usual this season as shipping is experiencing a surge. Canal traffic is up 23 per cent from this time last year due to shipments of grain and iron ore.
“We are witnessing a very healthy level of traffic,” said Andrew Bogora, spokesman for St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corp.
The good news for drivers in St. Catharines is that Carlton Street bridge repairs are on schedule to be completed by the end of the month and the bridge will be back in service.
Bogora said it’s always a balancing act to accommodate everyone’s needs. “I simply want to underline our thanks to the community for the understanding during both the maintenance that has been done and the current surge in traffic,” Bogora said.
Bogora said the iron ore market is highly price sensitive and the canal is seeing export movement from the upper lakes downbound that accounts for part of the increase in traffic. Shipments from the Mesabi Range in Minnesota and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan are destined for markets overseas.
He said there’s a natural synergy in terms of moving iron ore on a laker for its initial transit and then transferring it to a larger ocean vessel in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Rail companies may not have the facilities to transfer cargo at certain ports.
“In terms of efficiency, both energy efficiency and cost efficiency, moving iron ore by ship is the option that is virtually the only option,” he said.
Grain from the previous year’s harvest is also being moved to various markets. Bogora said the harvest was late last year in certain areas of the Prairies due to weather. That meant it had to be stored and there wasn’t an opportunity to move it to market. As well, some farmers store grain until they get the price they want.
“What we will witness throughout the year are certain bursts of activity coinciding with price opportunities for the sale of grain,” Bogora said.
St. Catharines Standard
Obituary: Chief Engineer Wallace "Wally" J. Haske
4/21 - Retired Chief Engineer Wallace "Wally" J. Haske died April 8 at age 89 in Manitowoc, Wis. He retired from the steamer Rogers City in 1977 after 30 years of service to Great Lakes Fleet, United States Steel. He and his family moved to Manitowoc, Wis., at that time where he was employed for an additional 13 years as head boiler operator for Manitowoc Engineering. Services have already taken place.
21 April 1907 Peter West, a fireman on the JOHN C. GAULT (wooden propeller bulk freighter, 218 foot, 519 gross tons, built in 1881, at Buffalo, New York, converted to a bulk freighter in 1906, at Detroit, Michigan) fell overboard and drowned in Lake Huron. The news was reported to Capt. J. W. Westcott when the GAULT sailed past Detroit, Michigan, on 23 April 1907.
On 21 April 1863, SEABIRD (wooden side-wheel steamer, 638 tons, built in 1859, at Newport [Marine City], Michigan) was purchased by Capt. A. E. Goodrich from Capt. E. Ward for $36,000. She served primarily on the Lake Michigan west-shore and Lake Superior routes until she burned in 1868.
EDWIN H. GOTT cleared Two Harbors, Minn., with her first cargo, 59,375 tons of iron ore, on April 21, 1979, bound for Gary, Indiana.
Interstate Steamship's a.) WILLIS L. KING (Hull#79) by the Great Lakes Engineering Works, departed on her maiden voyage with a load of coal from Toledo, Ohio on April 21, 1911, bound for Superior, Wisconsin. Renamed b) C. L. AUSTIN in 1952 and was scrapped at Ashtabula, Ohio, in 1985.
On April 21, 1988, P & H Shipping Ltd.'s, d.) BIRCHGLEN, a.) WILLIAM MC LAUGHLIN, was towed off the Great Lakes by the tugs ELMORE M. MISNER and ATOMIC bound for Sydney, Nova Scotia, to be scrapped. Panda Steamship Co., G. A. Tomlinson, mgr.'s a.) WILLIAM H. WARNER (Hull#784) by American Ship building Co., was launched April 21, 1923. Renamed b.) THE INTERNATIONAL in 1934, c.) MAXINE in 1977, d.) J. F. VAUGHAN in 1981 and e.) OAKGLEN in 1983. Scrapped at Aliaga, Turkey, in 1989.
Pittsburgh Steamship Co's, HOMER D. WILLIAMS (Hull#720) by American Ship Building Co., Lorain, Ohio, was launched in 1917.
April 21, 1998 - PERE MARQUETTE 41 (former CITY OF MIDLAND 41) was towed to Sturgeon Bay from Muskegon for the remainder of the conversion. She was towed by the tugs MARY PAGE HANNAH and the CARL WILLIAM SELVICK.
On 21 April 1868, GERTRUDE (2-mast wooden schooner, 137 foot, 268 tons, built in 1855, at Cleveland, Ohio) was carrying corn from Chicago to Buffalo when she was cut by the ice four miles west of Mackinaw City and sank in deep water. Her crew made it to shore in the yawl.
1963: The hull of the Swedish freighter HELGA SMITH cracked en route from Montreal to Kristiansand, Norway, and the crew abandoned the ship. The vessel was taken in tow but sank April 23 while ten miles off Cape Broyle, Newfoundland. The ship had been completed in December 1944 and had been a Seaway trader since 1960.
1981: The Italian freighter DONATELLA PARODI first came inland in 1965 at the age of 8. It was sailing as f) MARIKA K. when a fire broke out in the engineroom on this day in 1981. The vessel was en route from Varna, Bulgaria, to Karachi, Pakistan, when the blaze erupted on the Mediterranean some 60 miles east of Crete. The ship was abandoned by the crew but towed to Eleusis, Greece. It was laid up, later put under arrest and was partially sunk. Following an auction, the hull was pumped out, towed into Aliaga, Turkey, on May 18, 1987, and broken up.
1986: ALGOPORT was inbound at Grand Haven, MI with a cargo of salt when it hit the seawall.
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Post by yachtsmanwilly on Apr 24, 2017 5:45:53 GMT -5
24 April 1882 - The ferry HAWKINS (wooden propeller ferry, 73 foot, 86 gross tons, built in 1873, at Au Sable, Michigan) was renamed JAMES BEARD. She had received a thorough overhaul and was put in service between Port Huron, Michigan, and Sarnia, Ontario, on 25 April 1882. She lasted until 1927, when she was abandoned.
On 24 April 1872, the 3-mast wooden schooner JENNIE GRAHAM was sailing up Lake Huron to pick up a load of lumber. She was light and at full sail when a sudden squall caused her to capsize. Two crewmembers were trapped below decks and died. Captain Duncan Graham was washed away and drowned. The remaining seven crewmembers clung to the overturned hull for about an hour and then the vessel unexpectedly turned upwards and lay on one side. The crew was then able to cut away a lifeboat and get in it. They were later picked up by the schooner SWEEPSTAKES. The GRAHAM was salvaged and taken to Port Huron for repairs.
ONTADOC sailed from Collingwood, Ontario, on her maiden voyage on April 24, 1975, for Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario to load steel for Duluth, Minnesota. She was renamed b) MELISSA DESGAGNES in 1990. Pittsburgh Steamship Co.'s D.M. CLEMSON (Hull#716) of the American Ship Building Co., departed Lorain on her maiden voyage April 24, 1917, to load iron ore at Duluth, Minnesota.
The B.F. JONES left Quebec on April 24, 1973, in tandem with her former fleet mate EDWARD S. KENDRICK towed by the Polish tug KORAL heading for scrapping in Spain. The wooden schooner WELLAND CANAL was launched at Russell Armington's shipyard at St. Catharines, Ontario. She was the first ship built at St. Catharines and the first to navigate the Welland Canal when it opened between St. Catharine's and Lake Ontario on 10 May 1828.
1948 A collision between the HARRY L. FINDLAY and the Canadian tanker JOHN IRWIN occurred in the St. Clair River, near Recors Point on this date. The stem bar was twisted and plates set back on the American bulk carrier and these were repaired at Lorain. It later sailed as c) PAUL L. TIETJEN. The tanker saw further service as c) WHITE ROSE II, d) WHITE ROSE and e) FUEL MARKETER (ii).
1975 The Canadian self-unloader SAGUENAY sustained minor damage in a collision in Lake St. Clair with the Panamanian freighter FESTIVITY on this date. The latter had begun coming to the Great Lakes in 1966. It had been damaged in a grounding on July 18, 1977, and arrived at Bilbao, Spain, for scrapping on November 9, 1977.
1989 GENERAL VARGAS arrived at Green Bay and was being towed by the tug MINNIE SELVICK when the latter was crushed against pilings around a railway bridge and sank. All on board were rescued but the tug was a total loss. The Philippine registered freighter had begun Great Lakes trading as a) BRUNTO in 1977 and reacquired that name in 1994. It was scrapped at Aliaga, Turkey, as f) LINDEN after arriving on July 19, 2011.
23 April 1907 - The SEARCHLIGHT (wooden propeller fish tug, 40 foot, built in 1899, at Saginaw, Michigan) capsized and sank while returning to Harbor Beach, Michigan, with a load of fish. The vessel had been purchased by Captain Walter Brown and his son from the Robert Beutel Fish Company of Toledo, Ohio, just ten days before. The sale agreement stated that the tug was to be paid for with fish, not cash. All six crew members drowned.
On 23 April 1883, STEPHEN S. BATES (wooden schooner, 97 foot, 139 tons, built in 1856, at Manitowoc, Wisconsin) was bound from Horne's Pier, Wisconsin, with posts and hardware for Chicago when she was driven into the shallows just north of Grosse Point, Illinois, by a storm and broke up. No lives were lost.
In 1953, the PERE MARQUETTE 22 was cut in half, then pulled apart and lengthened by 40 feet, as part of a major refit at Manitowoc, Wisconsin. Also during this refit, her triple-expansion engines were replaced with Skinner Unaflows, and her double stacks were replaced with a single, tapered stack. The refit was completed August 28, 1953.
On April 23, 1966, the b.) JOSEPH S. WOOD, a.) RICHARD M. MARSHALL of 1953, was towed to the Ford Rouge complex at Dearborn, Michigan by her new owners, the Ford Motor Company. She was renamed c.) JOHN DYKSTRA.
Canada Steamship Lines’ FORT YORK was commissioned April 23, 1958.
On April 23, 1980, the ARTHUR B. HOMER's bow thruster failed while maneuvering through ice at Taconite Harbor, Minnesota, resulting in a grounding which damaged her bow and one ballast tank.
The a.) GRIFFIN (Hull#12) of the Cleveland Ship Building Co. was launched April 23, 1891, for the Lake Superior Iron Mining Co. Renamed b.) JOSEPH S. SCOBELL in 1938, she was scrapped at Rameys Bend, Ontario, in 1971.
On April 23, 1972, PAUL H. CARNAHAN arrived at the Burlington Northern Docks at Superior, Wisconsin, to load 22,402 gross tons of iron ore bound for Detroit, opening the 1972, shipping season at Superior.
On 23 April 1859, at about midnight, the schooner S. BUTTLES was fighting a severe gale. She was carrying staves from Port Burwell, Ontario, to Clayton, New York, and sprang a leak while battling the gale. While manning the pumps, one man was washed overboard, but his shipmates quickly rescued him. Capt. Alexander Pollock beached the vessel to save her about 10 miles east of the Genesee River.
On 23 April 1882, GALLATIN (2-mast wooden schooner, 138 foot, 422 tons, built in 1863, at Oswego, New York) was carrying pig iron from St. Ignace, Michigan, to Erie, Pennsylvania, when she sprang a leak in a storm on Lake Erie. She struck bottom on Chickanolee Reef and foundered in shallow water at Point Pelee. Her crew was saved from the rigging by the fishing sloop LIZZIE.
1916 The grain laden COLLINGWOOD stranded in Whitefish Bay due to ice and fog and was not released until April 27.
1929 The canaller IMARI was on its delivery trip from Port Talbot, Wales, to Canada when it lost the propeller blades, due to ice, off Scaterie Island, Nova Scotia. The vessel later sailed the Great Lakes as b) DELAWARE, d) MANICOUAGAN, e) WASHINGTON TIMES HERALD and f) MANITOULIN.
1945 EFTYCHIA, a Greek freighter, came to the Great Lakes for one trip in 1961. Earlier, as the British freighter RIVERTON, it had been torpedoed by U-1023 off southwest England on April 23, 1945, and three lives were lost. The vessel arrived at Kaohsiung, Taiwan, as c) BOAZ ESPERANZA for scrapping on March 20, 1969.
1975 WESTDALE (ii) ran aground at the entrance to Goderich harbour while inbound with grain and was stuck for 15 hours before being pulled free.
1988 QUEDOC (iii) was upbound in the Seaway when it was in a collision with the BIRCHGLEN (I) under tow for scrap, and went aground in Lake St. Louis near Buoy 2A. Four tugs were needed to pull the ship free and it went to Port Weller Dry Docks for repairs.
1991 MARINE TRANSPORT operated around Maritime Canada but had come to the Great Lakes as c) C. OMER MARIE. It ran into ice and sank on April 23, 1991, about 10 miles off Cape Race, NF. The vessel was under R.C.M.P. surveillance when it was lost and all on board were rescued only to be arrested.
22 April 1873 - ST. JOSEPH (wooden propeller passenger-package freight steamer, 150 feet, 473 gross tons, built in 18,67 at Buffalo, New York) was sold by the Goodrich Transportation Company to Charles Chamberlain and others of Detroit, Michigan, for $30,000.
On 22 April 1872, Capt. L. R. Boynton brought the wooden propeller WENONA into Thunder Bay to unload passengers and freight at Alpena, Michigan. The 15-inch-thick ice stopped him a mile from the harbor. The passengers got off and walked across the ice to town. Later, because of the novelty of it, a couple hundred people from Alpena walked out to see the steamer. In the evening, Capt. Boynton steamed back to Detroit without unloading any of the cargo.
American Steamship Co.'s, ST. CLAIR (Hull#714) was christened April 22, 1976, at Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin by Bay Shipbuilding Corp.
CHICAGO TRIBUNE of 1930, laid up for the last time at Toronto on April 22, 1986.
CSL's HOCHELAGA lost her self-unloading boom during a windstorm at Windsor, Ontario, on April 22, 1980. As a consequence, she made 10 trips hauling grain as a straight-decker.
CHARLES M. WHITE was commissioned April 22, 1952, at South Chicago, Illinois. She was soon recognized as one of the fastest ships on the Great Lakes because of her ability to reach speeds in excess of 17 knots (19.6 mph).
On 22 April 1871, the 210-foot, 4-masted wooden schooner JAMES COUCH was launched at Port Huron, Michigan. She was named for a prominent Chicago businessman of the time.
On 22 April 1872, EVA M. CONE (wooden schooner, 25 tons, built in 1859, at Oconto, Wisconsin) was carrying lumber from Port Washington to Milwaukee on an early-season run when she struck on ice floe, capsized and sank just outside of Milwaukee harbor. Her crew made it to safety in her lifeboat.
1917: NEEPAWAH, formerly part of Canada Steamship Lines, was captured by U53 a German submarine and sunk by timed bombs. The vessel had been carrying pyrites from Huelva, Spain, to Rouen, France, and went down about 120 miles west of Bishop's Rock.
1924: BROOKTON lost her way in heavy snow and ran aground on Russell Island Shoal near Owen Sound. The vessel was released the next day with the help of a tug. Her career ended with scrapping at Hamilton as g) BROOKDALE (i) in 1966-1967.
1947: HARRY YATES (ii) stranded on Tecumseh Reef, Lake Erie, but was soon released. The vessel became c) BLANCHE HINDMAN (ii) in 1960 and was scrapped at Santander, Spain, in 1968.
1955: Fire destroyed the historic wooden passenger steamers MAID OF THE MIST and MAID OF THE MIST II at their winter quarters in Niagara Falls, ON. The blaze broke out due to an errant welding spark during the annual fit-out and the Niagara Falls Fire Chief suffered a heart attack and died at the scene.
1968: ALHELI, a Lebanese registered Liberty ship, made three trips to the Great Lakes in 1964. The vessel began leaking 900 miles east of Bermuda while en route from Almeria, Spain, to Wilminton, DE, with fluorspar on this date and was abandoned by the crew. The ship went down April 24.
1972: CHAMPLAIN arrived in Canada from overseas in 1959 and saw occasional Great Lakes service. It became f) GILANI in 1970 and toppled on her side at Vercheres due to the swell from a passing ship on April 22, 1972. The ship was refloated several days later.
1973: An explosion in the engine room of the C.P. AMBASSADOR blew a six-foot-hole in the side of the hull during a storm about 420 miles east of Newfoundland. The ship was abandoned, save for the captain and chief engineer, and was towed into St. John's, NF on May 4. It had been a Great Lakes visitor as a) BEAVEROAK beginning when new in 1965. The damage was repaired and the vessel resumed service on July 14, 1973. It was eventually scrapped as f) FLAMINGO at Gadani Beach, Pakistan, following arrival on April 30, 1984.
4/22 - Chassell Township, Mich. – The pier at the Lower Entry of the Keweenaw Waterway has been listed, at least for now, as a Federal superfund site. Jeromy Kowell of the United States Coast Guard Station’s Marine Safety Unit from Duluth, said in addition to raising the fishing boat Dawn from the entry floor Tuesday, there is additional work to be done to clean up the area along the 2,000-foot-long concrete pier within the harbor of refuge.
“We’ve got three federalized projects,” Kowell said. “One is the boat Dawn, which sank on April 1st of this year. The second is another fishing vessel, Katherine, which sank in December 2016, and the third is hazardous material in addition to oil and similar petroleum products being released by the two vessels.
Kowell said during inspection of both vessels, they discovered hazardous material on the floor of the lake, removal of which has already begun. Divers discovered hazmat materials, including loose batteries, dumped tires and “other miscellaneous materials.”
“We federalized the Dawn first,” Kowell said, “and then when we were conducting cleanup operations, removing oil and hydraulic oil off of the vessel, we noticed that the Katherine was sheening (leaking fluids such as fuel and oil), so we federalized that and removed product that we could off of that one.”
The cost of remediation of the hazmat materials, Kowell said, will be paid through EPA CERCLA (Environmental Protection Agency Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act) funding, which Kowell said was opened specifically for hazardous materials.
“Both vessels are OSLTF (Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund),” Kowell said. “OS (Oil Spill) Field Response funding, for the EPA comes from Coast Guard funding, and any hazmat response funding comes through the EPA, so we use each other’s fundings.”
Mining Gazette
4/22 - Leland, Mich. – Leland Harbormaster Russell Dzuba is walking down a metal gangway to get a look at the harbor in this northern Michigan town. Normally, there would be some activity this time of year – but the harbor is empty.
“We’re looking at water that’s about six inches deep right over there,” he says.
This channel should be about 12 feet deep. But it silts up every year, as waves and storms push sand and sediment along the shoreline of Lake Michigan. That’s bad news for this small town, which explodes with tourists every summer. Many are drawn to Fishtown, a historic village of wooden fishing shanties that stands as a monument to Leland’s heritage.
Until recently, it looked like the town would be closed to anyone coming by boat, including tourists from Chicago or Milwaukee. Now Leland is fighting back with a special new boat. It’s outfitted with what looks like a huge straw with a drill bit on the end, and sucks the sand from the lakebed. This week, the boat is scheduled to start working to open the harbor.
Small harbors like Leland don’t usually have their own 28-ton dredge boat. But with no federal money available, the town got another idea – an online crowd-funding campaign. Restaurant owner Kate Vilter led the campaign that raised $275,000 to help Leland buy the equipment.
“Fifty-thousand dollars from one … twenty-five from another,” she says. “So people really got behind this project, I think mainly because it was a permanent solution.”
Vilter says that thanks to the deep pockets of some of the town’s summertime residents, the money was raised in less than a month.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers used to dredge Great Lakes harbors every year. But now the agency focuses on major ports like Detroit and Cleveland. Marie Strum, chief of engineering for the Detroit District of the Corps of Engineers says there are 80 recreational harbors on the Great Lakes. They range from Cape Vincent at the eastern edge of Lake Erie to Whitefish Point on Lake Superior.
“Recreational harbors are important to us,” Strum says. “They’re federal harbors, and we understand we have that responsibility. It’s simply a matter of not enough funds.”
Chuck May disagrees. He runs the Great Lakes Small Harbors Coalition. And he says dredging is supposed to be covered by a special tax paid by shippers. “The tax has a very specific purpose – to maintain the harbors. The simple solution is start doing that,” he says. Instead, the $1.5 billion or so collected by the tax every year has been going directly into the federal budget.
Three years ago, Congress mandated that the tax be spent on things like dredging. But that’s being phased in over eight years, and Leland’s residents decided their harbor couldn’t wait.
On a recent day, a big crane lifted the dredge boat off a flatbed truck and into the cold, crystal clear Lake Michigan waters. Harbormaster Dzuba is relieved he’ll no longer have to rely on the federal government to keep his harbor open.
“So there won’t be the helter-skelter that goes on in January, trying to locate funding,” he says. “That’s all done and over with. We’re all done begging.” Dzuba and a crew of community volunteers hope to finish the dredging by mid-May.
Of course, not every harbor town on the Great Lakes has the money to buy its own dredging equipment. A few have asked to borrow Leland’s boat. Dzuba says he’s sympathetic, but the equipment is just too difficult to move.
WBFO
4/22 - Ludington, Mich. – Coast Guard crews continue to monitor salvage operations Friday of a 76-foot recreational vessel that grounded on April 15 in the vicinity of Big Sable Point near Ludington, Michigan.
The vessel's superstructure has broken off, with debris scattered along the shoreline in the vicinity of the grounding. The deteriorating condition of the vessel was confirmed by an overflight conducted by Air Station Traverse City, Michigan.
Lightering operations were completed Thursday evening with a total of 70 gallons of oily water recovered from the starboard tank. It was determined that no fuel remained in the tank following the recovery.
Coast Guard pollution responders from Grand Haven, Mich., are on scene and overseeing the recovery operation. There are no reports of pollution.
The operator of the vessel was on his way from Pentwater, Michigan, to Traverse City, Mich., April 15 when he noticed his vessel was taking on water and decided to ground the vessel in about 3 feet of water.
A Coast Guard boat crew from Station Ludington responded and safely removed the operator from the vessel after it began listing about 15 degrees.
USCG
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Post by yachtsmanwilly on Apr 24, 2017 5:56:33 GMT -5
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Post by skycheney on Apr 24, 2017 20:12:32 GMT -5
Not too many of those old wooden Browards left anymore. |
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