A member of the American Salvage Association (ASA) responded to a grounded bulk carrier, CSL Assiniboine, which occurred on November 16 in the St. Lawrence Seaway near Cardinal, Ontario, Canada. It has been reported that engine troubles caused the vessel to drift off course, but an investigation is underway.
The Assiniboine was ballasted down until the ASA member’s four tugboats were ready to free the grounded vessel from the shoal. Additionally, approximately 10% of the carrier’s cargo of soybeans was lightered into a barge and later delivered to a local grain elevator.
The CSL Assiniboine was successfully refloated on November 21st and has been moved to a berth where the remaining cargo will stay on board until a decision is made about where to offload it. An underwater inspection to determine the extent of the damage to the vessel will also be conducted, and it will be taken for repairs at that time.
Built in 1977, the 22,772-gt CSL Assiniboine received a new fore body in 2005.