Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit Chicago News

Representatives from Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit Chicago announced that the owner of two recreational pleasure boats has been fined $80,000 for operating as an illegal passenger vessel business on Lake Michigan for at least the past two years.Robert Glick of Chicago, owner of the 35-foot boats Allora and Fun, was charged with violating three separate federal regulations for each boat while operating a business that involved transporting paying passengers.The fine represents…

Not all towing vessel companies are choosing Third Party Organizations (TPOs) for their Subchapter M compliance option. One size does not fit all.Under Subchapter M, towing vessel companies may opt to use TPOs to conduct their audits and surveys instead of inspections by the Coast Guard. While many companies are going the TPO route, many are opting for traditional Coast Guard inspections.As a retired Coast Guard marine inspector, I have always advocated the Coast Guard option to our clients.

The U.S. Coast Guard said it is restricting vessel traffic on the Chicago River to allow for salvage of a sunken barge. All cargo has been removed from the sunken barge in the Chicago River between the Lake and Randolph Street bridges and divers are currently in the water to conduct a survey of the barge's hull. The barge has been secured so that a 50-foot clearance can allow for vessel traffic to transit. Once the divers complete their survey, the company intends to formulate a salvage plan to either move the barge to another location or lift it out of the water. Coast Guard assets are on scene to monitor vessel traffic while divers are in the water.

The Coast Guard is responding to the capsizing of a tug on the Calumet River near the 106th St. Bridge in Chicago in which two crew members were able to escape and swim to shore. The Coast Guard is not releasing the names of those involved. Shortly after 7 p.m., two crew members on board the 57-foot tug, Bonnie G. Selvick, attempted to turn the vessel around while transiting south on the Calumet River. During the process, the vessel rolled over, began taking on water and sank within minutes. The two crew members escaped and swam to shore.

The Coast Guard informs it is responding to the capsize of a tug on the Calumet River near the 106th St. Bridge in Chicago, in which the two crew members were able to escape from the vessel and swim to shore. The 2-man crew of the 57-foot tug, Bonnie G. Selvick, attempted to turn the vessel around while transiting south on the Calumet River. During the process, the vessel rolled over, began taking on water and sank within minutes. The two crew members escaped and swam to shore. One of the crew member contacted watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector Lake Michigan with a marine band radio on channel 16. Watchstanders directed the launch of a crew on board 25-foot response boat from Coast Guard Station Calumet Harbor.

Crews have recovered a third body, Monday, from a collision between a recreational vessel and a barge that occurred late Friday evening in the Cal-Sag Channel near Palos Hills, Illinois. At about 10 a.m., local time, a man's body was recovered about 1.5 miles west of the Worth Boat Launch. He was the last of the three victims recovered during the search. The man was not wearing a life jacket. The case began on Friday at about 11 p.m., local time, when a crewmember onboard the 66-foot uninspected towing vessel Bill Arnold notified watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector Lake Michigan, in Milwaukee, of a collision with a 19-foot pleasure craft in the Cal-Sag Channel near mile marker 311.

The Coast Guard and local agencies are searching for at least three people in the Cal-Sag Channel near Palos Hills, Illinois, following a vessel collision late Friday evening. The names of the persons are not being released. Just before 11 p.m. local time, watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector Lake Michigan in Milwaukee were notified by the 66-foot UTV Bill Arnold of a collision with a 19-foot pleasure craft in the Cal-Sag Channel near mile marker 311. Sector Lake Michigan dispatched a boat crew from Coast Guard Station Calumet Harbor, Illinois, aboard a 25-foot response boat. They also requested a Dolphin helicopter from Coast Guard Air Facility Waukegan, Illinois, but aircrews have been unable to assist in the search due to fog.

The Coast Guard says it is continuing its response to the grounded towing vessel 'Kimberly Selvick' in Lake Michigan off of Burnahm Park.The vessel remains partially submerged, while the two barges that broke free from the tug Monday afternoon have been removed and towed to Calumet Harbor Fleeting. The vessel began taking on water and became partially submerged while trying to retrieve the two barges. Four people aboard the tug were evacuated by a rescue crew from the Chicago Fire Department Marine Unit. No injuries were reported. An overflight of the area revealed  a 10-foot by 100-foot sheen near the vessel. Initial inspections indicated that the sheen was caused by small quantities of residual oil waste from the tug’s bilge and not from fuel onboard.

The U.S. Coast Guard and members of the Chicago Fire Department responded Monday afternoon to the grounding of the vessel Kimberly Selvick and two attached barges about one quarter mile east of Burnham Park in Chicago. A rescue crew from the Chicago Fire Department Marine Unit successfully evacuated four crew members from the vessel. No injuries or pollution have been reported. At 4:42 p.m. a Sector Lake Michigan communications watchstander received a call over VHF-FM channel 16 from a crew member of the Kimberly Selvick reporting it had run aground while trying to retrieve two barges that broke free, and that the vessel was taking on water. The vessel is 55-foot tug and was pushing one rock barge and one crane barge at the time of the incident.

The U.S. Coast Guard and the Environmental Protection Agency are responding to the report of an oil discharge into Lake Michigan from the BP Whiting Refinery in Whiting, Ind. The Coast Guard received a report Monday night from watchstanders the National Response Center of a sheen from an unknown substance discharging from an outflow adjacent to the refinery. Personnel from Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit Chicago and the EPA responded last night and found an area of about 5,000 square feet covered in crude oil.

A Unified Command of U.S. Coast Guard & the Ingram Barge Company say the Marseilles Dam is structurally sound after 7 barges broke loose nearby. On Friday night the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, providing technical assistance to the Unified Command, completed an evaluation of the dam and determined it to be structurally sound. The Main Street Bridge in Marseilles, located about 400 feet downstream of the dam, was reopened Saturday at 10:45 a.m. after flood waters began to recede and the access road to the bridge was cleared. Salvage of the barges is delayed by the continuing high flood waters and heavy river currents. “Once the river waters recede and a timeframe is established, we will notify the public and maritime interests of upcoming salvage operations,” said Cmdr.

The U.S. Attorney's Office said that Gary O. Burnham, of Michigan City, Ind., was sentenced to serve 30 months in prison for operating as a ship's captain on a forged license, neglect of duty by a seaman resulting in the sinking of the M/V Margaret Ann, and negligently causing a diesel fuel spill in Lake Michigan. He was also ordered to pay $750,000 in restitution to Holly Marine Towing, the owner of the vessel that sank in Lake Michigan under Burnham's command. The sinking of the Margaret Ann caused a 250 gallon diesel spill in navigable waters. Commander Paul Mehler, III, Commanding Officer, Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit Chicago "expects that this will send an important message to the entire marine community." The privilege to operate and maintain a vessel…