The Empress of the North lost a lot of weight on March 25, but the stubborn sternwheeler refused to budge from her perch on a Columbia River sandbar. Rescuers had a simple plan to save the 360-foot ship, which grounded near Washougal, Wash., on the morning of March 24. They would drain most of the ship's diesel fuel, then hope the reduced weight and a rising afternoon tide would lift the Empress enough to maneuver downstream. It took crews hours longer than they thought to drain more than 20,000 gallons of diesel, partly because of a mechanical problem. Still, the Empress stayed stuck, even when three tugboats teamed up to yank and pivot the ship off its perch. Rescuers may try to come up with a new plan or may give the tugs another try.