Marine Link
Thursday, March 28, 2024
SUBSCRIBE

Sault Sainte Marie News

19 Oct 2022

USACE Orders Crane Barge for St. Marys River

(Image: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers)

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Detroit District in concert with the Philadelphia District and the Marine Design Center awarded a 11.4 million contract to Southwest Shipyard in Houston for a new crane barge on the St. Marys River.“The new crane barge will perform critical lock and hydropower facility maintenance at the Soo Project Office (Soo Locks),” said Justin Proulx, Chief of the St. Marys River Section. “Additionally, the new vessel will support channel maintenance and will be ready to respond to critical maritime incidents on the St Marys River…

05 Jul 2022

US Coast Guard Upgrading HVAC Systems On Its Icebreaking Tugs

Coast Guard Cutter Katmai Bay (WTGB 101) breaks ice in the Straits of Mackinaw on the Great Lakes. (Photo: Carolyn Cihelka / U.S. Coast Guard)

The U.S. Coast Guard said its In-Service Vessel Sustainment (ISVS) Program has passed the halfway point in its effort to upgrade the heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems on the service’s 140-foot bay-class icebreaking tugs.The HVAC upgrade on Coast Guard Cutter Katmai Bay was completed on June 1—20 days ahead of schedule—in Cheboygan, Mich., near the tug’s homeport of Sault Sainte Marie, Mich.Meanwhile, Coast Guard Cutter Morro Bay arrived at Coast Guard Yard…

14 Sep 2021

USCG Cutter Katmai Bay Enters Great Lakes Shipyard for Repair

(Photo: Great Lakes Shipyard)

United States Coast Guard Cutter Katmai Bay (WTGB-101), homeported in Sault Sainte Marie, Mich., arrived at Great Lakes Shipyard for a drydock, inspection, maintenance and repair contract.The contract includes hull, propulsion and steering system inspections, as well as steel repairs, hull cleaning and painting. The 140-foot Bay-class icebreaking tug was hauled out on Friday, September 3 using the Shipyard’s new 900-ton Marine Travelift.The USCGC Katmai Bay serves throughout the entire Great Lakes system.

28 Apr 2021

Maintenance Error Led to $2.2 Million Bulker Accident -NTSB

Postaccident photo of the Atlantic Huron alongside the west center pier. Point of contact and damage are indicated by arrows. (Source: US Coast Guard)

The incorrect installation of a single set screw led to the loss of propulsion control on the Canadian-flagged, 736-foot-long Atlantic Huron, causing the ship to strike a pier at 6.8 knots, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said Tuesday.On July 5, 2020, the self-unloading bulk carrier made contact with a pier associated with the Soo Locks, in Sault Sainte Marie, Mich., resulting in $2.2 million in damage. There were no injuries.While on approach to the locks and attempting to slow…

10 Jun 2020

Barge Grounds in St. Marys River

(Photo: USCG Sector Sault Ste Marie)

A salvage plan is being developed to refloat a barge that went aground in the lower St. Marys River, near Sweets Point, Mich.At 12:30 a.m. Wednesday, the U.S. Coast Guard Sector Sault Sainte Marie Command Center received notification that the 302-foot barge PML2501 towed by the 132-foot towing vessel Anglian Lady grounded in the lower St. Marys River. Both assets are Canadian and had been en route from Sault Sainte Marie, Ont. to Burns Harbor, Ind. at the time of the incident.

31 Dec 2019

USCG: WAMS Study for Les Cheneaux Islands

Photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Brian McCrum 
U.S. Coast Guard District 9

The Coast Guard Sector Sault Sainte Marie is seeking input for a Waterways Analysis and Management System (WAMS) study of the Les Cheneaux Islands.The WAMS study will review the short range Aids to Navigation system that covers the waters surrounding the Les Cheneaux Islands, including: Cedarville East Channel, Les Cheneaux Islands Middle Entrance, Les Cheneaux Islands West Entrance, Mackinac Bay Passage, Muscallonge Bay, and Cedarville West Channel.The purpose of the WAMS is to ensure that surrounding waters of the Les Cheneaux Islands are the safest…

12 Dec 2019

Icebreaking Kicks Off on the Great Lakes

File photo: The US Coast Guard Cutter Katmai Bay, a 140-foot ice-breaking tug, escorts a motor vessel  through Lake Michigan near Lansing Shoal, in 2014. The cutter was operating as part of Operation Taconite, which is the icebreaking operation for the northern Great Lakes. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Daniel R. Michelson)

It's that time of year.The US Coast Guard announced it has commenced icebreaking operations in response to expanded ice growth in the commercial ports of western Lake Superior.Operation Taconite, launched by Coast Guard Sector Sault Sainte Marie on Wednesday, is one of two icebreaking operations that support the Great Lakes. It encompasses Lake Superior, St. Marys River, Straits of Mackinac, Georgian Bay, Green Bay, northern Lake Huron, and Lake Michigan.The authority for Coast Guard domestic icebreaking was created in 1936, by Executive Order 7521 signed by President Franklin D.

07 Jan 2019

Coast Guard Begins Ice Breaking Ops in the Western Great Lakes

File Image: USCG Credit

U.S. Coast Guard Sector Sault Sainte Marie commenced Operation Taconite, the Coast Guard’s largest domestic icebreaking operation, Monday, in response to expanded ice growth in the commercial ports of Western Lake Superior and the St. Marys River.Operation Taconite encompasses Lake Superior, St. Marys River, Straits of Mackinac, Georgian Bay, Green Bay, northern Lake Huron, and Lake Michigan. Ice breaking operations are based on the following order of priorities: search and rescue…

15 Dec 2017

USCG Begins Icebreaking in the Western Great Lakes

The Coast Guard Cutter Mackinaw, a 240-foot heavy icebreaker, breaks ice near Marine City, Mich., along the St. Clair River, Jan. 28, 2015. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Daniel R. Michelson)

U.S. Coast Guard Sector Sault Sainte Marie has commenced icebreaking Operation Taconite in response to expanded ice growth in the commercial ports of western Lake Superior and the lower St. Marys River. Before ice impedes commercial navigation, icebreakers were assigned to each region. U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Alder was assigned to manage the ice breaking needs of western Lake Superior, specifically the twin ports of Duluth, Minn., and Superior, Wisc., as well as the Port of Thunder Bay, Ont. U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Biscayne Bay was assigned to the St. Marys River.

19 Oct 2017

The Art of Navigation

© danr13 / Adobe Stock

There are countless examples of how an over reliance of GPS navigation and the electronic charting systems, as well as the use of dead reckoning without a known fixed starting point – instead “eyeballing” the situation – are leading vessels in to danger. August 21, 2017 was the Great American Eclipse, and the science fiction fantasy fan in me wondered if this is when I would get my superpowers back. The navigator in me pondered if I was in the zone of totality and took a sight of the sun and moon, at the moment of totality would it count as two lines of position on my chart.

19 Dec 2016

Ice breaking Begins in Great Lakes

The Coast Guard Cutter Alder approaches the Portage Lake Lift Bridge in Houghton, Mich., Dec. 16, 2016. The Alder and other Great Lakes Coast Guard cutters commenced Operation Taconite, the Coast Guard’s largest domestic ice-breaking operation, encompassing Lake Superior, the St. Mary’s River, the Straits of Mackinac and Lake Michigan, Dec. 19, 2016. (U.S. Coast Guard photo)

U.S. Coast Guard Sector Sault Sainte Marie commenced Operation Taconite Monday in response to developing ice conditions in the commercial ports of western Lake Superior and the St Marys River. Operation Taconite is the Coast Guard’s largest domestic ice-breaking operation, encompassing Lake Superior, the St. Mary’s River, the Straits of Mackinac and Lake Michigan. As a result of the operation, certain waterways may close after due consideration is given to the protection of the marine environment…

14 Jul 2015

USCG Icebreaking Tug Up for Drydocking

USCG Cutter Katmai Bay on the Marine Travelift at Great Lakes Shipyard (Photo: Great Lakes Shipyard)

U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Katmai Bay (WTGB-101), homeported in Sault Sainte Marie, Michigan, arrived at Great Lakes Shipyard, Cleveland, Ohio, for drydocking, inspection, maintenance and repairs on July 8, 2015. The contract is for a scope of work that includes hull, propulsion and steering system inspections, as well as steel repairs, hull cleaning and painting. The 140-foot Bay-class Icebreaking Tug was hauled out on Monday, July 13 using the Shipyard’s 770-ton Marine Travelift – the largest on the Great Lakes.

29 Aug 2013

Pleasure Craft Aflame on St. Marys River

A 17-foot pleasure craft is fully engulfed in flames near Sugar Island on the St. Marys River, Aug. 29, 2013. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Joseph Kerr, executive petty officer of Station Sault Ste. Marie.

The Coast Guard rescued two people from a burning boat on the St. Marys River in the vicinity of Sugar Island, Mich., Thursday morning. At approximately 9:10 a.m., a communications watchstander at Coast Guard Sector Sault Ste. Marie, Mich., overheard a distress call via VHF-FM channel 16 reporting that a 17-foot pleasure craft was fully engulfed in flames near Sugar Island on the St. Marys River. The distress call was made by a good Samaritan in the area at the time of the fire. Two boatcrews aboard 25-foot Respone Boats-Small, from Coast Guard Station Sault Ste.

07 Dec 2010

Coast Guard Begins Ice Breaking Ops, Western Great Lakes

The U.S. Coast Guard commenced Operation Taconite this afternoon in response to colder temperatures and the resultant ice growth in the western Great Lakes region. Operation Taconite is the Coast Guard’s largest domestic icebreaking operation, encompassing Lake Superior, St. Mary’s River, the Straits of Mackinac, and northern Lake Huron. As a result of the operation, certain waterways may close once due consideration is given to the protection of the marine environment, waterway improvements, aids to navigation, the need for cross-channel traffic (e.g. ferries), the availability of icebreakers, and the safety of the island residents, who in the course of their daily business use naturally formed ice bridges for transportation to and from the mainland.