Southern Illinois News

Senator Wesley Livsey Jones gave his name to the famous “Jones Act” governing U.S. domestic maritime trade. But what do really know about him? It turns out that he was much more than a leading merchant marine policy maker. (i)Jones had a long career in the U.S. House of Representatives before he was a Senator, was an effective legislator, an astute politician, one of the hardest working legislators of his era, and always viewed as honest and forthright. His many maritime legislative successes included the Merchant Marine Act…

The construction of a new inland port at the confluence of the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers took another step forward on Tuesday as the Alexander Cairo Port District completed a project labor agreement (PLA) with the Illinois AFL-CIO. The project labor agreement ensures that more than 500 jobs created by the construction of the Cairo port will be filled by local Illinois union workers.The Alexander-Cairo port represents one of the largest investments in Southern Illinois in decades.

Engine manufacturer Scania USA said it has appointed Laborde Products as its new distributor for Scania Marine products for the Gulf Coast and inland waterways regions, effective November 1.The Covington, La. headquartered engine and power systems distributor will take on sales, service and dealer development for Scania marine engines, ranging from 220 to 1,150 horsepower, for Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Southern Illinois, Southern Indiana, Southern Ohio…

Operational changes keep Jerry F. Costello Lock and Dam open for 17 days longer than typical during high water events.While the record flooding in 2019 disrupted barge traffic throughout the inland waterways in the Midwest for extended periods this spring and summer, a little out-of-the-box thinking helped limit the number of days the Jerry F. Costello Lock and Dam was forced to close, keeping commerce flowing on the Kaskaskia River in Southern Illinois for several additional days during the persistent high water.The Kaskaskia River is a critical transportation link for several commodities…

Barbour JB Shipyard of St. Louis has laid the keel for a new harbor tug that will be powered by Veth Z-drives. The purchase agreement was signed at the Inland Marine Expo, St. Louis, by Kurt Johnson, Southern Illinois Transfer president and owner of the vessel; Guido Davids, Veth Propulsion area sales manager; and Tim Batten, Twin Disc director of global marine sales. Twin Disc is the distributor for Veth Propulsion in the US, exclusive of the Gulf Coast region. The tug has a planned length of 68' and beam of 28'. It will be powered by twin 750 hp Cummins diesels and Veth VZ-700 Z-drives.

The American Waterways Operators and Waterways Council, Inc. continue to warn Congress and the Administration of the economic effects that the nation’s midsection would face in the wake of further navigation restrictions or possible Mississippi River closure to barge traffic in mid-December. States along the river would see an immediate impact on jobs and wages, and the potential toll would be harshest in Louisiana, Illinois and Missouri, with thousands of impacted jobs and tens…

Captain Casey M. Herschler Joins North American Marine Consultants. Captain Casey M. Herschler has been named Director of New Business Development for North American Marine Consultants. Capt. Herschler will be responsible for developing new business ventures including new vessel and barge construction as well as conducting vessel, structure, facility and cargo surveys, insurance assessments and monitoring new construction, conversion and repair processes for clients. Captain Herschler…

Last August Raina Clark began the story of her eight day trip on the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers on the towboats Theresa Wood and Thomas E. Erickson, both chartered by AEP River Operations and owned and by Marquette Transportation. She described the working lives of the crew, how the relationship between the boats and the lock facilities has changed since 9/11, a river boat captain who built his crew into a tightly knit team and the uniqueness of the Upper Mississippi. In this third and final installment…

Watson Coatings Inc. recently signed a distributor and representation agreement with Sigma Coatings of Louisiana. Watson Coatings now distributes Sigma coatings in Missouri and Southern Illinois, as well as provides representation to the Department of Transportation throughout the Midwest region. Sigma Coatings is part of the worldwide SigmaKalon Group, with sales exceeding $2 billion. Sigma offers many products, including solvent-free coatings, epoxies and urethanes with unlimited overcoat time, zinc primers, no-bake phenolics and high heat coatings, all meeting VOC regulations. Watson Coatings is now available to augment their line of calcium sulfonate bridge coatings with Sigma’s industrial coatings, as well as provide Sigma with product representation in the Midwest region of the U.S.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit ruled that, for purposes of the Jones Act, a permanently moored dockside casino is not a vessel in navigation and its employees are not seamen entitled to protection under the Act. In the instant case, the casino vessel was documented and inspected by the U.S. Coast Guard, but only got underway once each year for engine and maneuvering tests. The court held that the vessel was not engaged in the transportation of passengers or cargo and was thus not a vessel in navigation under the Jones Act. Personal injury claims asserted by employees under the Jones Act were therefore dismissed. Howard v. Southern Illinois Riverboat Casino Cruises, Inc., No. 02-3818 (7th Cir.)(HK Law)

Around the end of June Moran Towing Corp. of New Canaan, Connecticut will launch the Lisa Moran, a new triple screw push boat at the C&G Boatworks yard in Mobile Alabama. This will be the third push boat in the extensive and varied Moran fleet. The firm’s two existing pushboats were repowered with Cummins engines earlier this year. Three Cummins KTA38 M0 mains, each one producing 850 hp at 1800 rpm, will power the 77 x 30-ft. Lisa Moran. Each engine will turn into ZF model W3310 marine gears with 5:1 reduction and five-inch diameter Aquamet 17 shafts. The hull has a molded depth of ten feet six inches. Accommodations are designed for a crew of eight. Tankage includes 30,000 gallons of fuel, 5,000 gallons of water and 165 gallons of lube oil.

National Steel and Shipbuilding Company (NASSCO) has appointed new Vice Presidents of Human Resources, Finance and Production Outfitting. NASSCO is a wholly owned subsidiary of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD). Donald H. Dame has been named Vice President – Human Resources ; he will report to Harris. Dame has over 30 years of human resources business experience. For the last seven years, he has been Vice President of Human Resources and Government Relations for Freeman Energy, a wholly owned subsidiary of General Dynamics, headquartered in Springfield, Ill. Dame holds a degree in Mining Technology from Rend Lake College in Ina, Ill. and a Bachelor of Science Degree in Occupational Education from Southern Illinois University in Carbondale.