Lake St. Clair Grounded Bulk Carrier: Update
The U.S. Coast Guard said it continues to monitor the response and salvage operations to the 656-foot HK-flagged bulk carrier Federal Rideau, hard aground in the downbound shipping channel of Lake St. Clair since early Sunday morning. Several attempts to refloat the vessel have been unsuccessful since then and five tugs have been dispatched for another attempt.
Initial reports indicate there is no resultant pollution and no injuries were reported.
At around 3 a.m. Sunday, response coordinators at Coast Guard Sector Detroit received notice that the motor vessel Federal Rideau, grounded in the downbownd channel in Lake St. Clair near the Detroit River.
The vessel is carrying approximately 22,672 tons of wheat.
Coast Guard marine inspectors from Coast Guard Sector Detroit Prevention Department responded to the grounding to assess the situation and determine the extent of any structural damage to the vessel.
Coordinators at the Sector Detroit Command Center are in constant communication with the vessel’s crew and with responders aboard the ship.
The vessel was en route to Montreal, Quebec, Canada, but will be taken to Belle Isle anchorage for an underwater survey.
The cause of the grounding was determined to be a loss of steering caused by a motor coupling failure and repairs to the coupling have been completed.
Currently 580-feet of the grounded vessel is in the shipping channel but the channel is still open to traffic.
Canadian Coast Guard Vessel Traffic Services in the Sarnia Traffic Zone is notifying mariners of the waterway obstruction and is directing one-way traffic in the area