Dredge Barge Intentionally Grounded on Matagorda Ship Channel

On Monday evening, a dredge barge began taking on water in the Matagorda Ship Channel near Port Lavaca, Texas, and a towboat intentionally pushed it aground in order to prevent it from sinking. 

U.S. Coast Guard Sector Corpus Christi received notification on Monday evening that the Orion Marine dredge barge Everett Fisher had begun taking on water. The towboat Dana Robyn pushed the Everett Fisher aground in a shallow area of the channel and retrieved the four crewmembers aboard. There were no reported injuries. 

Due to the location of the grounded barge, the Coast Guard established a safety zone from mile marker 51 to mile marker 66 on the Matagorda Ship Channel. A unit from the Marine Safety Detachment Victoria responded to the scene to evaluate the situation.

By Tuesday evening, the dredge barge was successfully refloated and removed from the channel. As a precautionary measure, containment boom was put in place throughout the salvage operation, and Sector Corpus Christi personnel monitored the situation to ensure the vessel was safely removed. No pollution was reported. 

The cause of the dredge barge's flooding is currently under investigation.