Video: USCG Icebreakers Aid Great Lakers Bulkers as Winter Sets In

icebreaking Great Lakes — USCG cutter creating a path for the bulker on the St. Clair River

It is the end of the season on the Great Lakes and with the deep cold that has set across the region this week, the U.S. Coast Guard extended its ongoing icebreaking operations to aid two bulkers caught in the ice flows. It is part of an annual tradition on the lakes as the U.S. and Canadian Coast Guards work jointly to maintain navigation.

U.S. Coast Guard Sector Northern Great Lakes reported it was commencing “Operation Taconite” to prevent newly formed ice from hindering commercial vessel traffic. Starting on January 6, it is the largest domestic icebreaking operation and it encompasses Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, the St. Marys River, the Straits of Mackinac, and Georgian Bay. Two cutters, Mackinaw and Mobile Bay, are assigned to the operation with Coast Guard officials reporting additional icebreakers will be assigned as the ice coverage expands.

This week, “Operation Coal Shovel” also commenced on January 14. It involved the cutters Bristol Bay and Morro Bay, working in the upper Lake St. Clair and St. Clair River areas around Detroit.

The icebreaking operations got underway just in time for the bulker Herbert C. Jackson, which operator Interlake Steamship Company highlighted on January 14 was “on the final leg of the season and headed to the barn for layup in Detroit.”

Moving along the St. Clair River, the USCG reports the U.S.-flagged bulker which was built in 1959 “was struggling to navigate for several hours” through the ice. The Detroit News quoted USCG as saying she was not stuck but dealing with icy conditions. The paper said the crew could also be seen on deck clearing ice and snow.

The cutters Bristol Bay and Morro Bay came to her rescue. They opened a channel and moved alongside the bulker to make sure she could make it to the dock and her winter layup. Interlake notes while the locks are closed and waterways heavy with ice, its fleet spends about two months undergoing maintenance and readying for the next season.

(Click to see video)

Interlake’s bulker James R. Baker (61,500 dwt) also found itself caught in the ice with local news reports saying she got stuck on Thursday, January 16, in Port of Cleveland. Built in 1976, the U.S.-registered bulker is one of the larger vessels operating on the Lakes. Attempting to navigate the harbor, she encountered the ice. They were able to free her after about three hours from the ice on Lake Erie and maneuver her to dock so that she could offload a cargo of coal.