Marquette Harbor still closed after oil spill
April 22, 08 by TheFleetIf you're new here, you may want to subscribe to our RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
By KIM HOYUM | Source: The Mining Journal
MARQUETTE — The Lower Harbor in Marquette is still closed to boaters today after a tug boat lost a propeller and began leaking oil into the harbor Monday.
… Cleanup was completed Monday evening, and today Coast Guard divers are scheduled to secure and mark the lost propeller, which could pose a hazard to navigation, said Lt. Kurt Higginbotham of the Coast Guard Sault Ste. Marie Sector. The divers will use sonar to locate the propeller, since its exact location is yet unknown. It will then be removed from the lake.
“We’ll be coming in with a crane on Thursday to lift it out of there,” he said.
… The Dorothy Ann belongs to Interlake Steamship Company of Ohio. Interlake contracted with Marine Pollution Control and Mackinac Environmental Technology of St. Ignace to help with containment and cleanup of the oil, Adams said.
… The Coast Guard continues to investigate the grounding, and Adams said it’s possible that the lake bottom around the plant had shifted, creating shallows or sandbars where the boat’s captain did not expect them.
“It’s being investigated to see whether over the winter months, the bottom structure changed,” he said.
The Dorothy Ann is likely to dock at the Upper Harbor ore dock until the company completes repairs and the Sault Ste. Marie Coast Guard captain of port allows it to get under way again, Coast Guard officers said.
