ICE BUSTER: Coast Guard Cutter Hollyhock Opens Lanes in Saginaw Bay, River

River, Bay Ice Unsafe, CG Warns; U.S., Canadian Ships Begin Icebreaking

January 6, 2013
By: Dave Rogers

The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Hollyhock started ice-breaking operations in the Saginaw Bay area Friday, January 4, escorting the freighter Alpena to the mouth of the Saginaw River.

The Coast Guard had advised Saginaw area residents about the cutter's inbound Saginaw Bay shipping channel ice breaking operations. No incidents were reported as a result of the work.

The Hollyhock, a 225-foot Seagoing Buoy Tender, is stationed in Port Huron. The 519 foot long Alpena is a bulk cement freighter operated by the Inland Lakes Marine.

Any ice in this area should be considered unsafe and the Coast Guard advises everyone to stay clear, although fishers have been reported venturing onto the thin ice on both the river and bay.

For additional information, contact Lt. Justin Westmiller, public affairs officer Coast Guard Sector Detroit at 313-701-6016.

Todd Shorkey of boatnerd.com blog, reported Hollyhock escorted the Alpena through the ice on the Saginaw Bay.

"Once at the front range, Hollyhock stopped at Consumers Energy, leaving Alpena to bust through the ice on the Saginaw River herself, as she made her way to the Essroc dock in Essexville."

This was Alpena's first visit of 2013 for the Saginaw River, wrote Shorkey, adding: "This was an unusual trip for the Alpena, as I haven't seen an ILM vessel unload on the Saginaw River anywhere other than Lafarge. In 2012, the G.L. Ostrander - Integrity also unloaded at Essroc."

After a near-escape from disaster early Saturday, the tug Victory and her barge, James L. Kuber, were headed for safe harbor at Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., on Sunday, according to Coast Guard and boatnerd.com reports.

Victory became separated from the 703-foot Kuber while transiting Lake Superior in the vicinity of Manitou Island in heavy weather off the tip of the Keweenaw Peninsula. The mishap was possibly due to a failure of the its connection system.

At approximately 1:45 a.m. Saturday, Coast Guard Sector Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. received a mayday call from the tug Victory reporting that the Kuber had broken loose. The barge was carrying a load of iron ore and had 8,500 gallons of diesel fuel aboard.

The tug Victory had 15 crew members aboard and all were accounted for. At the time of the breakaway the weather and sea conditions were 31 degrees with 10-12 foot seas and winds of over 20 mph.

The Coast Guard directed the launch of a helicopter from Air Station Traverse City and diverted the Coast Guard Cutter Thunder Bay, a 140-foot ice breaking tug home-ported in Rockland, Maine, temporarily assigned to the 9th Coast Guard District to assist with ice breaking.

Meanwhile, the U.S. and Canadian Coast Guards have commenced Operation Coal Shovel, seasonal domestic ice breaking operations in the southern part of Lake Huron, Lake St. Clair, the St. Clair and Detroit River systems, Lake Erie and Lake Ontario.

U.S. and Canadian Coast Guard icebreakers work together to prevent ice jams in these vital economic waterways as conditions worsen throughout the winter.

"Ice jams can create a disruption to the flow of maritime commerce, so the icebreakers work diligently to flush ice down the river to facilitate transportation of vital winter cargoes," said Coast Guard spokesmen. U.S. and Canadian crew members coordinate, conduct and track maintenance, provide vessel assistance and conduct flushing operations to minimize the potential for residential flooding. The mission of Operation Coal Shovel is to quickly reopen the Great Lakes maritime transportation system for the movement of commercial vessels that may become beset in the ice.

Mild temperatures last winter precluded the need for ice-breaking assets in the lower lakes and the Coast Guard did not conduct Operation Coal Shovel.

As the 2013 Operation Coal Shovel begins, Coast Guard Sector Detroit and the Canadian Coast Guard will continue to monitor and identify declining waterway conditions and potential hazardous ice conditions. Sector Detroit provides command and control for Operation Coal Shovel and may close or open the waterways as ice conditions dictate.

Sector Detroit also considers the protection of the marine environment and waterways, aids to navigation, the need for cross channel traffic (e.g. ferries), the availability of icebreakers, and the safety of the island residents who use naturally formed ice bridges for transportation to and from the mainland when making closure decisions. ###