Topic starter
03/03/2007 9:57 pm
My husband alerted me to this story. Perhaps some of you are already aware of it.
http://edition.cnn.com/2007/US/02/28/toxic.spill/index.html
04/03/2007 1:43 am
As usual, the media is not 100% accurate with this story. The barge in question is on the lock wall at L&D #52, not the dam. The dam is down due to high water. As of 7:00 pm on Wednesday the 28th, they were attempting to bring an empty alongside the stricken barge to lighter it. The boat bringing the empty down also got on the wall, too, and holed his boat. Plans for lightering were temporarily suspended at that time. The river is open to one-way traffic, and I believe they are (or have) lightering the barge by now. The river is rising, and with lightering of the stricken barge, should allow it to be freed.
I do not know the particulars of how this accident happened, whether the boat (m/v KIMBERLY JANE) was up bound or down bound at the time of the accident, but it would seem that pilot error was certainly a factor here. The paas at L&D #52 is over 1.200 feet wide, and the lock walls are marked with red lights. I can envision a couple of possible scenarios, but won't speculate here.