DETROIT – A freighter that ran aground on the Detroit River has been freed Thursday.
The U.S. Coast Guard tweeted that the the Harvest Spirit has been refloated and will undergo further inspection.
The U.S. Coast Guard was assisting Transport Canada in putting together a salvage plan for the freighter, which ran aground in the Detroit River’s Livingstone Channel at about 7 a.m. Wednesday, causing shipping to be halted on Thursday.
The Harvest Spirit was stuck between Grosse Ile and Bois Blanc Island. A second boat struck it Wednesday afternoon trying to avoid the ship.
The 500-foot freighter Harvest Spirit, aground in the Detroit River since Wednesday morning, was successfully refloated this afternoon and is safely anchored in U.S. waters while awaiting a thorough inspection.
— USCG Great Lakes (@USCGGreatLakes) December 4, 2020
News release: https://t.co/uso2FQQpnp pic.twitter.com/L3X47zJDww
Shipping was routed to Detroit River’s Amherstburg Channel, east of Bois Blanc Island. Multiple shipping vessels were standing by as the Amherstburg Channel was unable to handle large freighters the way Livingstone Channel can.
“We have vessels stacked up in Lake Huron about Port Huron and in the Detroit River down by Detroit,” said Eric Peace, director of operations and communications for the Westlake, Ohio-based Lake Carriers Association, which represents vessels operating under the U.S. flag on the Great Lakes.
The Detroit River is one of the busiest rivers for commercial shipping on the planet. It is unknown how many vessels are impacted by the Livingstone Channel’s closure.
No pollution or injuries have been reported.
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