Great Lakes iron ore trade down in March
Cleveland, OH – Iron ore shipments on the Great Lakes totaled 579,217 tons in March, a decrease of 54.9 percent compared to 2021. Loadings also trailed the month’s 5-year average by nearly 60 percent.
Year-to-date the iron ore trade stands at 2.4 million tons, a decrease of 37.5 percent compared to last year. Iron ore shipments are 31.8 percent below their 5-year average for the first three months of the year.
Since 1880, Lake Carriers’ has represented the U.S.-flag Great Lakes fleet, which today can move more than 90 million tons of cargos annually that are the foundation of American industry, infrastructure, and power: iron ore, stone, coal, cement, and other dry bulk materials such as grain, salt, and sand. More information is available at www.lcaships.com.
‘A sad day’: USS The Sullivans listing as stern takes on water
Buffalo, NY – The decorated U.S. Navy destroyer-turned museum ship USS The Sullivans partially sank at its pier on Wednesday at the Buffalo Naval Park in Buffalo, New York.
The U.S. Coast Guard said pollution responders were monitoring dewatering efforts following reports that the ship had partially sank.
The USS The Sullivans is owned and maintained as a museum ship by Buffalo and Erie County Naval & Military Park, the largest inland Naval Park in the United States located in Buffalo, New York.
The USS The Sullivans is one of only four Fletcher-class of destroyers in the world and the first ship in the U.S. Navy to be named for more than one person. The Fletcher-class destroyers were the largest and most important class of U.S. Destroyers used in World War II.
Named after the five brothers from Waterloo, Iowa, USS The Sullivans was commissioned in 1943 and earned numerous battle stars for its roles in WWII’s Pacific War and the Korean War, before its decommissioning in 1965.
A statement from the Buffalo Naval Park said all four ships at the park have been closed to the public as they respond to the incident.
“Yesterday, a serious hull breach occurred aft of midship on the starboard side. Our crew has been monitoring the ship all night and morning and are working with marine engineers and members of BIDCO Marine Group, the Buffalo Fire Department, Buffalo Police Department, Homeland Security, and Coast Guard to assess the problem, minimize damage, and remove water from the ship,” the organization said in a Facebook post.
“For over a year, we have been working hard to preserve USS The Sullivans and that work continues today and into the future. We are grateful for your continued support of this historic ship and of the Buffalo and Erie County Naval & Military Park.”
Buffalo News
Milwaukee to build $7M cruise ship dock, hopes to become top cruising destination
Milwaukee, WI – Port Milwaukee has set its sights on becoming the top cruise ship destination in the Great Lakes. To achieve that, there are plans to build a $7 million ship dock, CBS 58 reports. Like many port cities around the Great Lakes, Milwaukee is expecting a boom in the cruising industry when it returns this year, with about 10,000 cruise ship passengers coming ashore, the report said
The industry has been on pause for two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Port Milwaukee plans to add a larger dock to its South Shore location, Adam Tindall-Schlicht, director of Port Milwaukee, told CBS 58. It will be big enough to accommodate the largest ships now being built to traverse the Great Lakes. The goal is to become the start- and end-point for cruise ships, bringing double the benefit from each vessel, he said.
The new dock is expected to be operational in 2023 or 2024, he said.
Companies sailing the Great Lakes this year are American Queen Voyages, Hapag Lloyd Cruises, Pearl Seas Cruises, Ponant Explorers, Seabourn Cruises, Silversea Cruises, St. Lawrence Cruise Lines, Viking Expeditions and Windstar Cruises. They will call on Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin and Canadian ports, including Alpena, Detroit, Mackinac Island, Marquette, Muskegon, Sault Ste. Marie, Cleveland, Milwaukee, and Duluth and Windsor, Ontario. The cruising season spans from May to October. Each vessel carries about 200-400 passengers.
