Ship aground, Seaway traffic stopped
CORNWALL, ON – A freighter has run aground in the St. Lawrence Seaway near Cornwall, Ontario. According to the St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation, the NACC Argonaut went aground Sunday morning and has a list to port. Officials say the freighter is not taking on water, and there’s no pollution to the river.
Navigation has been stopped in that area. Salvage plans have begun, officials say.
NACC Argonaut is a Canadian freighter and carries raw cement to ports on the Great Lakes, according to online records, and was navigating from Montreal to Oshawa, near Toronto.
7NEWS has asked if the freighter was empty or loaded and Seaway officials told us its partially loaded with construction material. It is She is headed to Oshwa, ON, from Montreal.
The grounding comes as speed restrictions were put in place two days ago on some areas of the St. Lawrence Seaway. Friday, the St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation put out a bulletin saying, “due to decreasing water levels, speed restrictions have been revised.”
Around Galop Island, northeast of Ogdensburg, speeds for upbound ships were dropped to 7 knots and 11 knots, depending on the vessel’s size. Ships going downriver were restricted to 11 knots and 13 knots depending on its draft.
Update (20:30, September 24) – Ocean Intrepide is moving upbound tonight and is expected to reach the grounded vessel sometime after 02:00. A second tug, likely to be Ocean K. Rusby, will depart Quebec to join in the salvage. Initial salvage plan is said to have the tugs refloat the ship as soon as it’s deemed possible on Monday and move it to the Grasse Anchorage and then from there turn around and move it back downriver to Valleyfield.
Michael J. Folsom
Historic ferry Norisle scrap tow expected soon
The historic S.S. Norisle will be towed and dismantled in Port Colborne by early fall.
Assiginack Township Mayor Brenda Reid announced the demise of the ship at a special meeting of council stating the township and Marine Recycling Corporation in Port Colbourne had reached an agreement to have the ship towed from Manitowaning for up to 95% of the ship to be recycled.
Preparations for the towing is now underway and the ship is expected to be towed next week taking some six weeks for the recycling process.
She says the township will have to pay around $743,000 for the removal and recycling process.
She adds the costs include a special pilot, as well as American assistance between Lake St. Clair and the St. Mary’s River, and insurance.
Reid adds some decisions on the remaining five percent will have to be made, but the telegraph housed in the ship will be put on display in the Assiginack Museum.
My Algoma Manitoulin Now
