Weekly News Summary for April 9-15, 2007:
Exactly a week after the Racine Locks and Dam at Ohio River Mile 237.3 was struck by runaway barges, a similar incident took place 681 miles downriver at the Smithland Locks and Dam. Although no barges were lost at Racine, five were sunk in the latest accident involving the Nelson Lewis, operated by Excell Marine Corporation of Cincinnati.
Lt. Wayne Chapman, Coast Guard Marine Safety Office Paducah, told the WJ the incident occurred around 7 a.m. March 30 as the 3,600 hp. vessel was approaching the navigation facility with 12 barges, one of which was an empty “red flag” tank barge. He said the barges never struck the lock gates or guidewall, and as a result, the locks were re-opened to traffic within only three hours.
“He (the towboat’s captain) got out of shape and he ended up dumping his tow,” Chapman said, explaining why the locks escaped damage or closure. “He might have saved some lives by doing that,” the Coast Guard officer added.
Upon impact with the dam, the tow broke apart, scattering the barges, which were quickly drawn into the open gates. Two sank quickly and three others sank later in the day. One barge lodged in one of the dam’s gates but was flushed free the next day by closing adjacent gates to increase the water flow through the obstructed gate. The freed barge is now sunk downstream of the dam, outside the navigation channel, Chapman said.
River traffic was never restricted other than for the initial recovery and response efforts, Chapman said.
The River Explorer excursion tow continued to its final destination of New Orleans after a brief delay following a March 30 collision with a barge from the tow of the James E. Nevin near Mile 115. The accident was between the Luling and Huey P. Long bridges on the Lower Mississippi River.
No injuries were reported to the Coast Guard, and there was no pollution, said Petty Officer 3rd Class Tom Atkeson at the Eighth Coast Guard District. About 160 passengers were aboard the River Explorer and disembarked in New Orleans at the scheduled dock and time.
The River Explorer is a specialty-built two-barge excursion tow that is pushed by a towboat and offers tours along the inland waterways.
The James E. Nevin was upbound, pushing five barges loaded with methyl alcohol, and passing the downbound River Explorer port-to-port when the wires on the Nevin’s lead barge parted. The red flag barge broke away from the tow and collided with the excursion boat, according to Atkeson.
He said the River Explorer suffered a gash on the lead barge but onboard pumps were able to keep up with the incoming water.
Barge customers at the Eddyville (Ky.) Riverport will save time and money in moving their farm commodities, thanks to a recently completed dredging project that eliminated several humps within the harbor basin.
Port director Jay Hunt said the dredging cost nearly $500,000, and was paid for with grants from the Delta Regional Authority for $299,000 and a $200,000 grant from the Kentucky Community Economic Growth Grant Fund.
The project was handled by Southwind Construction of Evansville, Ind., and was completed a day prior to the arrival of Kentucky Gov. Ernie Fletcher, who presented the ceremonial checks in mid-February. During his remarks, Fletcher said the project will help preserve 30 jobs within the port complex, and 300 more within the area’s agricultural-related businesses. Other firms within the complex include Peavey Grain Company, which operates a grain-loading terminal; Agri Chemical Company, which handles liquid fertilizers; and Rottgering Marine Service, a yacht and houseboat service and painting facility.
Fletcher said it is important to be able to match state funds with federal funds in an attempt to advance local economic development.
Jimmy DeHart chuckles about reading recently that one of his customers was retiring. “He’s younger than me!” DeHart exclaims.
DeHart, owner of DeHart Marine Electronics in Memphis, has been in the marine business for more than 50 years. At 81 years old and having undergone successful bypass surgery on April 3, DeHart does not plan to retire anytime soon.
DeHart founded the marine electronics company in 1970 after several years of doing the same type of work for RCA. He thought it was time to work for himself instead of someone else. The first incarnation was a partnership with Rice Hardy called Memphis Marine. After about two years, the Memphis Marine partnership was dissolved and DeHart went solo with DeHart Marine Electronics, supplying radar, radio and navigation equipment to inland river towboats.
“I only intended to catch two or three boats a week and make a living. It worked out pretty well,” DeHart said.
Indeed. DeHart’s company has grown its facility and workforce to keep up with the newest trends in navigation technology and the know-how to keep these systems running. In keeping with the motto “anywhere, anytime” used by many river industry service companies, DeHart Marine technicians go wherever they’re needed.
A new ethanol producing plant is expected to go up in Scott City, Mo. SEMO Port Authority Director Dan Overbey has been working with Ethanex Energy for about a year to develop the new plant.
“They have more work to help decide for sure,” Overbey said.
Al Knapp, chief executive officer of Ethanex, chose the site for its access to two railroads and for its close proximity to the river.
The plant will include grain storage silos, a mill building where grain will be fractionated, and the ethanol plant, which consists of the large main processing building, a fermentation building between a series of eight tanks, a distillation dehydration section, and a small tank farm, where the final ethanol product will be stored.
Construction will last 22 months and upon completion, the plant will produce 132 million gallons of ethanol annually. Development is waiting on air-quality permits from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.
Knapp says the plant will present barge opportunities for inbound corn, outbound distillers, and outbound ethanol.
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