Corps Launches New Towboat For Upper Mississippi River
The St. Paul Engineer District has launched a new maintenance and repair towboat that will support navigation work on the Upper Mississippi River.
The new Fountain City was launched August 26 at the Steiner Construction Company shipyard in Bayou La Batre, Ala. The vessel will be delivered to the Corps’ Fountain City Service Base in Fountain City, Wis.
The towboat will be used by the district’s maintenance and repair section to move floating plants and other equipment along the Upper Mississippi River. The work supports efforts to keep navigation channels open and maintain infrastructure used for commercial navigation, public safety and environmental restoration.
The launch marks the point at which the vessel’s hull is floated, but construction remains underway. The builder will install the engines, complete the interior spaces and navigation systems and conduct testing before the vessel is expected to be accepted by the government on October 13.
“This new towboat is very important to our mission and crew who keep the river system running,” said Kristin Moe, navigation chief. “It’s a source of pride for our team. It represents a major step forward in modernization and safety, giving our crews a state-of-the-art, reliable platform to do their jobs.”
The Fountain City will accommodate up to eight crewmembers in six staterooms. The vessel also will have a full galley, crew lounge, four toilets, four showers and onboard laundry facilities.
The new towboat will replace the district’s previous Fountain City, which was more than 50 years old when it was determined to be unserviceable.
The Corps awarded a $13.9 million contract March 11 to TAI Holdings Inc. of Pensacola, Fla., for construction of the new vessel. The contract uses an existing inland river towboat design that was modified to meet the Corps’ safety and operational requirements.
The Fountain City Service Base has supported the Corps’ Upper Mississippi River navigation mission for more than a century, including the construction, repair and maintenance of vessels and equipment used for river improvement projects.
Featured photo caption: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ new towboat Fountain City is lifted at Steiner Construction Company in Bayou La Batre, Ala., during its launch August 26. The vessel will support maintenance and repair operations on the Upper Mississippi River. (Photo courtesy of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers)
