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Soo Locks open to empty waterways
No commercial vessels were nearby when the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers opened the Poe Lock at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday. None arrived, in fact, until the 450-foot Canadian tanker Algo Star finally passed through 17 hours later -- around 5 p.m. -- upbound with fuel for Thunder Bay, Ontario. "I can't remember when we've had it like this," said Dennis Campbell, chief lockmaster on duty for the day. "Things are going to be slow this season, I can tell you that." So slow is this year's start that Campbell didn't expect another freighter to navigate the locks before the Algo Star's downbound return trip Sunday. Locks have been a key part of the waterway connecting Lake Superior to the lower Great Lakes since the first was built in 1855, bypassing rapids where water falls 23 feet from Lake Superior to the lower part of the St. Mary's. They close between Jan. 15 and March 25 for maintenance work while the waterways are jammed with ice. The work to get the locks ready this year will be featured on an episode of the popular cable program "Dirty Jobs." Host Mike Rowe helped workers grease huge gears, make repairs and clean up after winter. The episode is scheduled to air in September. The March 25 reopening of the locks each year clears the way for massive freighters to ply the Great Lakes after three months in layup. An average of 10,000 vessels and 80-90 million tons of freight usually pass through the locks before winter lockdown. Shippers expect that to be down significantly this year. The industry is hard-hit by the economic doldrums. Demand for such staples as limestone, iron ore and coal plummeted in the second half of 2008. Posted by: Seafarious 2009-03-27 |
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