A tanker ship which was stuck at the Channel was freed on June 3 after it ran aground on the St. Lawrence-Seaway.
What happened?
The tanker ship ‘Chem Norma’ was stuck off-channel since May 29 but was successfully freed on Sunday. Efforts to pull the vessel off the Channel by three tugboats were futile since the underwater canal berm was flooded with remnants of Lock 23, that predates the St. Lawrence-Seaway.
Water outflow reduced
Ihe International Joint Commission of the St. Lawrence River board announced about reducing the outflow rate at the Long Sault control dam, raising the water level of Lake St. Lawrence to assist in freeing the boat.
Once the tanker was freed, the tugboats assisted in moving the vessel to the edge of the shipping channel, where it is currently anchored.
Tanker develops list
Upon further inspection. The ship was found to have developed a 10-15 degree list to the channel side and previous attempt to free the ship involved redistributing the cargo to one side of the ship.
Michael Folsom, a US-based ship watcher reported via Twitter, “The crew will work to redistribute that weight and level out the ship”.
The ship is undergoing further repairs and will be allowed to set sail once it is deemed seaworthy.
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Source: Morrisburg Leader
