Stranded Canadian freighter TIM S. DOOL (built 1967) has been sitting on Crysler Shoal, after running aground Saturday November 23. Fully loaded with a cargo of grain, she'll need some heavy-duty assistance to be pulled from the mud.
High power OCEAN tugboats INTREPIDE, TAIGA and TUNDRA have anchored at Wilson Hill during the evening of November 28, and will go to work attempting to free the ship in the morning.
Crysler Shoal ultimately claimed the EASTCLIFFE HALL (built 1954), wrecked in 1970.
Looking back into the River's history, the EASTCLIFFE HALL sinking was barely a decade into the Seaway's existence, as the man-made river deepened the existing river by approximately 15 feet in 1958-59, to allow the passage of larger ships to and from the Atlantic Ocean.
The "drowned islands" and shoals, hidden beneath the waves of the beautiful river can be a challenge for recreational boaters as well as seasoned mariners. With the safe navigational channel being only a few hundred feet wide in some places, wind, weather, fog and darkness all play a role.
Meanwhile, just downriver at nearby Weaver Shoal, in this treacherous stretch of water yet another incident occurred in December 1998, when the FEDERAL BERGEN (built 1984) collided with the light structure.
It's all relative however, considering thousands of vessels transit the waterway without incident. All the best to the crews working to get classic laker TIM S. DOOL off her strand.
Text
Uploading as many photos as possible, looking to add full text eventually...