US Coast Guard officials confirmed that a Great Lakes freighter hauling iron ore to US Steel’s Gary Works mill rear-ended a US Coast Guard ice-breaker on that was cutting a path through the frozen surface of Lake Michigan on Sunday.
No injuries were reported, but both vessels suffered damage such as a breached hull and pierced bow. Fortunately, neither ship flooded or released any pollutants, and both ships remained seaworthy and were able to continue to port.
The 225-foot Coast Guard vessel Hollyhock was breaking ice in front of the 990-foot super carrier Mesabi Miner when the ice-breaker hit a sturdy patch of ice and slowed down, and the freighter was not able to stop in time, according to the Coast Guard report.
The Mesabi Miner vessel continued on its route to Gary, Indiana where it is scheduled to unload its cargo before being assessed for further damage.