Grounded Great Lakes Freighter Remains In Detroit River Channel

GROSSE ILE, MI — A Great Lakes freighter that ran aground early Wednesday morning has yet to be moved from its site in the Detroit River's Livingstone Channel, causing the river to be closed to some traffic.

The McKeil's Harvest Spirit ran aground around 8 a.m. in the lower Detroit River, the Daily Great Lakes and Seaway Shipping News reported. The freighter was in the Livingstone Channel, or what is known as The Holy in the Wall. The tug boat Manitou will assist in pulling the grounded vessel, according to the shipping news site.

The freighter lost propulsion after experiencing lube oil failure, causing it to drift until it was sideways in the channel, according to The Detroit Free Press.

Related: Great Lakes Freighter Reportedly Runs Aground Near Grosse Ile

The Livingston Channel typically is open to one-way traffic for vessel traveling down bound, according to the website. Dynamite was used to blast out bedrock and limestone to deepen the channel in the early 1900s, and the stone was removed and stacked into berms creating the edge for the channel.

All traffic was routed to the Amherstburg Channel, the website reported. The Gardno, a saltwater ship, tried to pass the Harvest Spirit down bound Wednesday morning through the channel and reportedly touched the bottom, according to the shipping news site. It has since been anchored and reviewed for damage.

The tug boat Manitou, as well as two other tug boats, attempted unsuccessfully to pull the freighter from its current resting spot Wednesday afternoon, according to the shipping site.

Coast Guard crews stopped all work at the site around 4:40 p.m. Wednesday, opting to review a recovery plan for Thursday, according to the shipping news site.

The freighter was recently acquired by McKeil, a Canadian marine service company that provides transportation throughout the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway, East Coast and in the Canadian Arctic, The Detroit News reported. The freighter was built in 2012 and has an 18-member crew, according to the News.

The Harvest Spirit made its first visit to Detroit on Tuesday, where it loaded up on Zug Island, according to the shipping news site.

No pollutants were released due to the grounding, according to the Free Press, which reported that the Harvest Spirit is carrying about 74,000 gallons of diesel.