A collection of federal, state and local officials, are responding to a marine accident on the St. Marys River. They say no reports of pollution have been made but monitoring is ongoing.
The Interlake Steamship Company said online its 806-foot vessel, the Honorable James L. Oberstar, grounded over the weekend.
The Vessel is carrying around 29,700 tons of Limestone to Marquette. No injuries were reported, and an investigation is ongoing into the cause of the incident.
Michael Hines is a spokesperson with the Coast Guard. He said 17 personnel are monitoring pollution on the water with necessary equipment. "Whether it's Coast Guard or contractors...all of us are tasked with keeping an eye on the water," Hines said.
"There's a lot of different operations that are going on…protecting the environment and working toward our goal of safely floating the Oberstar," he said.
The ship had a maximum fuel capacity of 108,000 gallons of fuel. Hines said 600 feet of boom has been deployed in the area and an additional 3,500 feet of hard boom is available to be staged if needed, along with cleaning materials.
The Oberstar is currently anchored on the St. Marys and is not holding up maritime traffic. The ship did hold up one vessel during the incident.
