BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — A huge freighter, Manitoulin, was stuck in the Lake Erie ice off the Buffalo shoreline until it was freed Saturday.
U.S. Coast Guard Cutters Bristol Bay, Neah Bay, and Canadian Coast Guard Ship Samuel Risley successfully broke the Manitoulin free from the ice on Lake Erie, allowing it to continue its transit. The Manitoulin is scheduled to meet U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Mackinaw, which left Cheboygan, Michigan on January 24.
The 663-foot vessel, with 17 people on board, had been on its way to Canada after dropping off a load of wheat in Buffalo when it got stuck on Wednesday.
The U.S. Coast Guard said it received word from the Detroit Ice Desk around 11:43 a.m. on Wednesday regarding the Manitoulin being stuck in the lake outside of the Buffalo River break wall.
U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Bristol Bay, an ice-breaking tug, arrived in Buffalo Thursday afternoon to assist Manitoulin.
In an update before 7 p.m. on Friday, the Coast Guard said Bristol Bay had moored in Buffalo following hours of ice-breaking operations to assist the Manitoulin.
According to the Coast Guard, it requested assistance from the Canadian Coast Guard to conduct ice-breaking on the Great Lakes through “Operation Coal Shovel.”
Canadian Coast Guard Ship Samuel Risley, a 229-foot ice-breaking buoy tender, made its way from Windsor, Canada to work with Bristol Bay to assist Manitoulin.
On Saturday, U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Neah Bay, a 140-foot ice-breaking tug arrived from Cleveland, Ohio and a helicopter from U.S. Coast Guard Air Station Detroit also conducted overflights at the scene.
Below you can watch video provided by the Coast Guard of Bristol Bay breaking the ice near Manitoulin.
There were no reports of safety concerns for the crew or the ship.
Drone video from Thursday afternoon gave us a closer look at the ship stuck in Lake Erie.
Chief Meteorologist Aaron Mentkowski and Taylor Epps showed it live on Second Cup, watch below.
