February 23, 2004
Sunken Vessel Causes Mississippi River Traffic Jam
HOUSTON (Reuters) - A weekend collision between two vessels caused a growing traffic jam on the Mississippi River in Louisiana on Monday where dozens of ships were blocked from getting in or out of one of the main U.S. shipping arteries, officials said.
The river could remain blocked for several days as rescuers sought five crew members missing from the 178-foot supply boat Lee III, which sank after colliding with the 534-foot container ship Zim Mexico III in fog on Saturday near where the river empties into the Gulf of Mexico, the Coast Guard said.
The accident forced the closure of the Southwest Pass, the only entrance into the river for deep draft ocean-going vessels, and had created a back up of at least 80 ships, Coast Guard spokesman Jeff Murphy said.
Among those waiting to get through were several passenger ships carrying thousands, he said.
Searches by boat and from the air had so far turned up only life preservers and a life boat at the site about 80 miles southeast of New Orleans, the Coast Guard said.
Only the bow of the submerged Lee III was visible, jutting from the fast-moving muddy water.
Searches by boat and from the air had so far turned up only life preservers and a life boat but commercials divers were on the scene to look inside the sunken vessel for the missing crew, Murphy said.
The Zim Mexico III, which reported minor damage and no injuries, is owned by B. Rickmers GMBH Cie and operated by Zim American Israeli Shipping Co.
The Lee III is owned by Ocean Runner Inc. in Galveston, Texas, the Coast Guard said.