Federal-Kivalina

Incident responders from the Coast Guard and representatives from the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation completed the salvage of the "Federal Kivalina" in the St. Lawrence Seaway and have reopened the seaway to all vessel traffic as of 7:30 p.m. on May 29. The vessel was removed from its resting spot near the Thousand Island Bridge by a salvage crew and two tugs from Montreal. Coast Guard personnel had approved the salvage plan early in the afternoon and the salvage team immediately went to work to remove the vessel. Upon the safe removal of the "Federal Kivalina", the SLSDC reopened the seaway to all vessel traffic, which had been shut down for more than two days. Coast Guard investigators from Marine Safety Detachment Massena, New York, were investigating the cause of the incident. Response crews from Station Alexandria Bay, New York State Parks Police, New York State Police, New York Department of Environmental Conservation, and inspectors from MSD Massena and the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation responded to assist the vessel and its crew. Report with photo: http://www.uscgnews.com/go/doc/4007/2170998/

18 ships were stuck on the St. Lawrence Seaway Thursday waiting for salvage crews to remove the "Federal Kivalina" near the Thousand Islands Bridge. As of May 29 afternoon, the U.S. Coast Guard was reviewing a salvage plan submitted by Donjon-SMIT LLC from Alexandria, Va., . Two tugs from Montreal also were on the scene to assist in the salvage. 23,000 metric tons of canola seeds needed to be unloaded to refloat the ship. Reports with photos: http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/article/20140529/NEWS09/705299754 http://www.uscgnews.com/go/doc/4007/2170218/

Incident responders from the Coast Guard, in partnership with the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation, were overseeing the salvage and investigation of the "Federal Kivalina" after it ran aground after losing steering on May 26 while transiting the St. Lawrence Seaway in the vicinity of Wellesley Island, New York. A dive team conducted an underwater hull survey in the evening and on May 27 morning and determined the vessel was aground but stable. The vessel suffered a two-foot long hole in the hull near the bow. A contracted salvage team was en route to the grounded freighter. Once on scene, they were to review the hull inspection report as well as current weather and water conditions as they developped a plan for safe removal of the vessel. The salvage was to begin on May 29, offloading of the cargo required. As the vessel barred the seaway, several vessel up and downwere awaiting the passage. The salvage plan must be reviewed and approved by the Coast Guard. Investigators from Coast Guard Marine Safety Detachment Massena, New York, were investigating the incident. Response crews from Coast Guard Station Alexandria Bay, New York State Parks Police, New York State Police, New York Department of Environmental Conservation, and inspectors from MSD Massena and the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation responded to assist the vessel and its crew. Report with photos: http://www.uscgnews.com/go/doc/4007/2169430/