The Ice of 2010
January of 2010 was the beginning of an impossibly hard year for freighter traffic on the St. Clair River. To keep traffic moving the United States and Canadian Coast Guards brought in a large fleet of ice breakers to escort the valuable cargos around the Great Lakes upstream of the Welland Canal.
January 2010, an international fleet of ice breakers clears one of the channels in the River Delta to allow the ice to escape the river.
St. Patrick’s Day, 2010. A 35 square mile ice dam in the lower section of Lake Huron has broken up and a torrent of ice flows into what had been a river clear of ice.
The Canadian Coast Guard Ice Breaker, Samuel Risley, breaks out into the lake heading for ice breaking duties in Thunder Bay, Ontario on the West shore of Lake Superior.
March 24, 2010. The now ice clogged river is a significant barrier for two convoys of ships. The Herbert C. Jackson attempting to head north with escorts and the Tug and Barge Everlast and Norman Macleod head South for Detroit.
March 21, 2010. The ore carrying tug and barge, Presque Isle, has been blown dangerously close to the Western shore of the River attempting to enter Lake Huron. Two ice breakers and two support tugs struggle to keep her in deep water.