As summer came to a close and high water finally receded on the Mississippi and Ohio rivers, the fleets at Cairo, Ill., and Paducah, Ky., were busy making up tows following nearly nine months of disruptions.
Capt. Daniel Morgan, at the helm of the 145foot Jeffboat, maneuvered a 20-barge tow to American Commercial Barge Lines’ East Cairo fleet at mile marker 978, three miles upstream from the Ohio River’s confluence with the Mississippi.
The lead hand on the forward watch, Levi Harris, and deckhand David Jowers broke up the tow as Morgan turned over the helm to David Sylvaria, in training for his pilot’s license. Sylvaria steered the towboat to the ACBL dock for supplies.
Just before noon, the pilot, Capt. Tom More, and the mate, Jessie “Pineapple” Ziemer, appeared on the bridge to take the after watch.
The mate on a brown-water vessel, equivalent to a bosun on a bluewater boat, oversees the deck crew. “No one on the river knows me by Jessie,” said Ziemer, who hails from Hawaii.
Wilma Pickett, the cook from Benton, Ky., was in the galley assembling thick slices of corned beef and cheese on rye bread for a lunch that would not be out of place in a high-end deli. “I love the life,” she said. “I’ve been around boats and the river all of my life.”
Jeffboat was built at Jeffboat in Jeffersonville, Ind., in 1981. Once the nation’s largest inland shipbuilder, the company closed in 2018. The towboat is powered by two GE 8125OMDA9 main engines with Lufkin RHS 3624 gears, generating 6,200 horsepower at 1,050 rpm.
Denne historien er fra April 2020-utgaven av Professional Mariner.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra April 2020-utgaven av Professional Mariner.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Mariner's role still unknown as autonomous shipping gains speed
Mariners’ role still unknown as autonomous shipping gains speed
Piracy edges closer to home with wave of raids in southern Gulf
In the brief cellphone video recorded by a crewmember on the offshore supply vessel (OSV) Remas, the pirates walk back and forth on the deck of the ship, clenching their guns and using them to point as they order around the crew. Their faces are draped in clothing and bandanas.
Casualties
NTSB: Dredge hit Texas gas pipeline, causing fire that killed four
IMO emissions report raises new concerns about methane slip
A recent report from the International Maritime Organization (IMO) reveals that global shipping emissions increased nearly 10 percent from 2012 to 2018, with the industry facing a growing challenge concerning methane slip.
Bay State brothers find industry niche by making old into new
Zero non-conformities is what you want to hear when the U.S. Coast Guard inspects your tugboat. Once you’ve prepared your vessel, the inspectors come aboard to peruse your paperwork. They ask you pointed questions, to which they expect straightforward answers. Perusal completed, they then scrutinize all of the related safety systems, from bilge to antennas — even the ship’s bell.
Signals
A year into the pandemic, thousands ‘essentially indentured’ on ships
Analysis points to faulty loading, low ballast in Golden Ray rollover
While the salvage of the sunken vehicle carrier Golden Ray has been delayed for months due to COVID-19 and the hurricane season, analysis by the U.S. Coast Guard has determined a possible cause for the rollover: a combination of vehicles placed too high on the ship’s decks, and not enough ballast water gave the placement of the cargo.
Seastreak newcomer pushing through dip in demand
Two years ago, Seastreak LLC took delivery of Seastreak Commodore, a 600-passenger fast ferry, from Gulf Craft of Franklin, La. Designed by Australia-based Incat Crowther, the vessel is the largest of its kind in the United States and was built to meet the burgeoning demand for service in the New York-New Jersey market.
New year in a new world: Navigating COVID's maritime realities
In a matter of days, the decorative time balls will drop, “Auld Lang Syne” will fill the air, and ships at anchor will sound their horns as the world welcomes in the new year.
Advanced props, rudders provide new efficiencies below the waterline
It took a decade or two from the invention of the marine propeller in the 19th century for the technology to become widely accepted. Thereafter, adoption has been nearly universal, but progress toward improved efficiencies has come in fits and starts.
