Coast Guard Closes Mississippi River Near Natchez
May 17th, 2011Update: Re-Opened, With Restrictions
Via: CBS News:
Shipping already curtailed because of flooding that is plaguing the Mississippi River was halted for much of Tuesday when officials closed the waterway north of New Orleans in the latest tough decision to try to reduce pressure on levees protecting cities and towns.
By late in the day, barges that haul coal, timber, iron, steel and more than half of America’s grain exports were allowed to pass, but at the slowest possible speed. Such interruptions could cost the U.S. economy hundreds of millions of dollars for each day the barges are idled, as the toll from the weeks-long flooding from Arkansas to Louisiana continues to mount.
—End Update—
Via: Reuters:
The key waterway for U.S. grain exports was cut off on Monday when the U.S. Coast Guard closed the Mississippi River near Natchez, Mississippi.
The Coast Guard said 15 miles of the Mississippi was closed to all traffic to protect ships and flood control structures because flooding has raised the river to record levels.
Two vessels were waiting to move northbound on the river by the closure and one ship was waiting to move southbound, the Coast Guard said.
About 60 percent of U.S. grain exports go out through the Mississippi.
Eight Louisiana refineries dependent on the river to bring crude oil from the Gulf of Mexico and to move refined products into the Gulf, are not affected by Monday’s closure.
The Coast Guard gave no estimate for when the River would re-open.
