On January 13, the 67 meter long towboat Inez Andreas along with its barges allided with a railroad bridge over the Mississippi River at Vicksburg, Mississippi. The towboat lost two barges that broke free. One of these barges later sank. Authorities closed traffic on the bridge until it could be inspected. The barge that sank did not pose any hazard for traffic. Authorities have launched an investigation into the incident.
Two barges pushed by the 90 foot long tugboat Nature’s Way Endeavor struck a railway bridge over the Mississippi River near Vicksburg, Mississippi. One barge suffered slight damage, but the other had its hull ripped open above the waterline. One of eight tanks each holding 80,000 gallons of light crude oil was punctured and leaked oil into the river. The amount of oil released was unknown. A containment boom was place across part of the river downstream from the barge. Skimmers have been deployed to clean up oily water from the river. No reports of damage to the railroad bridge and traffic was allowed to resume a short time later. No reports of injuries. The Coast Guard has launched an investigation into the incident.
