U.S. Gulf/River: The final date for southbound departures from St. Paul, Minn., is Nov. 13, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Boats departing Clinton, Iowa, for southern points must do so on or before Nov. 17. New Orleans departures for Mississippi River destinations north of Quincy, Ill., concluded for the season on Oct. 21.
Shipping operators reported emergency dredging underway near mile UM194 on the Mississippi River. The river will be closed daily at the site between 5:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. through Nov. 9. Transit delays of an hour or less were witnessed at Locks 27, 20, 17, 12, and 5A. Boats waited 1-2 hours at Lock 13.
On the Ohio River, wickets were raised at Lock 52, resulting in 8-10 hour delays. R.C. Byrd Lock saw wait times of 2-4 hours ahead of main chamber closures scheduled to begin Sept. 8, and waits of 1-2 hours at Belleville were reported. Willow Island, Newburg Lock, and Winfield Lock saw delays of about an hour, and tow limits (24 barges northbound, 15 barges southbound) remained in effect at the Olmstead Locks and Dam Project.
Vessels waited 4-6 hours for transit through Wheeler Lock on the Tennessee River, where chamber repairs are expected to run through Nov. 13. An emergency lock closure at Chickamauga is anticipated to cause delays through Nov. 18.
Emergency repairs forced total closure of the Monongahela River at Morgantown Lock through Nov. 17, and mechanical failures at Braddock Lock and Dam prompted warnings of minor delays.
In the Gulf, average queue lengths of 10 boats pushed wait times to 12-14 hours at Industrial Lock. Bayou Sorrel (20-24 hours), Algiers Lock (14-16 hours), Port Allen Lock (6-8 hours), and Calcasieu Lock (4-6 hours) reported delays in the West Canal. Harvey Lock will be closed through Nov. 17 with all traffic diverted to Algiers Lock, and the Victoria Barge Canal Lift Bridge will be closed to daytime transit Monday through Thursday indefinitely.