U.S. Gulf/River: Main chamber repairs at T.J. O’Brien Lock and Dam on the Illinois River fell further behind schedule last week, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The lock’s reopening was delayed by at least two days, to 5:00 p.m. on Dec. 21. Consequently, the lock’s closure for the navigation season was pushed back to Jan. 21, 2015. The cutoff date for Chicago-bound vessels to depart New Orleans was Dec. 14.
Shippers reported 4-6 hour transit delays at Lock 27 on the upper Mississippi River, and waits of about an hour were reported at Lock 20. Flows at St. Louis began to fall last week following the Dec. 10 suspension of above-normal releases from lower Missouri River dams. Levels were expected to settle near the 2-foot mark around Dec. 25.
Upper Mississippi Locks 17 and 20 are scheduled to close for the winter season on Jan. 5. Locks 12 and 13 closed Dec. 15. The Corps’ ongoing rock removal project at Thebes, Ill., is slated to resume for the season when flows at Cape Girardeau, Mo., fall below the 10-foot mark. The Corps hopes to work the project through January with minimal transit disruptions.
On the Ohio River, one-hour wait times were reported at R.C. Byrd Lock and Lock 52. The Montgomery Lock auxiliary chamber was due to reopen to transit on Dec. 19, and the main chamber at Belleville Lock will close to daytime navigation Jan. 5-9. Belleville’s auxiliary chamber will follow suit Feb. 9-27, shuttering to daytime traffic for the duration.
Braddock Lock and Dam on the Monongahela River remained offline due to unspecified equipment failure. The site’s land chamber was open to navigation, shippers said. The Allegheny River will experience a complete closure at the Hulton Bridge replacement project, beginning at 7:00 a.m. on Jan. 7.
Major delays are expected on the Kanawha River beginning in February as the Winfield Lock main chamber closes for repairs. The work is expected to last about a month. The Tennessee River’s Pickwick Lock auxiliary chamber, offline for maintenance since Nov. 10, is scheduled to resume operations Jan. 9. Sources said the main chamber was available.
Repairs at Old River Lock on the lower Mississippi were expected to cause intermittent delays through Jan. 29.
In the Gulf area, delays of 10-12 hours were reported at Industrial Lock. Shippers experienced waits of about an hour at Bayou Sorrel, Port Allen, and Algiers Locks. Main chamber work at Calcasieu Lock, underway since Aug. 27, was completed Dec. 17. Maintenance at Harvey Lock was expected to conclude Dec. 18.