U.S. Gulf: High water continued to plague the Gulf shipping region last week, forcing transit restrictions and increased travel times.
Baton Rouge levels remained at moderate flood stage on March 24, reading 38.3 feet. Forecasters expected levels to gradually decline, dropping to minor-flood stage on March 25. The Corps restricted navigation through the Baton Rouge area to daylight running only.
The Natchez gauge read 50.88 feet on March 24, just below the 51-foot moderate-flood stage. Natchez depths were also predicted to taper off in the week ahead. New Orleans levels were steady at 15.05 feet, shy of the 17-foot flood stage.
Harvey Lock construction swelled Algiers Lock delays to 35-36 hours for the week, with as many as 48 boats in the queue. The Corps is routing traffic through Algiers Lock until work at Harvey Lock concludes on April 30. Shippers expected the delays to continue.
Bayou Sorrel Lock navigation was reported in the 3-12 hour range, with an excessive water differential between the flood-side and land-side gauges requiring vessels to use added caution while locking. Industrial Lock reported delays in the 13-23 hour range with 26 boats waiting to lock, while Port Allen Lock traffic saw delays of 7-9 hours for the week with an average of seven vessels queued.
A 90-day lock closure at Industrial Lock is expected to foul transit between Aug. 1 and Nov 29. The Corps originally planned to dredge the Baptiste Collette channel to allow for a detour, but insufficient funding forced the Corps to back away from that strategy.
Calcasieu Lock navigation required 2-4 hours for the week with 14 vessels in line for service. Painting and maintenance operations at the West Port Arthur Bridge reduced travel clearance by a minimum three feet through April 30.
Elevated water levels closed the Charenton and East Calumet Floodgates for the week. Freshwater Bayou Lock was offline during daylight hours on March 22.
Ongoing dredge work at Mile 370 in the West Canal slowed traffic for a second week. The dredge allows less than 70 feet of clearance through the site, leading a number of shippers to restrict navigation to daylight-hours-only until the work concludes.
High water and fast flows hampered navigation through Brazos Lock, with 45 vessels in line to lock on March 24 and delays estimated at 12-20 hours or more. Additionally, shippers kept on eye on the water differential at the site’s West Gate, listed at 1.0 feet on March 24. A differential of 1.8 feet at either gate will trigger an automatic lock shutdown.
Lower Mississippi River: High water persisted on the Lower Mississippi, slashing tow sizes on southbound vessels from Cairo to the Gulf. Additionally, tows were limited to daytime-only navigation through the Vicksburg area, shippers said.
The National Weather Service (NWS) pegged Vicksburg water levels at 42.3 feet on March 24, shy of the 43-foot flood stage but above the 40-foot action stage. Depths were forecast to slowly recede before leveling off around 41.2 feet on March 27.
The Memphis gauge was at 22.37 feet on March 24, below the 28-foot action stage. Shippers warned of a Memphis-area wind advisory in effect for March 23-24.
Upper Mississippi River: Lock 27 delays were reported at 1-2 hours for the week. Wait times at Lock 20 climbed to 1-4 hours, and Mel Price Lock delays were reported in the 1-3 hour range.
The St. Louis gauge saw levels at 15.92 feet on March 24, up from 13.84 feet the week before.
Illinois River: The Corps called Marseilles Lock and Dam waits in the 1-2 hour range for the week. Starved Rock Lock also reported waits of an hour or two. Wickets were down at both the LaGrange and Peoria Locks, allowing vessels to pass freely.
Ohio River: Despite Lock 52 allowing vessels to pass without locking again last week, vessel congestion pushed wait times to 2-3 hours. Lock 53 saw delays in the 3-6 hour range for the week. Montgomery Lock navigation was described in the 1-2 hour range.
Cincinnati-area levels were at 28.83 feet on March 24, considerably below the previous week’s 39.76-foot level. Action stage at Cincinnati starts at 40 feet. The Cairo gauge was also on its way down, logging 35.27 feet on March 24 and predicted to dip below the 32-foot action stage on March 25-26.
An auxiliary chamber shutdown at Montgomery Lock is underway through April 1, and the lock’s main chamber is slated to close May 16 through June 10, with significant delays expected. The lock will reopen to pass queued traffic on May 28-29 and June 4-5.
The Greenup Lock main chamber will go offline April 1, prompting shipping operators to brace for “major delays.” All traffic will be routed through the site’s auxiliary chamber until work concludes on Sept. 30.
New Cumberland Lock’s auxiliary unit is scheduled to shut down April 4 through May 27, but will reopen briefly to pass waiting traffic on April 16-17, April 30 through May 1, and May 15-16.
Big delays are also on the books at Emsworth Lock, slated for a total shutdown July 5 through Aug. 10. Waiting traffic will be allowed to pass on July 16-17 and July 30-31.
On the Tennessee River, the Wilson Lock main chamber went offline March 21 for an expected four-day shutdown. The Corps warned that delays could extend up to eight hours per day until the lock’s scheduled March 25 reopening. Maintenance at Chickamauga Lock will push wait times to an estimated 10.5 hours daily between March 28 and April 20.
Shippers said the Monongahela River’s Braddock Lock and Dam river chamber remained offline for the week, forcing traffic through the land chamber instead.
Arkansas River: Dive inspections on March 22-24 were expected to trigger daily delays of 4-8 hours at Webbers Falls Lock, shippers said. The lock is also planning an upstream shutdown on May 16-22, followed by a downstream closure Aug. 24 through Sept. 11. Delays are expected.