The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) on May 11 closed the Lower Mississippi River to all vessel traffic between mile markers 736 and 737 due to a crack discovered on the center span of the Hernando de Soto Bridge on Interstate 40 in Memphis, Tenn. The USCG lifted the restrictions on May 14 after determining that transit under the bridge was safe.
“The Coast Guard is currently working with Arkansas Department of Transportation, Tennessee Department of Transportation, and river industry stakeholders on this developing situation,” said Capt. Ryan Rhodes of the Port of Memphis on May 12. The USCG said the river closure was implemented “out of an abundance of caution” and to “ensure the safety of the maritime environment and surrounding community.”
Some industry sources had speculated that a partial reopening of the river would occur late in the week, but the USCG said the waterway would open “without restriction” to all vessel traffic. “Based on information provided to us by the Tennessee Department of Transportation, the Coast Guard has determined that transit under the I-40 bridge is safe for maritime traffic,” Rhodes said on May. 14.
The crack was discovered by workers with Arkansas Department of Transportation during a routine inspection, prompting a 911 call to enlist authorities to enforce an immediate closure. The last thorough inspection of the bridge, which opened in 1973 and has two 900-foot spans, occurred in September 2019.
In its first announcement on May 12, the USCG said there were 16 vessels with a total of 229 barges in the queue. By Thursday, that number had swelled to 44 vessels with more than 700 barges waiting to travel the river in either direction. When restrictions were lifted on May 14, the USCG said 62 vessels and 1,058 barges were waiting in the queue.
“It will be a number of weeks at least until we can have a repair in place, probably six to eight weeks minimum,” Paul Degges, Chief Engineer of the Tennessee Department of Transportation told CNN. “Hopefully, we can pull a rabbit out of a hat sooner, but public safety is most important. There are lots of moving parts to look at.”
The Tennessee Department of Transportation has hired an engineering firm, and a full mathematical analysis is under way to look at dead load data and models and discuss potential repair solutions. With more than 35,000 vehicles crossing the bridge every day between Memphis and eastern Arkansas, authorities are rerouting ground traffic to another bridge on Interstate 55, about three miles south.
Fertilizer industry sources minimized the immediate impact of the closure on fertilizer shipments and pricing, although sources relayed rumors of at least one supplier repricing an upriver urea cargo at a $450/st FOB NOLA equivalent, with no buyers. Sources agreed that a prolonged closure would add to upriver premiums, however.
“It’s not critical at this moment, but if it’s still shut down by next Monday, it’ll be a big deal,” one industry source told Green Markets on May 13. “It’s got a lot of people wanting to buy upriver barges, and any that are up there might go into hiding if this thing continues. We’re trying to refrain from panic buying, as I’m optimistic they’ll get this thing going again in a couple of days. But if things are still shut down by Monday, there’ll be a lot of people looking for product.”
Several sources also noted a rainy forecast for much of the Midwest over the coming weekend and early next week, which could ease demand and soften the blow of a sustained closure. Others speculated that fertilizer tons could be offloaded in Memphis and trucked north if the river closure is prolonged.
“Prices in some areas of already tight supply could be impacted, with others likely to follow depending on how long it is closed,” said another industry contact.
Bloomberg noted that a lengthy halt to barge traffic could also further roil crop markets at a time when soybeans and corn futures have hit multiyear highs amid adverse weather in Latin America and a buying spree from China. The New Orleans Port Region moved 47 percent of waterborne agricultural exports in 2017, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, most of which was bulk grains such as corn, soybeans, rice, and animal feed, as well as soybean and corn oils.
“The river is the jugular for the export market in the Midwest for both corn and beans,” Colin Hulse, a Senior Risk Management Consultant at StoneX in Kansas City, told Bloomberg. “The length of the blockage is important. If they cannot quickly get movement, then it is a big deal. If it slows or restricts movement for a longer period, it can be a big deal as well.”