DETROIT - The U.S. Coast Guard has completed another very successful joint ice breaking season with the Canadian Coast Guard and Lake Carrier's Association.   This operation, commonly referred to as Operation COAL SHOVEL consists of the U.S. Coast Guard and Canadian Coast Guard teaming together to conduct icebreaking operations for three basic purposes: search and rescue and other emergency operations, facilitation of safe navigation, and prevention of flooding caused by the formation of ice.  Operation COAL SHOVEL's area of responsibility consists of the U.S. waters of southern Lake Huron (north of Thunder Bay, Michigan), including Saginaw Bay, St Clair River, Lake St. Clair, Lower Detroit River and Lake Erie.  This area of responsibility is headquartered from both the U.S. Coast Guard Group Detroit, Michigan and the Regional Operations Center Sarnia, Ontario.

This season provided many unique and difficult challenges for U.S. and Canadian Coast Guard ice breaking resources assigned to the operations.  The icebreaking season began later than usual, but hit with brute force by mid-January.  The Coast Guard and the Lake Carrier's Association worked together to provide safe and early delivery of 600,000 tons of iron, ore and coal over an extending the closing of the Sault Ste Marie locks by 10-days.  By then, heavy ice formations in Eastern Lake Erie, combined with difficult conditions in the Detroit River corridor, required specific one-on-one ice breaking assistance from our local U.S. Coast Guard 140-foot icebreaking tugs.  Specifically noteworthy are the  U.S. Coast Guard cutters Bristol Bay (homeport Detroit, Michigan),  Neah Bay (homeport Cleveland, Ohio) and Mackinaw (homeport Cheboygan, Michigan) and the Canadian Coast Guard cutters Samuel Risley and Griffon who combined for over 1000 hours of icebreaking efforts, escorting or providing direct assistance to over 110 commercial vessels, providing assistance for ferry operations, conducting vital Homeland Security missions and maintaining the critical waterways throughout the Coal Shovel operations area.  In addition, these U.S. Coast Guard cutters maintained critical waterways in the St Clair and Detroit rivers enabling the safe navigation and overall safe transport of season critical commercial shipments. 

This successful season was also enhanced by daily Ice observations flights conducted by the U.S.Coast Guard Air Station and Group Detroit personnel.  These flights provided essential time critical ice data and pictures displaying the ice formations and tracks to the Regional Operations Center, Sarnia and the underway Coast Guard cutters. 

The efforts of this joint U.S. and Canadian Coast Guard operations was recognized as a highly successful completion by both the U.S. Coast Guard Ninth District Commander, headquartered out of Cleveland, Ohio and the Coast Guard Atlantic Area Commander, headquartered out of Portsmouth, Virginia.

Above: USCGC Mackinaw breaking ice. 

Above Right:  Pelee Island Light in Lake Erie.