The dredge barge Everett Fisher sits aground in the Matagorda Ship Channel near Port Lavaca, Texas, Jan. 21, 2019. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Sector/Air Station Corpus Christi).
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — The Coast Guard lifted the safety zone and reopened the Matagorda Ship Channel to vessel traffic Tuesday evening near Port Lavaca, Texas.
The closure began Monday evening when Coast Guard Sector/Air Station Corpus Christi watchstanders received notification that the dredge barge Everett Fisher began taking on water. Due to the location of the grounded dredge barge, the Coast Guard established a safety zone from mile marker 51 to mile marker 66 to vessel traffic.
The dredge barge was successfully raised and removed from the channel. As a precautionary measure containment boom was put in place throughout the salvage operation and Sector/Air Station Corpus Christi personnel monitored the situation to ensure the vessel was safely removed from the channel.
The cause of the incident is under investigation by Sector/Air Station Corpus Christi.
Involved in the response were:
• Coast Guard Sector/Air Station Corpus Christi
• Coast Guard Station Port O’Connor
• Coast Guard Marine Safety Detachment Victoria
• Texas General Land Office
• T&T Marine Salvage
