The Roger Blough being towed downriver to a scrapyard after an engine fire. Keystone Shipping Co., based outside Philadelphia, operates the vessel. Local news agencies reported early on that damages were in excess of $20 million, although this claim is said to be inaccurate by Key Lakes officials. He spent much of his free time in a large Victorian Home in Hawley, PA that had been passed down through his wife's family. The Roger Blough was constructed over the course of three years for the United States Steel Corporations Marine Division. Once the scrappers finish, LeLievre presumes the metal will be sent to the nearby Algoma Steel mill in Sault Ste. A frequent visitor to the Twin Ports, the Roger Blough is a de facto resident of the port of Duluth-Superior, given its inclusion in the Great Lakes Fleet of ore boats, a nine-vessel roster operated by Key Lakes Inc., of Duluth, and owned Canadian National Railway. She was renamed for the Mississagi Strait in northern Lake Huron after being sold in 2001 to Lower Lakes Towing of Port Dover, Ont. Marine Historical Society of Detroit, 1996. Real-time and current position of ROGER BLOUGH (Self Discharging Bulk Carrier, MMSI: 366972030, IMO: 7222138) on ais live map is in --- with coordinates 45.95564 / -83.89415 and speed 12.2 knots as reported on 2020-07-05 21:17 by AIS live data. Posted Monday, February 27th, 2023 8:26am, Posted Monday, February 27th, 2023 8:23am, Posted Monday, February 27th, 2023 7:28am, Posted Friday, February 24th, 2023 1:51pm. The ship is owned by Great Lakes Fleet, Inc. and is named for the former chairman of U.S. Steel, Roger Blough. 497 subscribers Subscribe 75 Share 2.1K views 1 month ago Not my pics No idea when the tow will be, or if shes really going to be. [8], In 1969, at the age of 65, Blough retired from U.S. Steel. Vessel ROGER BLOUGH is a cargo ship sailing under the flag of United States of America . Tunnels were added in her stern to improve water flow. The smoke-filled air on board the vessel cleared enough for officials and investigators to walk through by lunchtime Monday, some 11 hours after the shipyard first reported the fire at 1:38 a.m. Led U.S. Steel for 13 Years", "ROGER M. BLOUGH, 81, DIES; LED U.S. STEEL FOR 13 YEARS", The Business Council, Official website, Background, "The Charlotte Observer 20 Aug 1972, page 65", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Roger_Blough&oldid=1138823900, Articles with unsourced statements from August 2014, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 11 February 2023, at 20:57. Originally set to be launched in 1971, an engine room fire killed four people and damaged the ship before it could even take its trial runs. Due to their longevity and frequent sightings over the years, such classic lakers like the Mississagi tend to develop a following despite their relatively unremarkable task of carrying bulk cargos like salt, sand, ore, limestone around the lakes. She serves as a lake freighter on the Great Lakes. Roger Blough damaged in Wisconsin fire New Soo Lock gets $480M in president's 2022 budget Wreck of the Contest re-emerges from Lake Michigan Deep in Lake Michigan, divers find ship lost in 1899. Banner Graphics designed by Free Eyes FM, Fred Miller III, Design a site like this with WordPress.com. The fire burned for nearly 12 hours, causing serious damage to the ships cargo conveyor belt and aft spaces above and below deck. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. Initial Notification: On February 1, 2021, the USCG notified the NOAA SSC of an 833-foot laid-up vessel on fire in a marina. No one was injured. The stern accomodations and engineering block had to be repaired and refinished, and her engines replaced, a task that added $13 Million to the project. Dietman wouldnt speculate on when the Blough would sail again. The bulk carrier was docked at . More holes were cut into other parts of the aft section, including into the cargo tunnels. Roger Blough. The fire completely destroyed the engine room, and ended up killing four yard workers who were checking a tank below the engine room. The lack of regulations or classification standards related to diesel oil-fired air heating furnace construction, installation, safety shutdowns, and system alarms poses a risk to life and property if the equipment is not installed and maintained to standards similar to those in place for other oil-fired equipment.. All Rights Reserved. Firefighting teams responded, understood fire was extinguished, but extent of damages remains unknown. [5], As a consequence of this inflation, Blough told the White House in April 1962 that it was the intent of the U.S. steel industry to raise a basket of steel prices by a scale averaging $6.00/ton. 1972 Roger Blough. Marie, Ont. The cargo-unloading conveyor belts then ignited, causing extensive damage throughout the aft section of the vessel. Roger Blough, named for a former chairman of U.S. Steel, is part of Canadian National Railways Great Lakes fleet based in Duluth, Minn. Vessel Utilization. Vessels owned by Lafarge Holcim, operated by Andrie, Inc. Welcome the digital homeport of Shipwatcher News Great Lakes Ships, a resource loaded with tons of information on Great Lakes ships both past and present. You cant be rushing in. We determined that the probable cause of the engine room fire aboard the bulk carrier Roger Blough was likely the repeated removal and reinstallation of the furnace's burner that led to the failure of its mounting coupling, resulting in the operating burner dropping to the bottom of its enclosure and fracturing its fuel supply line, which allowed The Roger Blough has been involved in several significant incidents in its history. ROGER BLOUGH is something of an iconic laker, being popular . Freeing the Blough consisted of two days worth of lightering into her fleetmates Arthur M. Anderson and Philip R. Clarke. [4] He served as Chairman of The Business Council in 1961 and 1962. The ship is. The same name may apply to four or even five different ships. The bow section was not built to the full designed width of 105 initially, as the graving dock at AmShips Lorain yard was not wide enough. In 1988, majority stock in USS Great Lakes Fleet was acquired by Blackstone Capital Partners. The shipkeeper was not on the list, and he only woke up seven minutes later when the fire alarm in his cabin went off. She was able to run the remainder of the season on one engine, with the blown one being replaced while she was in winter layup at the Duluth Port Terminal. MV Roger Blough is a ship built in 1972 by American Ship Building Company in Lorain, Ohio. Northern Waters Smokehaus plans move to former Amazing Grace Cafe. The Blough was the final U.S. laker to be constructed in the traditional style, with the pilothouse and cabins forward and the engine room aft. Stop the. Published The shipkeeper on board departed the vessel without injury. We see that you have javascript disabled. Built in 1972, the MV Roger Blough is a 858-foot Great Lakes freighter that has had a history of near misses and tragedy. Steel.'" [5], The Roger Blough assisted in the search for SSEdmund Fitzgerald. Are forward accommodations rising back to the top of ship design trends? Roger Blough on the way to the scrapyard 1 / 4 Roger Blough last trip though the Straits of Mackinac 35 8 8 comments Add a Comment big-rigging-hours 2 mo. All U. S. ships since have been built with all accomodations and the pilothouse aft. The fleets ships remained under U.S. ownership. Whenever there is a serious fire aboard a vessel, there is always a long . [7], Blough stubbornly resisted Kennedy administration efforts to enlist Alabama businesses to support desegregation of the University of Alabama, which race-baiting Gov. Listed below is the current fleet of Great Lakes ships. [6], She was stuck in the ice in Lake Erie near Conneaut, Ohio for eight days in February 1979[7] and then was laid up from 1981 to 1987 due to the economy and the capacity of the newer 1,000 feet (300m) lake freighters. [citation needed] The NTSB report puts the amount of damage at more than $100 million. Pp. Historical stocks and bonds, Autographs, Americana, Ephemera, Numismatics and all forms of paper collectibles specializing in Uncancelled bonds The Roger Blough burned for several hours early Monday, requiring a massive suppression effort at the Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, shipyard where it had been wintering. List of people on the cover of Time magazine (1950s), "Edwin H. Gott, 78, Is Dead; U.S. Steel's Retired Chairman", "Roger M. Blough, 81, Dies. The Roger Blough fire is the second major incident involving a laid-up laker in two years. The boat tracking websiteMarineTraffic does not show the final destination for the Roger Blough. Salvage crews recover submerged tugboat in Juneau, AWO honors heroism of tug and towboat crews with new award, Coast Guard Foundation launches new logo, brand, Marine Highway Program offering $12 million in grants, St. Johns Bar Pilots order new launch from Gladding-Hearn. A public-private research team has located an exceptional and rare find on the bottom of Lake Huron: the wreck of a 190-foot sailing vessel with all three of its original masts still upright and standing. The Mississagi nearly collided with a Port Huron seawall in 2004. The National Transportation Safety Board has issued new recommendations for safe layup for ships on the Great Lakes, based on findings from the fire aboard the bulker Roger Blough last year. Cook County Community Center log 4H building, Mitch Koslow told the Minnesota Star Tribune, whose Facebook page is a go-to spot for Great Lakes freighter enthusiasts. Lightering operations have been planned for the Great Lakes freighter hard aground on a reef in Lake Superior, but it's likely to be several more days before the vessel can be freed. This caused extensive damage to the ship, on the order of $100 million. She survived a 2015 fire after welding sparks ignited while docked in Hamilton, Ont. LeLievre said the Mississagi carried her last cargo, wheat, through the Soo Locks in January and laid up in Hamilton, Ontario for the winter before traveling to Sarnia in April, where she was stripped for parts and equiptment. At the time of the incident, the Roger Blough was in winter lay-up at . The vessel, identified as the 19th-century schooner barge Ironton, was found within the boundaries of the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary in 2019, and its discovery was first announced on Wednesday. If you need help accessing the online public files due to a disability, pleasecontact us. The Roger Blough burned for several hours early Monday, requiring a massive suppression effort at the Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, shipyard where it had been wintering. The building, named after Blough's wife, was dedicated on October 30, 1966. Key Lakes did not respond to inquiries about what it might have planned for the ship. From $26.95 11oz Mug Stewart J. Cort Great Lakes Freighters -3127. [10] At 5:45 AM on June 3, the Roger Blough began offloading some of its taconite cargo to the SS Philip R. Clarke to lift the ship off the reef. She suffered extensive damage to her aft accommodations, unloading equipment, and engine room. The ship, operated by Keystone Shipping, was docked at Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding for winter. N.d. Accessed 17 April 2020. He estimated total damage to the ship at more than $20 million. The burner assembly's mounting coupling broke, and the burner dropped and fractured its own fuel line, igniting a fire. [13], MVRoger Blough, an iron ore bulk carrier vessel built for U.S. Steel in 1968-72 and used starting in 1972 in Great Lakes service to transport taconite pellets from Lake Superior to ports on Lake Erie and Lake Michigan, was named in his honor. She was christened the George A. Sloan and carried iron ore and other cargos for U.S. Steel fleets under that name until 2001, according to a Boatnerd.com history. The Roger Blough was built with a new shuttle-type unloading boom mounted aft. All rights reserved (About Us). San Diego, CA 92110. Firefighters tried other ways to get into the ship, including through a cargo tunnel, but they were turned back. Firefighters arrived within four minutes but struggled to access the vessel due to smoke and intense heat. [12] Lightering operations were completed at Waiska Bay on June 7, 2016 with the SS Philip R. Clarke and the SSArthur M. Anderson receiving the remainder of the taconite cargo. Crews were going to make entry (from) the main deck, and when they got to the aft end and opened a starboard door, they were met with heavy, thick black smoke from ceiling to floor, Dietman said. Roger Blough transiting down St. Mary's River. The couple had two daughters, Jane French and Judith B. Wentz , and six grandchildren. Saguenay, formerly Federal Trader, Lake Superior . The Rand Logistics fleet is operated in three separate entities, American Steamship Co., Grand River Navigation, and Lower Lakes Towing. Following college he was basketball coach and math teacher. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. And at that point we knew we had a belt fire, Dietman said, referring to the thick rubber conveyor belt. Vessels operated by NovaAlgoma Cement Carriers, Vessel owned by G3 Canada, managed by Algoma Central Corporation. Ships of the Great Lakes | Unofficial!. He was 81. The Roger Blough became the flagship of U. S. Steels Great Lakes Fleet upon entering service. Due to the economic downturn of 1981, the Blough was laid up at Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin from September 2, 1981 to September 27, 1987. Launched amid World War II, the 620-foot ship would have been eligible to collect social security checks about 15 years ago were it a person. Read more The Roger Blough fire is the second major incident involving a laid-up laker in two years. 1.2.1 1000-footers; 1.2.2 Integrated tug-barges; 1.3 Museum ships; . The total damage was $4.5 million. Posted About Four Months Ago Mega container ship mass containers loss, North Pacific UPDATE confirmed MSC. Sign up for our Daily Electronic Newspaper! Ahoy & Farewell II. Investigators said there was about $20 million in damage. Crews used a cutting torch to open holes above the ships 01 deck, allowing hose teams to spray water inside. The Blough remained on her usual trade routes, with the only change being the addition of a black and grey diagonal stripe to either side of her bow. 324 N 1st Ave, Sturgeon Bay, WI 54235, USA 2021-Feb-01. Roger Bloughs ship keeper was asleep in his room at the time but escaped without injury, Sturgeon Bay Fire Chief Tim Dietman said. The U.S.-flagged ship typically carries taconite, a sedimentary rock containing iron. The ship was among just a few launched before 1950 still plying the lakes. Stern section: keel laid Dec 29, 1969 in dry dock; bow section joined with stern section July 25, 1970 and vessel completed in dry dock. And even though the local firefighters have trained on the Wilfred Sykes and the Joseph L. Block while those vessels have been in port, it didnt necessarily transfer to knowledge of the Blough, which, like many vessels, is a one of a kind. Local fire stations on scene and attempting to control the fire from other vessels. ROGER BLOUGH is something of an iconic laker, being popular among ships . Her delivery was delayed when a major fire broke out in her engine room in June 1971 . Responders on May 30, 2016, place a protective boom around the stern of the freighter Roger Blough, which ran aground May 27, near Gros Cap Reefs Light in eastern Lake Superior. The shipbuilding company said it was awaiting the results of the investigations. Mar 1, 2023 9:01 PM by Vessel ROGER BLOUGH is a Bulk Carrier, Registered in USA. Mar 1, 2023 8:15 PM by Responders cut Roger Blough loose from the two surrounding ships in case the situation escalated. Discover the vessel's particulars, including capacity, machinery, photos and ownership. It was supposed to start carrying cargo a year. on Friday, Oct. 8 and arrived at the Purvis Marine Scrapyard in Sault Ste. Tin Stackers: The History of the Pittsburgh Steamship Company. Title: Microsoft Word - ^N63 Freighters May-June 2022 Author: brend Created Date: 7/6/2022 11:29:10 AM [12], In December of 1965, Blough purchased a plot of land in town of Hawley and gifted the funds needed to create a new building for the Hawley Public Library. The World Trade Organization's research arm has confirmed the trend that container lines and shippers have been seeing on major trade lanes since the end of last year: the growth in world merchandise trade slowed in the fourth quarter, and the trend appears to be sticking for now - but there are some early signs of a possible turnaround. Ironton was a 1,250 dwt "consort" barge built in 1873. Sea trials and delivery were delayed by a year to June 1972. The Maritime Executive, Published [citation needed], When Time magazine featured Blough in July 1959, they drew attention to the challenges facing the steel industry in the late 1950s, including inflation and competition from non-U.S. steel exporters. The Roger Blough is another biggie. Rumors heard that the price to repair the ship was more then what it was worth due to its bad fires it had onboard. Once the fire started, a central alarm system went off and automatically notified a list of company contacts. 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