Barges stranded as Mississippi River water levels reach critical low

[cbabe]

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/oct/14/mississippi-river-boats-barges-water-levels

Barges stranded as Mississippi River water levels reach critical low

Major shipping delays and backlog of vessels after region experiences lack of rainfall in recent weeks

Maya Yang
Fri 14 Oct 2022 12.21 EDT

The water in the Mississippi River has dropped so low that barges are getting stuck, leading to expensive dredging and at least one recent traffic jam of more than 2,000 vessels backed up.

The Mississippi River Basin produces nearly all – 92% – of US agricultural exports, and 78% of the global exports of feed grains and soybeans. The recent drought has dropped water levels to alarmingly low levels that are causing shipping delays, and seeing the costs of alternative transport, such as rail, rise.

In Vicksburg, western Mississippi, residents have seen less than an inch of rain since the start of September.

The mayor, George Flaggs, told WAPT-TV that the river is lower than he has seen it in nearly 70 years.

“It’s definitely having an impact on the local economy because the commercial use of this river has almost stopped,” Flaggs said.

Last Friday, the US Coast Guard said that there was a backup of more than 2,000 barges at various points, Bloomberg reported. The halted barges were carrying recently harvested corn and soybeans.

…more…

[GreenWave]

1. Wow! No longer the mighty Missy sip!

Sad times.

[PortTack]

2. Oh dear...that's not good at all. So many ppl depend on the river

[crickets]

3. Not good. K&R for visibility.