A third vessel has struck the U.S. 80 railroad bridge across the Mississippi River in Vicksburg, Miss.
The Coast Guard is investigating a Thursday morning allision between AEP River Operations 170'1"x48'x11'5" Robert D. Byrd and the bridge, which had already been hit twice by vessels earlier in the week.
On Tuesday morning, four American Commercial Lines barges carrying coal and grain sank after a towboat pushing 22 barges struck the bridge. On Wednesday afternoon, local television station WLBT reported that a towboat and 25 barges were involved in another allision with the bridge. A pair of barges in that group — owned by American River Transportation — reportedly broke loose and one sank. Two of the barges involved in Wednesday's incident were carrying hazardous material. After an inspection, no damage or pollution was reported.
No barges were reported to have broken free on Thursday, the Coast Guard said, and the river remained open to traffic. The railroad bridge has been closed since the initial incident and will remain closed pending a safety inspection by the Vicksburg Bridge Commission and the State of Mississippi.
The Coast Guard said the agency was evaluating additional navigation safety measures in order to reduce the potential for future marine accidents while the river is running high.
