US Houston Ship Channel closes Friday on sunken tow vessel

HOUSTON (ICIS)–The US Coast Guard (USCG) closed the Houston Ship Channel Friday afternoon after a tow vessel sunk, according to a notice from Moran Shipping.

It is unclear how long the channel will be closed as emergency responders are currently conducting search and rescue efforts, said JJ Plunkett of the Houston Pilots.

The closure is at Light 122, near where the Lynchburg Ferry offers passage from La Porte to Baytown.

Moran Shipping said efforts are underway to minimize pollution from fuel leakage and mitigate impact on channel traffic and that salvage operations could take at least 48 hours.

The following image from VesselFinder.com shows many tankers (orange) and cargo vessels (yellow) in the channel.

Source: VesselFinder.com

Light 122 is on the right side of the image near the entrance to the channel.