Politics & Government

Morro Bay Returning Home To New London

Cutter spent winter breaking ice in Great Lakes

Another sign of spring is upon us: the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Morro Bay is returning to her home port of New London after spending the winter breaking ice on the Great Lakes.

The cutter departed Cleveland, Ohio this weekend, according to a press release on Coast Guard News. The 140-foot icebreaker was temporarily assigned to the Ninth Coast Guard District to assist in Operation Coal Shovel, which cleared shipping lanes in the southern portion of Lake Huron, the St. Clair and Detroit River systems,  Lakes Erie and Ontario, and the St. Lawrence Seaway. The operation ended on Thursday, though Operation Taconite on shipping lanes in the northern part of the Great Lakes is continuing.

Rear Admiral Michael Parks, commander of the Ninth Coast Guard District,  thanked the crew for their support in Operation Coal Shovel. Morro Bay arrived on Dec. 10, 2010 and spent over 800 hours in icebreaking operations, assisting 81 commercial vessels along the way. The mission took a turn for the dramatic when the Morro Bay who had become marooned on an ice floe during a birthday outing. The cutter traversed all five Great Lakes and covered about 2,468 nautical miles during the deployment.

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According to the vessel's Facebook page, it was last moored in Montreal.


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