On Sunday, June 8th, 2025, the bulk carrier M/V Honorable James L. Oberstar suffered damage after grounding near Johnson’s Point east of Neebish Island on the St. Marys River.
Personnel aboard the Hon. James L. Oberstar notified the Coast Guard at 3:50 p.m. of vibrations while underway.
At the time of the incident, the vessel was carrying a cargo of limestone. No injuries were reported on board the ship.
U.S. Coast Guard Sector Northern Great Lakes dispatched a boat crew from Station Sault Sainte Marie and a marine investigation was initiated.
Following the incident, Hon. James L. Oberstar anchored in the Hay Lake (Lake Nicolet), Michigan portion of the St. Marys River.
M/V Honorable James L. Oberstar is an 806-foot bulk cargo ship owned by Interlake Steamship Company. On June 9, Interlake Steamship Company released a Facebook post with details of the incident:
“At approximately 3:50 p.m. on Sunday, June 8, the M/V Hon. James L. Oberstar grounded while making the turn at Johnson’s Point on the St. Marys River. The vessel is loaded with approximately 29,700 net tons of stone bound for Marquette, Michigan. The vessel went to anchor at Hay Lake to assess damage and any pollution concerns. The third-party OSRO was notified as well as the United States Coast Guard.
No injuries have been reported, and Interlake’s incident response team is working diligently with authorities. More information will be shared as it becomes available”.
Hay Lake Marine Casualty Unified Command
On Tuesday June 10, 2025, the (UC) was established to continue the response to the marine casualty of the bulk carrier.
The UC consisted of the U.S. Coast Guard, the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE), Chippewa County, and Interlake Steamship Company.
Multiple federal, state, local, and partner organizations also assisted in the response. Representatives from the Northern Michigan Area Committee including the Army Corps of Engineers, the Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians, the Bay Mills Tribe, and the City of Sault Ste Marie Ontario assisted the UC throughout the response.
Operational priorities of the UC include ensuring the safety of the public and responders, protecting wildlife and the environment, ensuring economic activities in the area are minimally affected, and the safe transit of the vessel.
The vessel has a total maximum capacity 108,000 gallons of fuel and other product. There were no reports of pollution in the water or surrounding area, according to UC announcements.
In order to increase the draft of the vessel and allow divers to complete assessments of damage to its hull, crewmembers of the M/V Hon. James L. Oberstar transferred 4,500 net tons of limestone to the M/V Kaye E. Barker.
Personnel also completed a transfer of fuel and oily water to temporary storage aboard an adjacent barge. Marine pollution mitigation teams were on-scene throughout the transfer and ready to respond to any signs of a discharge of the remaining maximum capacity of 92,000 gallons of fuel and other product contained in the vessel.
Hay Lake Marine Casualty responders prepare the M/V Honorable James Oberstar for safe transit and watch for any signs of pollution discharges in the vicinity of and downriver from Hay Lake Anchorage, June 12, 2025.
On-water and aerial surveys of the area around and downriver from the anchorage reported no signs of discharges from the vessel.
While work was completed, 600ft of containment boom and approximately 400ft of sorbent boom were strategically arranged around the stern of the vessel.
Following work, the UC reviewed the assessments in order to determine a prudent course of action to facilitate the safe transit of the vessel to Fraser Shipyards in Superior, Wisc.
On June 18, M/V Honorable James L. Oberstar arrived at Fraser Shipyards in Superior, Wisconsin after completing a 28-hour transit from Sault Sainte Marie, Michigan.
The UC was stood down after successful operations allowed the motor vessel to transit to its destination.
Bilateral coordination between Canadian and U.S. representatives triggered international agreement to facilitate a joint response, as outlined in the Canada-United States Joint Marine Pollution Contingency Plan (JCP and its Great Lakes Annex (CANUSLAK).
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