Barges Scattered, No Damage In Bridge Hit

The U.S. Coast Guard is investigating after a towing vessel with 15 barges of coal hit an Ohio River bridge in northern Kentucky, west of Cincinnati.

No damage was done when the tow of the mv. Washington, a Tennessee Valley Towing vessel, hit the Carroll Lee Cropper Bridge on Tuesday, said Lt. Jim Brendel, supervisor of the U.S. Coast Guard’s Marine Safety Detachment Cincinnati. The bridge connects Kentucky and Indiana near Petersburg, Ky.

No one was injured, there were no spills into the river, and the bridge remained open after a Kentucky Transportation Cabinet safety inspection, Brendel said. The river was also never closed.

The barges broke free, but other tow vessels in the area were able to collect them. Several were still rafted together, Brendel said.

“The towing vessels that were in the area were able to quickly help,” Brendel said.

The allision took place at 3:25 a.m. The mv. Washington was northbound at the time, Brendel said.

He noted that although the river was higher than is typical, it was not unexpectedly high for this time of year.