Buffalo, New York (AP) The Coast Guard, which arrived Thursday with icebreaking equipment to start freeing the ship, said a Canadian freighter carrying 17 passengers became stranded in the ice on Lake Erie while departing Buffalo.
On Wednesday, the 663-foot Manitoulin was returning to Sarnia, Ontario, after dropping off a supply of wheat, when it got caught in ice that was quickly forming off the Buffalo shore in below-freezing weather. It stayed there until Thursday, forming a dramatic scene on the lake, encircled by snow and ice on all sides.
We simply haven’t experienced a harsh winter in a long time. People are wondering what’s going on now that we’ve had one and they haven’t seen this in a while. said Paul Angelillo, a Buffalo-based Coast Guard search and rescue specialist.
In the winter, Great Lakes freighters can usually move through surface ice, but sometimes they run into ice that’s too thick or hard to cut through, he added.
According to the Coast Guard, the skipper and crew of the Manitoulin were unharmed.