The following is the text of a news release from the U.S. Coast Guard:
(NEW YORK) — The Coast Guard assisted two vessels beset by ice in the Hudson River on Tuesday morning.
Watch standers at Sector New York command center were notified Sunday that a commercial tug, Brooklyn, had become beset in ice, and a second tug, Stephanie Dann, became hampered by ice Monday.
Coast Guard cutter Penobscot Bay, a 140-foot icebreaking tug, arrived on scene Sunday evening to help free Brooklyn near Saugerties, N.Y. Brooklyn became stuck after becoming disabled en route to Albany. After the tug was freed, Coast Guard cutter Hawser, a 65-foot harbor tug, escorted Brooklyn to its destination.
Penobscot Bay also assisted with the tug Stephanie Dann near Kingston, N.Y., on Tuesday morning. After the tug had been beset by ice for a full night, the icebreaker was able to clear an area for the tug to continue its transit.
Coast Guard icebreaking tugs from Bayonne, N.J., and Saugerties, N.Y., are positioned along the river and are assisting vessels transiting areas where thick ice is present.
Currently, another 140-foot icebreaking tug, Coast Guard cutter Sturgeon Bay, is being utilized farther south in the Hudson River to ensure commercial traffic can successfully and safely sail to their destinations.
The icebreaking is part of the Coast Guard’s regionwide effort know as Operation Reliable Energy for Northeast Winters, or Operation RENEW. The Coast Guard’s strategy will ensure Northeast communities have the security, supplies, energy, and emergency resources they need throughout the winter.
