At least five harbors have closed
Low water levels that are restricting shipping traffic, forcing harbor closures 
and causing barges to run aground on the economically vital Mississippi River are expected to continue into October, officials with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said Tuesday.
Meanwhile, more than 100 towboats and barges remain backed up near Greenville, Miss., because of the low river.
The U.S. Coast Guard opened an 11-mile stretch of river that had been closed near Greenville, replacing it with a 5-mile zone where only lighter vessels can pass.
Speaking at a meeting of corps officials, water control managers and businesspeople in Memphis, Maj. Gen. John Peabody said that five harbors – in Tennessee, Missouri, Arkansas and Mississippi – are closed and that several others have limited access because of low water levels.
Peabody, commander of the corps’ Mississippi Valley Division, said the corps plans to dredge those harbors as soon as it can to allow towboats and barges to enter and get close enough to docks to unload their materials.
Farms and other businesses rely on materials such as grain, feed and fuel that usually arrive by barge to smaller harbors.
The corps continues to dredge the river’s navigation channel, making it deep enough to allow barges to pass safely.
Peabody said he receives reports daily of vessels running aground.
He also said that river levels will likely remain low into October, which is typically when they are the lowest.
“The worst is ahead of us,” Pea
Source: AP
