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Marine News - cont'd. 4. The Oglebay Norton Company's 630-foot self-unloader EARL W. OGLEBAY, (a) PAUL THAYER (95), ran into trouble whilst trying to enter the harbour at Fairport, Ohio, on the morning of Monday, October 27th. Strong winds and high seas forced the OGLEBAY out of the narrow harbour entrance channel and she grounded on a mucky bottom not far from the east breakwater light. The OGLEBAY reported her predicament at 10: 00 a. m. and the Coast Guard put a Ma­ rine Safety officer aboard. The OGLEBAY was unable to free herself and, du­ ring the following night, she was battered by strong northwesterly winds and waves up to 13 feet in height. The weather improved the following morning and the Great Lakes Towing Company's tugs OHIO and IDAHO worked on the OGLE­ BAY for three hours before finally pulling her free at 11: 20 a. m. on the 28th. The OGLEBAY had a cargo of stone for the LTV dock at Fairport. Another grounding, and one which trapped the vessel involved for a consi­ derably longer period of time, occurred in early October. The hydrofoil KATRAN-4, as noted in our October issue, was brought up from the Virgin Islands to operate here for the Makarchuk (Canamac Cruise) interests. She arrived at Toronto on August 22nd, and by September 2nd was at Sarnia. She stayed there about a month, and then left to return to Toronto, where Transport Canada inspections of the ship were to be completed. However, in darkness on October 7th, KATRAN-4 ran at high speed onto Grassy Island in the Fighting Island Channel of the Detroit River, seriously imbedding her­ self in the mucky bottom. KATRAN-4 proved very difficult to dislodge from the suction of the mud and it was not until October 25th that the efforts of salvagers finally succeeded in refloating the hydrofoil. It is said that the KATRAN-4' s escapade has cost in excess of $200, 000 and that does not even include damages to the ship. As yet, we have heard no explanation of the cause of the accident, although the Canadian Coast Guard was investigating. Speaking of hydrofoils, it is said the Shaker Cruise Lines, the operator of LAKE RUNNER on the Port Dalhousie service, may next year add the previously ill-starred SUNRISE V and SUNRISE VI (formerly SUNRISE II and SUNRISE I, respectively) to its service in 1998. Earlier reports were that Shaker was planning on bringing back one or more of the trio of hydrofoils (QUEEN OF TORONTO, PRINCE OF NIAGARA, PRINCESS OF THE LAKES) that were operated here unsuccessfully two decades ago, but this has proven not to be the plan. Two more Marinette-built U. S. Coast Guard buoy tenders have been handed over by the builders and now have left the lakes. Before leaving, both of them went up into Whitefish Bay as part of their shakedown runs. ABBIE BURGESS, third in the "Keeper Class" of tenders, passed down at Sarnia on October 14th, while KUKUI, third vessel in the "Juniper Class", passed down the St. Clair River on October 17th. KUKUI was heading to Hawaii, where she will be stationed. The BURGESS was launched on April 5, the KUKUI on May 4th. Lake shipping observers had not expected to see the former Socanav-operated tanker A. G. FARQUHARSON, (a) TEXACO CHIEF (II)(87), running in the lakes this year, but she surprised them. The tanker actually is owned by Imperial Oil Limited, which had chartered her to Socanav just as it had the other for­ mer Texaco tanker, LE BRAVE (97), (a) TEXACO BRAVE (II)(87), which Imperial put in service this year as (c) IMPERIAL ST. LAWRENCE (II). The FARQUHARSON is on a one-year bareboat charter to the Groupe Desgagnes, and she has been running with her old Socanav red hull, but with Desgagnes stack colours. A belated report indicates that the former CSX Corp. pusher tug C&O 452 now has new owners. This is the 98. 6-foot, 1957-built tug which was used from 1974 until October 7, 1994, to push the "Chessie" carferry PERE MARQUETTE 10 across the St. Clair River between Port Huron and Sarnia after the 1945-built ferry was cut down from a steamer to a carfloat-barge. Tug and barge had lain idle at Sarnia since 1994 but the tug was acquired earlier this year by a buyer identified as P. H. & S. Towing and was renamed (b) KODIAK. She parti­ cipated in the freeing of CANADIAN NAVIGATOR after her July 11th grounding off St. Clair, Michigan. Continued - Page 14