FAIRPORT HARBOR, OH – Morton Salt has ceased operations at its mine in Fairport Harbor to assess the inflow of water and determine next steps. The mine, according to Morton’s, is used primarily for salt needed for roads in the winter. The salt is often shipped to customers via Great Lakes vessels. The decision was made following an Oct. 22 discovery of a significant inflow of water in the mine, leading to an immediate evacuation of all miners. The company said all employees were evacuated safely and no injuries were reported. Morton Salt said it notified the appropriate regulatory authorities of the intrusion, according to the release.

Frontenac loading at Morton Salt. [Bill Kloss]

The Fairport Harbor mine is a source for rock salt, according to the Morton Salt website. The salt from its underground mines is mainly used for road salt needed during the winter season. The Morton Salt Group is one of the largest salt companies in the world, with an annual production capacity of approximately 30 million tons.

Ideastream Public Media

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WHITEFISH POINT, MI. – A documentary film chronicling a 411-mile memorial swim to honor the 29 crew members who died aboard the Edmund Fitzgerald will be released Nov. 10 in theaters and via streaming. The Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society and Big Fin Pictures announced the release of “We Finished Their Journey: the story of the Edmund Fitzgerald Memorial Swim,” which documents a relay swim completed in 2025 to mark the 50th anniversary of the ship’s sinking.

The swim began July 26, 2025, directly over the Edmund Fitzgerald wreck site in Lake Superior after the Canadian Ministry granted permits for a ceremony honoring the lost crew. Seventy swimmers completed 17 stages to symbolically finish the ship’s final journey, reaching Detroit to mark the final stop for the iron ore load the vessel never delivered.

The month-long swim relay presented challenges including storms, lightning, injuries, blood clots, boat problems and personality conflicts, according to the information released about the film.

“This film tells the story of a remarkable journey, completed by good people for all the right reasons,” said event director Jim “the Shark” Dreyer, who is known for his many long-distance and Great Lakes swims. “These athletes pushed their personal limits to write a new chapter in the legacy of the Edmund Fitzgerald that memorializes the 29-crew members who perished.”

Executive producer and director Corey Adkins described the production as complex, noting the film captures more than 20 different stories from dozens of participants.

Proceeds from the swim supported maintenance of the light tower at Whitefish Point, home to the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum where the Edmund Fitzgerald’s bell is displayed. Bruce Lynn, executive director of the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society, said the organization was honored to receive the fundraiser proceeds.

Read more here.

The Edmund Fitzgerald’s bell.

HALIFAX, NS – Visible flames in the dust management system about 135 feet above ground at the Halifax Grain Elevator greeted firefighters who arrived on scene to a fire reported at 7:15 p.m. Oct. 26. The Halifax Regional Fire and Emergency Service said 56 firefighters and 20 trucks were on scene at the Port of Halifax to support the fire suppression effort during the night. Crews worked to contain the fire and protect a ship docked at the facility “while navigating the challenges presented by the industrial infrastructure and elevated firefighting operations.”

The fire was brought under control at 10:40 p.m., according to officials. No injuries were reported.

The municipality said the fire was contained to the south conveyor system’s dust handling equipment and associated hopper infrastructure. Coordinated efforts between fire service crews and facility representatives prevented the fire from spreading to surrounding structures. Following firefighting operations, the scene was secured, and the origin and cause of the fire were under investigation.

A key grain handling site for Atlantic Canada, the facility is operated by Halifax Grain Elevator Ltd. under a lease from the Halifax Port Authority (HPA). It receives and ships specialty crops and grain (wheat, soybeans and barley) by truck, rail and vessel. The site includes storage capacity of 5.15 million bushels (140,215 tonnes), according to the HPA.

Scene at Halifax grain elevator fire.

World Grain

MUNISING, MI – The beacon that guided ships through dangerous waters for a century, called in volunteers from across the country to help restore its foundation this fall. The East Channel Lighthouse near Grand Island’s eastern passage is one of the few surviving historic schoolhouse-style lighthouses in the Great Lakes region. After weathering Lake Superior storms for 158 years it was in major need of some TLC.

In 2021, the Hiawatha National Forest staff recognized both the cultural and economic importance of the forest’s six lighthouses and applied for Great American Outdoors Act funding to restore and restabilize these historic icons. This September, volunteers from six states, including both Michigan peninsulas, joined the three-week restoration project in the U.P. The volunteers came with a range of experience. Among them was a mason, several carpenters, two historic architects, architectural historians, and a retired architect. “Others joined with a learning spirit,” the U.S. Forest Service said in a press release. Together, they camped on the mainland and traveled by boat each day to the lighthouse.

At the worksite, volunteers underwent the process of “painstakingly hammering and chiseling Portland cement from between each sandstone foundation blocks.”

The lighthouse’s wooden structure was built in 1868 with locally acquired sandstone and timber. In a nontraditional move, Portland cement was used as a binding agent instead of mortar. “This cement causes the sandstone to crack and spall when exposed to the stresses caused by annual freeze and thaw cycles. Between the cement and extreme environmental conditions, the foundation of the lighthouse had become degraded and unstable,” according to the U.S. Forest Service.

After chiseling out the old Portland cement, volunteers repointed the sandstone with a historically appropriate mortar. The new mortar recipe was chosen to match the color of the sandstone and allow the foundation of the building to remain weathertight through the seasons, according to the U.S. Forest Service.

“After three weeks of work, fueled by good music, great views, new friends and plenty of coffee, the foundation was finally completed. Between clean-up and handshakes, volunteers reflected on the hours spent staring at sandstone rocks and Lake Superior, and the dedication to a project that required them to stand all the way up and stretch,” the Forest Service wrote.

Phase two of the project is planned for next year and will focus on repairing the lighthouse roof, soffits and facia.

The Forest Service is working with the restoration nonprofit HistoriCorps to mobilize volunteers for these lighthouse projects. The nonprofit previously assisted numerous historic preservation projects on the Hiawatha, including the Point Iroquois Lighthouse stabilization project that concluded in 2023.

Find more details about this project and upcoming volunteer opportunities at historicorps.org.

East Channel Light.

Victory 1 at Cleveland in 2020. [Roger LeLievre]

The cruise season, which ran from April through October, brought more than 9,500 passengers to Northeast Ohio, according to the Port of Cleveland. Visitors were able to explore a range of attractions across the region, including the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, West Side Market and Ohio’s Amish Country.

Great Lakes cruising also brings an economic benefit to Northeast Ohio. Each passenger is estimated to spend about $100 to $130 during a visit, generating an estimated $1.2 million in economic impact this season.

“The continued growth of Great Lakes cruising is an exciting opportunity for Cleveland and Northeast Ohio,” said David Gutheil, chief operating officer of the Port of Cleveland. “Setting a new record for vessel calls for the second consecutive year speaks to the appeal of our region and the importance of maintaining the infrastructure and services needed to welcome visitors to our waterfront,”

The Port of Cleveland began welcoming cruise ships to its docks in 2017. Since then, investments in port infrastructure — including a dedicated U.S. Customs facility — have strengthened its ability to accommodate passenger vessels and support the growth of Great Lakes cruising, port officials said.

WKYC-TV

Saltwater vessel BBC St. Petersburg at Duluth. [Duluth Cargo Connect]

DULUTH, MN – Duluth Cargo Connect was named 2026 Port/Terminal Operator of the Year at the Heavy Lift Awards in London, earning the global honor for the second time in seven years. Presented by Heavy Lift & Project Forwarding International, the award recognizes port authorities and terminal operators for proactive investment and initiatives that advance the handling of heavy-lift and project cargo.

Duluth Cargo Connect, a working partnership of the Duluth Seaway Port Authority and Lake Superior Warehousing, was selected by an international judging panel of project cargo shippers, freight forwarders, ocean carriers and industry analysts from a shortlist that also included operators in the Netherlands and Italy.

Duluth’s entry detailed a $19.4 million pier redevelopment that turned an out-of-service, century-old grain terminal property into an expansion of the Clure Public Marine Terminal for heavy-lift and project cargo. Completed in 2025, the most recent work included a $10.5 million reconstruction of Berths 10 and 11, which added 1,200 lineal feet of steel dock wall, new bollard and reinforced concrete decking.

The rebuilt berths entered service in April, when the tug Meredith Ashton and a 240-foot deck barge carrying project cargo became the first vessel in decades to dock at Berth 10.

Duluth Cargo Connect also invested $2 million in nine new forklifts, including a 70-ton capacity unit, and $750,000 in U.S. Customs and Border Protection inspection infrastructure to speed container and cargo clearance. Warehousing capacity expanded to more than 800,000 square feet with new construction and addition of facilities.

“This award recognizes more than one project or one season,” said Kevin Beardsley, executive director of the Duluth Seaway Port Authority. “It reflects decades of commitment from past Port Authority leadership, our state and federal partners and the team at Lake Superior Warehousing, all of whom helped turn an abandoned pier into productive, modern infrastructure built to serve our breakbulk, heavy-lift and project cargo customers. Earning this honor a second time reflects how that commitment is paying dividends.”

The site’s transformation spanned more than 30 years. A grain terminal constructed on the pier in 1907 closed in the 1980s, and the Port Authority demolished it in 1997. Reconstruction of the cleared site began in 2015, supported by a $10 million U.S. Department of Transportation TIGER grant, and the property was renamed the Clure Terminal Expansion pier in 2016 after completion of a truck- and rail-served roll-on/roll-off dock. The latest berth work was supported by the U.S. Maritime Administration and the Minnesota Legislature.

The 26-acre pier now provides four heavy-lift-capable berths. Together with the adjacent Clure Terminal, Duluth Cargo Connect offers six heavy-lift berths, 300-ton mobile cranes, twin rail-mounted gantry cranes with 120-ton tandem-lift capability and more than 40 acres of secured outdoor laydown space. That capacity supported wind energy cargo records in 2019 and 2020.

The terminal’s inland connections carry that capacity well beyond the docks. On-dock rail is served directly by four Class I railroads: BNSF, CN, CPKC and Union Pacific. Duluth is a two-time winner of the Railway Industrial Clearance Association’s Port of the Year Award, a recognition determined by the shippers, carriers and clearance specialists who move dimensional cargo by rail. Landside assets also include purpose-built first- and last-mile connections linking the terminal directly to Interstate 35 and U.S. Highway 53, including routes for permitted overweight and dimensional loads.

Much of the work surrounding a project cargo move can take place on site. CBP inspection is available at the terminal, which operates within Foreign Trade Zone No. 51, and Duluth Cargo Connect provides tailor-made services ranging from custom crating and component separation to inventory management, ship parceling and trucking coordination.

“For heavy-lift and project cargo customers, the big lift is just a fraction of the job,” said Jonathan Lamb, president of Duluth Cargo Connect. “At our facility, the Seaway connection, the rail, the highway, customs and our people are all right there. That means personalized service from a high-quality workforce, custom solutions, fewer handoffs and a more direct path inland from North America’s farthest-inland seaport.”

Duluth Cargo Connect first earned Port/Terminal Operator of the Year honors in 2019 in Antwerp, Belgium. Judges at the time cited its safe and efficient handling of oversized cargo, investment in new equipment and facilities, maintenance of existing infrastructure and commitment to minimizing customer wait times.

Business North

The Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society will host an Edmund Fitzgerald memorial ceremony on Tuesday, Nov.10, at 7pm. This event will be a private memorial for surviving Fitzgerald family members and individuals connected to the ship and its crew. This memorial service will be livestreamed, so please watch this website and our social media for the (livestream) link. There will not be a daytime event in 2026. Please visit www.shipwreckmuseum.com for more information.

Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society

Saltwater tanker transits the St. Lawrence Seaway. [Photo SLSMC]

Latest figures released by St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corp. showed dry bulk shipments were the biggest mover on the seaway, up 20.26 per cent. Dry bulk consists of commodities such as stone/gravel, sand, salt, cement, potash and gypsum.

Snider Dock Services, which operates as Port Colborne Marine Terminal Inc., on the east side of the Welland Canal, handles bulk goods including road salt and synthetic gypsum. It has received several shipments of both commodities this year.

General cargo, which includes iron, steel slabs, machinery and wind turbines, has fallen 10.8 per cent, followed by coal, down 6.47 per cent. Liquid bulk shipments, which include gasoline, diesel, kerosene, jet fuel, ethanol and biodiesel, decreased four per cent compared to the same time last year. Iron ore fell 3.4 per cent, and grain, the top commodity shipped on the seaway last year, was down three per cent.

Ship traffic has increased, with 2,719 vessels, including lakers, ocean-going ships, tugs and barges, transiting the system. That’s 138 more than by the end of September last year.

Dave Johnson/Welland Tribune

DULUTH, MN. – Science lovers got the opportunity of a lifetime on Wednesday. They got to board the Lake Explorer II, a Great Lakes research vessel and learn about their operations up close. The vessel is associated with the Environmental Protection Agency.

“You look around at the beauty behind us, right? Of everybody knows how magical the Great Lakes are,” said Teresa Booeshagi, Associate Administrator, Environmental Protection Agency. “It’s important for us to be able to protect these natural resources and make sure that they sustain into the future for our next generations.”

View the KQDS-TV video report here

EPA Research Vessel Lake Explorer II.