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Officials unsure when loose barges will be removed, dam will reopen

PITTSBURGH — Runaway barges will remain jammed against the Emsworth Lock and Dam for the time being, the Army Corps of Engineers said Monday.

Until they're removed, no river traffic will move through.

On Saturday, 72 barges came loose in two separate locations on the river due to ice and high water levels. The majority of them have been secured.

According to officials with the Corps, approximately 38 of the 45 barges that came free near mile marker 94 near Moundsville have been recovered and secured. Officials said 25 of the 27 barges that broke free near mile marker 4 have been accounted for. Five of the barges went over the dam.

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"Right now, we do not have any damage (to the dam), even though you'll see one of the barges actually sitting halfway through one of our gates, said Maj. Cornelius Batts. "But right now, there's not any damage yet. So we're keeping our fingers crossed."

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The breakaway barges are carrying materials like coal, sand and concrete. And they're heavy -- one barge is equivalent to 16 train cars.

The Coast Guard brought in a huge crane to take as much ice as it can from around the barges.

Right now no one can say when the waterway will open again.

"We're dealing with a lot of ice, snow, frigid conditions," Coast Guard Cmdr. Leon McClain Jr. said. "And so we're moving expeditiously because in order to get equipment in, we have to transit through the ice that's along the navigable waterways. Not just here, but even further down."