DETROIT — An electronic malfunction caused a huge freighter hauling salt through the Great Lakes to run aground in the Detroit River on Wednesday, just a short distance from a popular island park in Detroit, U.S. Coast Guard Sector Detroit said.

The freighter, stuck in the mud for about four hours, was ungrounded around noon and then anchored at Belle Isle sometime before 1 p.m., the Coast Guard said.

“The electronic malfunction caused loss of propulsion, which, in turn, led to some steering issues,” said Lt. Adeeb Ahmad, Coast Guard Sector Detroit public affairs officer.

There were no injuries, no other boats were involved, there was no pollution, and no traffic congestion as other boats were able to go around the freighter, Lieutenant Ahmad said.

Freighters regularly travel the waterway but they rarely come so close to land, so the sudden arrival of the Mark W. Barker, which is nearly 650 feet long, caused a spectacle off Belle Isle, a state park.

“I came down here and I looked and I was like, ‘whoa,’” Diane Reid told the Detroit News.

The U.S. Coast Guard said the freighter got stuck about 8 a.m.

Lieutenant Ahmad said the freighter was on its way to Milwaukee, hauling some 23,000 tons of salt when the incident occurred.

“The whole time it was stuck in the mud, the gear was in the forward position,” the lieutenant said. “Once the crew were ready to put the gear in the reverse, they reversed it and got the freighter ungrounded with the help of a local tow boat.”

The Interlake Steamship Co. freighter Mark W. Barker was christened on Sept. 1 on the Cleveland waterfront.

The Barker, named after Cleveland-based Interlake’s president, is the first new U.S.-flag lake freighter built in about 40 years.

The Barker is powered by two 4,000-horsepower EMD Model 710 diesel engines that generate power for its propulsion system, as well as everything else on board.

It typically carries between 27,000 and 33,000 tons, depending on the cargo density and the channel depth at the ports involved, which can vary by time of year.

The Wednesday incident occurred right in front of U.S. Coast Guard Sector Detroit, Lieutenant Ahmad said, noting that “nothing like this has happened on Detroit River for quite some time.”

“At approximately 7:35 local time this morning, the M/​V Mark W. Barker was transiting upbound in the Detroit River passing Belle Isle with a cargo of salt from Cleveland bound for Milwaukee, Wisconsin when it experienced a loss of power and maneuverability,” Chrissy Kadleck, Interlake director of communications and employee engagement, said in a statement.

“The vessel turned to port unexpectedly and the captain dropped the anchor before the bow grounded on the soft bank of the channel,” the statement said.

“Working with the United States Coast Guard and with the assistance of a tug, the vessel was able back away from the bank and get under way to make its way to the Belle Isle Anchorage where the crew will continue to assess the vessel and work to determine the cause of the incident,” the statement said.

The incident remains under investigation by the U.S. Coast Guard. The vehicle will remain moored to allow investigators “to come aboard, assess the damage, and ensure that repairs are made before the freighter can continue its voyage,” the lieutenant said.

On Dec. 2, 2020, a 500-foot Canadian-flagged M.V. Harvest Spirit ran “hard aground, on the bow” in the Detroit River’s Livingstone Channel, according to the U.S. Coast Guard Sector Detroit website.

Following a lube oil pump failure, the vessel dropped anchor and then spun in the channel, coming to rest with the bow in U.S. waters and the stern in Canadian waters. It was hauling 11,000 tons of furnace coke, with about 47,000 gallons of diesel fuel aboard.

There was no pollution and tugboats were able to refloat the vessel the next day, with traffic in the channel returning to normal on Dec. 4.

Information from The Blade’s news services was used in this report.

First Published May 17, 2023, 4:31 p.m.