LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — Coal barges broke free from their towing vessel on the Ohio River in Louisville Friday afternoon.

Around 4 p.m., 10 barges broke away after exiting the McAlpine Lock and Dam, Lt. Steve Leighty, U.S. Coast Guard Public Affairs Officer-Ohio Sector, said.

Eight barges are resting against the L&I Railroad Bridge, and the remaining two are partially submerged down river near the LG&E hydroelectric power plant.

Around 4 p.m., 10 barges broke away after exiting the McAlpine Lock and Dam, Lt. Steve Leighty, U.S. Coast Guard Public Affairs Officer-Ohio Sector, said.

Leighty said there are no injuries. A Special Marine Information Broadcast has been issued for the area, but no official shutdown of water traffic has occurred. The lock chambers at McAlpine Lock and Dam are closed to traffic, and will remain closed until the recovery operation is complete. The locks will operate intermittently when recovery operations begin to recover the other barges down river.

Crews with the Coast Guard, Army Corps of Engineers and L&I Railroad are working to recover the loose barges. 

Saturday morning Leighty said the remaining recovered barges were pushed up out of the channel into a fleeting area.

U.S. Coast Guard Vessel Traffic Service Louisville has also started coordinating with the Army Corps McAlpine Lockmaster to allow traffic to resume.

There are now four vessels downbound and two vessels upbound in the queue. There's also two sunken barges, one on the bank of the Indiana side of Shippingport Island and one near the L&I Railroad Bridge.

Those will not affect vessel track but there are still two partially submerged barges in the McAlpine lower dam gates.

Leighty said salvage operations wills tart once equipment arrives.

The cause of the incident remains under investigation.

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