Hickman port to receive emergency dredging

Posted: Wed 11:08 PM, Aug 15, 2012

In this July 13, 2012, photo, the Memphis Queen riverboat moves up the Mississippi River, in Memphis, Tenn. (AP Photo/Nikki Boertman)

HICKMAN, Ky. (AP) - A Mississippi River port in Kentucky will undergo emergency dredging in an effort to stay open.

A Delta Regional Authority statement says dredging at the Hickman and Fulton County Riverport will begin Wednesday and be completed by the end of the week.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet said the Dorena-Hickman Ferry would not be in service Wednesday to allow for the dredging. The ferry resumed service about a week ago after low river levels caused it to shut down for about a month.

Without dredging, authorities said the port would have been closed for a minimum of three to four weeks.

The port is the only major one on the east side of the Mississippi River between Wickliff, Ky. and Memphis, Tenn.

The project's cost is estimated at $50,000.

Survivor of helicopter fall involved in a truck rollover