The oceangoing freighter that was detained offshore from Duluth for six weeks has traveled through the Welland Canal and is sailing Lake Ontario on its way to ports along the Mediterranean Sea.
The Cornelia made it through the canal between lakes Erie and Ontario prior to its closing for the winter on Dec. 26.
The Cornelia, carrying a full load of grain, was in Duluth until Dec. 18 - generally considered the last day a ship can leave the local port and make the canal's closing deadline.
The 575-foot ship had been detained at anchor on Lake Superior for weeks amid an investigation into possible violations of U.S. environmental regulations "related to the discharge of oily water," the U.S. Coast Guard reported.
After taking on grain at the CHS dock in Superior during the first week of November, the ship's crew had languished on the vessel throughout a detainment that began Nov. 5. The Coast Guard and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Minnesota, which also was involved in the case, have released few details about the Cornelia's detainment - though the Coast Guard did say the alleged discharge did not appear to have happened in the Twin Ports.
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An agreement was finally reached this week between the Coast Guard and the German owners of the German-operated, Liberian-flagged ship that allowed the Cornelia to sail while maintaining the integrity of the investigation.
