DULUTH, Minn. – A new record for the first ocean-going ship of the season arriving in Duluth.
When the 656-foot Federal Dart, which sails under the flag of the Marshall Islands, passed under the Aerial Lift Bridge at 3:30 p.m. Tuesday afternoon, it became the earliest “saltie” ever to arrive in the port of Duluth-Superior. The ship was carrying 23,000 tons of Turkish cement.
According to Duluth Seaway Port Authority’s Jayson Hron, Federal Dart beat the previous first-saltie-of-the-season record, which was set March 30, 2013, by two days.
The Saint Lawrence Seaway opened for the season about a week ago, and the Soo Locks at the eastern end of Lake Superior opened last Saturday.
