Ice Clearing in U.P. Complete

The effort to clear the Great Lakes of ice has officially ended. The U.S. Coast Guard in Sault Ste. Marie announced that Operation Taconite has ended after 160 days of chopping ice on Lakes Superior and Michigan, the Bay of Green Bay, and the Saint Mary’s River. Officials say that this year was one for the record books, with the thickest and most expansive ice seen on the Great Lakes in 35 years. Nine U.S. Coast Guard and three Canadian Coast Guard ice breakers spent more than 5,000 hours helping vessels through the ice and another 5,600 hours chopping ice.