Enbridge removes anchor from Michigan’s Straits of Mackinac

ST. IGNACE, Mich. (AP) - Enbridge said Monday it had retrieved an anchor that broke away from a maintenance vessel while on the bottom of the Straits of Mackinac.

The mishap occurred last Wednesday as a contractor for the pipeline company was doing seasonal work on the underwater section of Line 5, an oil line that runs between Superior, Wisconsin, and Sarnia, Ontario.

The section in the straits, which connects Lake Michigan and Lake Huron, is divided into two pipes about 1,200 feet (366 meters) apart. The anchor was deployed about midway between them. When the crew later tried to raise it, the shackle connecting it to the cable failed, Enbridge spokesman Michael Barnes said.

The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy ordered the company to remove the anchor, which took place Sunday. A crane on a barge was used to lift the 1,500-pound (6,804-kilogram) object to the surface, Barnes said.

Pipeline operations weren’t affected, he said.