Soo Locks to open four days early
Mar. 14—SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. — The 2025 shipping season is on course to be ahead of schedule after the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced on Friday that the Poe Lock at the Soo Locks will reopen on Friday, March 21 at 8 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time.
The facility, which allows vessels to transit between the St. Marys River and Lake Superior, typically closes each year for seasonal maintenance and repairs from Jan. 15 to March 25. Last season's last ship transited a few hours after midnight on Jan. 16. The shipping industry requested the early opening, which was comparable to 2024, when an abnormally mild winter allowed for a March 22 opening.
"This year, a number of factors worked in our favor that allowed us to safely deliver this critical maintenance and also open to navigation traffic a few days early," Soo Locks Operations Manager LeighAnn Ryckeghem said in a news release from the Corps.
The St. Lawrence Seaway is set to open for the season on March 22, which means oceangoing vessels headed to or from Lake Superior will not be delayed.
The smaller MacArthur Lock will remain closed until April.
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