Part of Mississippi River Closed to Salvage Sunken Tug

The Coast Guard says it has closed a section of the Mississippi River southeast of New Orleans, La., so a tugboat that sank over the weekend can be salvaged.

Spokesman Jonathan Lally says a mile-long stretch of the river was closed around 6 a.m. Monday near the town of Venice. The closure was expected to last until around 6 p.m.

The tug sank Saturday afternoon. The river was closed from Saturday afternoon until Sunday night as authorities searched for the tug and made sure it didn’t pose a navigation hazard.

Some vessels anchored and waited out the closure. Others, including a cruise ship that had been bound for New Orleans, were re-routed.

It was unclear how many vessels were affected by Monday’s closure.