TUSCALOOSA,AL (WBRC) - A runaway barge in Tuscaloosa County threatened two bridges along the black warrior river Wednesday. Tuscaloosa County Sheriff Ted Sexton says a tugboat pulling a large load of coal lost both engines causing the barge to drift dangerously downstream. "When the call came in they were in trouble," said Sexton, "We responded with both air and ground units."
Because the area around the river is heavily wooded the helicopter provided the best visuals for rescue crews. "We were able to use a camera and show that footage to our communications division which was in turn giving that information to state troopers, the Alabama Highway Department, and other police departments including the Sheriff's Office," said Sexton.
If the runaway barge had made it all the way down the river to the Highway 11 bridge or the Interstate 20/59 bridge it could have hit one of the concrete barriers holding up the bridges. It could have caused a lot of problems for people nearby.
Reggie Lancaster lives on a pecan farm next to the bridge. He saw rescue crews in action. 'There was a lot of police cars up here and helicopter going back and forth and to be perfectly honest I had no idea what was going on," said Lancaster.
He's thankful the barge didn't make it too far down the river because he says it would be bad news for folks who use this road getting to and from work.
The Sheriff's Department says another tug boat arrived on the scene – just as the crew in trouble fixed their engines. The barge then continued its journey down river, heading to Florida.
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