Mystery barrel recovery over; recovery remains a mystery

The effort to recover Cold War-era Department of Defense ammunition barrels from the bottom of Lake Superior is over. Now, investigators will test the contents to see if they are a health or environmental hazard.

A news blackout on the $3.3 million project continues, with no interviews being granted by the project managers, the DOD or the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa. Only a post on the Red Cliff Barrel page says they have safely and successfully completed the recovery and will report their findings in a few weeks.

They say it will take that long to analyze whatever was recovered. They will not say if they raised barrels, and if they did, how many. The tribe had hoped to raise 70 barrels.

Meanwhile, the Marine Safety Zone around the recovery site has been lifted. Coast Guard Marine Safety Officer Jud Coleman said there were no problems, no violations. “It allowed them to proceed with the project, and it was also in place to prevent interested boaters from getting too close in the event that they recovered something hazardous.” Coleman said he did not know as to whether there were any hazards recovered.

The effort is funded by a DoD program that cleans up munitions dumpsites in Indian Country.

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