Coastguard Battles Ice to Keeping Shipping Lanes Open as U.S. is Hit by Coldest Weather in Decades

The U.S. Coast Guard has been forced to use ice-cutting vessels to try and keep the shipping channels open, as the big freeze has frozen over huge lanes between America and Canada.

As the nation struggles to function in spite of the plunging temperatures caused by a ‘polar vortex’ that has led to the coldest morning in decades, heavy ships that can break chunks of ice are working around the clock to clear major shipping routes and ensure freighters don’t get stuck in the thick ice.

The ice cutters make clear paths through St. Mary’s River and the Soo Locks as blocks of ice forms in the Great Lakes, where ice can form up to a foot thick in the waterways.

Four of the gigantic vessels have been working around the clock to keep the shipping lanes open for freighters that connect the river paths to deliver goods between the Midwest and the East Coast, ABC reported.

The turbulent weather conditions have been caused by a ‘polar vortex’ of frigid arctic air, which is predicted to bring record-breaking cold temperatures to the East and Northeast today.

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