MORGANTOWN — Personnel and assets from the Monongalia County Office of Emergency Management (OEM) and the Morgantown Fire and Police departments were successful in locating two missing barges after high water and ice floes played havoc with the vessels at Pittsburgh’s Emsworth Lock and Dam on Jan. 13.
Harold Sperringer, chief deputy with the Monongalia County OEM, appeared at the Jan. 24 regular commission meeting.
Sperringer explained that he, along with Mike Fortney (OEM), Nick Schmidle and James Smith II of the Morgantown Police Department and Doug Sharp and John Moore of the Morgantown Fire Department responded to a request for assistance from Leon McClain, the U.S. Coast Guard Commander based in Pittsburgh.
In particular, Sperringer explained, McClain was interested in bringing aerial drones and side-scan sonar equipment used by the local agencies to assist in the cleanup.
Sperringer said the local contingent reported to the Emsworth Lock and Dam on Jan. 21.
“At that time the side-scan sonar was conducted by Morgantown Police and Fire. They were able to locate both barges,” he said, explaining that he and Fortney flew a drone upstream to look for more potential problems.
