Ports of Indiana tonnage up 23%

Ports of Indiana tonnage up 23%    The Ports of Indiana handled a combined 667,000 tons of cargo through its three docks in May. The combined tonnage during the Jan. 1 to May 31 period was 3.2 million tons, 23 percent higher than it was during the same time frame in 2004.
   The Port of Indiana-Mount Vernon handled 317,000 tons in May bringing the year-to-date total to 1.69 million tons, a rise of 40 percent over the comparable period last year. In the first five months steel tonnage soared 3,103 percent, with grain tonnage up 74 percent and coal rising 31 percent.
   Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor reported 223,000 tons in May. For the first five months of 2005, tonnage was up 40 percent, compared to the year earlier period, at 651,000 tons. The main increases came from limestone (up 79 percent), grain (up 74 percent), miscellaneous cargoes (up 63 percent), and steel (up 13 percent).
   The Port of Indiana-Jeffersonville moved 127,000 tons in May, representing a rise of 56 percent over the same month last year. For the year-to-date the total stands at 888,000 tons, down 7 percent on the same period last year.