COAST GUARD ORDERS NEW ICEBREAKER FOR GREAT LAKES DUTY

COAST GUARD ORDERS NEW ICEBREAKER FOR GREAT LAKES DUTY    The U.S. Coast Guard has placed a $82.5-million contract with Marinette Marine Corp. to design and build a new heavy icebreaker for duty in Great Lakes.
   The new vessel, to be delivered Oct. 2005, will be home-ported in Cheboygan, Mich. The ship will carry the name “Mackinaw,” in honor of the current 57-year-old icebreaker which the Coast Guard will replace.
   The new Mackinaw will be a 240-foot multimission heavy icebreaker that will have a maximum beam of 60 feet and carry a crew of 50. The vessel will be able to break ice up to 32 inches thick.
   Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Mineta said the new “Mackinaw” will also conduct search and rescue, law enforcement, environmental protection, national security and national defense missions.