Grounded ‘American Jazz’ Freed on Lake Barkley

The riverboat American Jazz was refloated on Friday more than a week after it grounded in Lake Barkley in Cadiz, Kentucky.

The Lake Barkley Grounding Unified Command reports the vessel was freed on Friday at 3:22 p.m. by using a combination of a tug and barge setup along with the ship’s propulsion.

The American Cruise Lines’ river cruise ship American Jazz ran aground near mile marker 62 on the Cumberland River on July 7 during a seven-night “Music Cities Cruise” from Memphis to Nashville with 120 passengers and 54 crew members. All passengers were disembarked from the vessel two days later.

“Thanks to the amazing support of American Cruise Lines, the state of Kentucky, Trigg County Emergency Management, Donjon-SMIT and the residence of Trigg County the American Jazz was removed today and was found fit for service on the Cumberland River,” said Cmdr. Jennifer Andrew, federal on-scene coordinator for the unified command.

No damage, pollution, or injuries have been reported.

The cause of the incident is under investigation.