The lake freighter Manitoulin is immobilized by thick ice in Lake Erie outside the Buffalo River breakwall as it awaits the arrival of U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Bristol Bay which is en route from Erie, Penn. to help loosen the vessel, Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025. (Derek Gee/The Buffalo News via AP) AP

A Canadian freighter became icebound in Lake Erie outside the Buffalo River breakwall while departing Buffalo, New York, requiring help from a U.S. Coast Guard cutter.

A freighter heading to Canada was freed after being stuck in ice on Lake Erie for several days, the U.S. Coast Guard reported

Canadian vessel with 17 people on board, got stuck in the ice on Lake Erie. A U.S. Coast Guard cutter from Cleveland heled free the freighter.

The Manitoulin, a 663-foot vessel, remained stuck just offshore of Buffalo, New York for the second day on Thursday. An ice-cutting barge, the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Bristol Bay, was dispatched earlier today to help free the freighter from the snow and ice field.

It’s unclear how long it might take to cut the Canadian freighter Manitoulin out of the Lake Erie ice, which is thick this year.

President Donald Trump is continuing his first-term focus on building a big, new American icebreaker fleet. Days after his second inauguration, the president broke from a North Carolina hurricane-recovery briefing and made a surprise announcement that, “we’re going to order about 40 big icebreakers.”

The lake freighter Manitoulin is immobilized by thick ice in Lake Erie outside the Buffalo River breakwall as it awaits the arrival of U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Bristol Bay which is en route from Erie, Penn. to help loosen the vessel, Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025. (Derek Gee/The Buffalo News via AP)

The U.S. Coast Guard has requested assistance from the Canadian Coast Guard. CCGS Samuel Risley, a 229-foot icebreaker, is on its way from Windsor.

BUFFALO, New York -- A freighter was on its way to ... officials said a second ship arrived to help free the freighter. The Canadian Coast Guard also had a ship assisting with the effort.

According to the Associated Press, the Manitoulin, a 663-foot freighter, had dropped off a load of wheat Wednesday in Buffalo, New York, and left port to return to Sarnia, Ontario, only to be caught in rapidly forming ice later that morning near the Buffalo shoreline.