Tombigbee River - Cahaba Incident

Cahaba Incident

On April 28, 1979, a tugboat named M/V Cahaba was on the Tombigbee near Demopolis, Alabama. The tugboat was attempting to guide two coal barges under a flooded side-span of the old Rooster Bridge (removed years later), but the flood current was too strong. The tug and barges approached the drawbridge-section, which failed to re-open fast enough while the river was near flood stage (drawbridges must close and re-open to allow waiting traffic to cross). The fast currents pinned the craft, starboard side, against the bridge in high waters. The force was so dramatic that it pulled the boat downward, tilting it beneath the bridge, and fully submerging it in the river. The underwater pressure blew out a port-side window in the pilot house, which began filling with water, while the captain remained at the helm. Soon the tugboat emerged out the other side of the bridge, and righted itself, with water pouring from the doorways and decks.

One of the two main ventilator funnels had tilted to the center, but one engine was still running, and the captain steered it to anchor the tugboat in a flooded cornfield. Another downstream tugboat, M/V Tallapoosa rescued the captain and all three crew members, with the pilot, then secured the two barges of coal. The barges were later towed to Mobile by the same company's towboat M/V Mauvilla. Fourteen years later, it was notable for the 1993 Big Bayou Canot train wreck.