April 14 - The first ocean vessel of the year arrived at the Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor - the 413 ft (125.8 m) heavy lift vessel BBC Mont Blanc marking the official opening of the international shipping season.
Nearly 900 tons (816.5 tonnes) of wind turbine tower sections shipped from Marin, Spain, will be unloaded from BBC Mont Blanc by port stevedore Federal Marine Terminals. According to the Port of Indiana, the 20 components are destined for a wind farm in Illinois.
After the unloading of the cargo, the vessel, owned by the German shipping company Briese Schiffahrts, will travel to Ontario, Canada, where it will discharge a large transformer and related components.
As part of the annual tradition, Captain Nikolay Gombalevsky was presented with the Steel Stein, which, according to the Ports of Indiana commemorates northwest Indiana's identity as the steel capital of North America.
The St Lawrence Seaway opened its locks to ocean vessels for the 59th navigation season on March 20 after closing in late December. According to the corporation's deputy administrator Craig Middlebrook, last year was one of the safest navigation seasons on record and he expects the same this year.
