Harbor fishing ban lifted

LUDINGTON — The Ludington harbormaster, through the Ludington Police Department, has lifted a fishing ban that was put in place Thursday, Aug. 22, which would have restricted fishing in the harbor and Pere Marquette Lake during the departure and arrival of the S.S. Badger carferry.

Harbormaster Order 24-01 was implemented due to the amount of fishing vessels that have recently been impeding the path of the Badger, which has right-of-way through the harbor.

“Since before the implementation of Harbormaster Order 24-01, numerous conversations took place with members of the local fishing community regarding the safety issues mentioned previously,” Ludington Police Chief Chris Jones said. “Those conversations were more intense and in-depth once the order was put in place. The goal of the order was to increase the safety margins, while impacting the fishing community as little as possible. The passion of the Ludington fishing community was evident during our discussions. Also clear was their understanding and acknowledgement of the safety issues. I was impressed with their passion and open-minded approach to this issue. Due to the meaningful and productive conversations that have occurred, the Ludington fishing community’s expressed commitment to partner with us to create a culture of safety on the water, and the additional enforcement activities scheduled by local law enforcement, effective immediately, I hereby rescind Harbormaster Order 24-01. We would like to thank the fishing and boating communities for their partnership and cooperation.”

On Thursday, Jones had released a statement with the order stating that “over the last week, there have been numerous occasions when the S.S. Badger has encountered boats that failed to give way. In some cases, the captain of the S.S. Badger was forced to take actions to avoid a collision. It is important to remember that the harbor is primarily a channel for navigation, and only secondarily, a fishing location. The S.S. Badger is not able to maneuver around the many smaller boats that have taken up residency in the harbor, due to the abundant fish.

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