DOOR COUNTY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – The 2020 Great Lakes shipping season is underway, and the Winter Fleet in Sturgeon Bay will soon be gone.
But with health concerns about COVID-19, visitors are asked to stay away this year.
Just past the entrance to the Sturgeon Bay Shipping Channel, the 858-foot long Roger Blough made its way into the waters of Green Bay Tuesday morning.
Rick Stram tells FOX 11 he’s a fan of the big ships…
“We saw the Roger Blough going out through the ice, with the Mobile Bay out front cutting, and the Gaynor, one of the tugs from Sturgeon Bay took it out here to the quarry.”
Every year, Stram looks forward to the time when the ships depart.
“They were scheduled to leave yesterday, and there were a bunch of us down at Bullhead Point here in Sturgeon Bay that were waiting for it to leave, but it didn’t.”
Bullhead Point is a popular place to watch the Winter Fleet. The ships arrive at Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding for repairs, and maintenance. Company officials could only specify the vessels are scheduled to leave in March or April.
Tourism leaders say most of the area businesses are closed, and the county really cannot support additional visitors at the present time. The Door County Fire Chiefs Association agrees.
“Stay home. Stay safe. They talk about everybody should act like you have the virus, and the virus is on everything and everywhere you’re going. So, really respect that. If you’re here, if you’re self-quarantining, or if you’re under an ordered quarantine, please respect the word quarantine, and what it means,” said Chief Chris Hecht, Door County Fire Chiefs Association President.
Local tourism officials say it’s hard to tell people to stay away from Door County, but because of crisis, the decision is necessary.
