An excavator is halfway submerged and stuck in Lake Michigan on Thursday, Sept. 2, after attempting to dig out a barge the prior day. The heavy machinery is located just off the shore about half a mile north of Tunnel Park at 66 N Lakeshore Ave. in Park Township. (Michael Kransz | MLive.com)

HOLLAND, MI -- An excavator meant to free a submerged barge just off the Lake Michigan shoreline is now itself stuck and more than halfway underwater.

The operator safely got back to shore.

State regulators said Thursday morning, Sept. 2, that the excavator isn’t discharging fuel into the lake at this time but they, along with federal and local partners, are closely watching because of its relatively close proximity to the Holland drinking water treatment plant.

“Anytime there’s a release, especially in freshwater, it’s a concern, and this location close to the water plant is something that we are closely monitoring and working with the Coast Guard,” said Jill Greenberg, public information officer with the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy.

“We are aware and should that situation change we’ll be able to go in with mitigation measures, but that does not appear to be the case right now.”

The excavator has a max capacity of 140 gallons of hydraulic oil and 180 gallons of diesel fuel, Greenberg said. Officials don’t know how much of either is currently in the machine.

Officials were notified of the half-submerged excavator by a person walking along the beach Wednesday afternoon, Sept. 1.

It can be spotted just off the shore about half a mile north of Tunnel Park at 66 Lakeshore Drive. The park is next to the Holland Board of Public Works Water Treatment Plant, which draws water from nearly a mile offshore.

U.S. Coast Guard Public Information Officer Lt. Phillip Gurtler said a salvage company brought in the excavator to remove a barge that had been submerged since December 2019. County officials believe the barge was part of revetment efforts to counter dune erosion.

Gurtler said reports indicate the excavator was driven from shore into the water and began digging around the barge when something happened, possibly shifting sands, and it fell into a hole in the lake.

An excavator is halfway submerged and stuck in Lake Michigan on Thursday, Sept. 2, after attempting to dig out a barge the prior day. The heavy machinery is located just off the shore about half a mile north of Tunnel Park at 66 N Lakeshore Ave. in Park Township. (Michael Kransz | MLive.com)

Coast Guard officials are still working to determine if proper reporting procedure by the company was followed, given that the submerged equipment was reported by a passerby.

The salvage company is actively cooperating with officials and working on plans to free and remove the heavy machinery. Because of the active operation, the Coast Guard is not releasing the company’s name at this time, Gurtler said.

Ottawa County Emergency Management Director Lou Hunt said the tentative timeline for freeing and removing the machinery is Friday, Sept. 3. The company intended to do it Thursday, but there was a complication in getting a larger piece of equipment to the scene, he said.

Should the vehicle start discharging fuel into the lake, officials said there are a number of mitigation efforts they can use, including placing booms around the spill to contain it and using other tools to vacuum the contaminants.

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