Missing barge part leads to Kauai port closure

LIHUE >> Port officials on Kauai have closed the port of Nawiliwili while a search continues for a missing boat part.

The Garden Island reports the Tug Moana Holo and its deck barge Maka Ala on Friday night ran aground near the entrance to Nawiliwili Harbor.

Divers on Sunday discovered the barge was missing a 30-by-15-foot skeg.

The Coast Guard says a skeg is a fixed extension to the stern of a barge that’s similar to a rudder. It assists in steering.

The Coast Guard says the operating company is working with contractors to find and mark the skeg.