Largest diesel-power towboat to visit Cape Girardeau

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will bring the largest diesel-power towboat ever built in the U.S. to Cape Girardeau on Aug. 16 for visitor tours. The M/V Mississippi, 241 feet long and 58 feet tall with three 2,100-horsepower engines, will dock at the downtown riverfront and open from 9 a.m. to noon as it moves from St. Louis to New Madrid, Mo., in between public meetings for the Mississippi River Commission. The towboat is assigned to the Memphis District of the Corps and its primary mission is to move barges, equipment and supplies along the Mississippi River for bank stabilization. The M/V Mississippi was built in 1993 and is the fifth Corps vessel to carry the name. In addition to being a working vessel, the boat has 22 staterooms and can carry up to 150 passengers.