"Water Levels Fall in Great Lakes, Taking a Toll on Shipping"

"Aboard the Dorothy Ann, in Lake Erie near Fairport Harbor, Ohio — As Capt. Jeremy R. Mock steered this 711-foot combination of tug and barge toward a harbor berth, a screen of red numbers indicated the decreasing depth of water under the vessel: 6 feet, 3.6 feet, 2 feet."

"Suddenly the numbers gave way to a line of red dashes: — — — — .

It was a signal that there was not enough water to measure.

Drought and other factors have created historically low water marks for the Great Lakes, putting the $34 billion Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway shipping industry in peril, a situation that could send ominous ripples throughout the economy."

John Schwartz reports for the New York Times June 10, 2013.