Barge

"Signs and Wonders," by Melvin Jules Bukiet. St. Martins Press. 376 pages. $26.It must have seemed like a good idea at the time, an over-the-top novel about the millennium in which the messiah reappears in Germany as a Jewish youth last seen alive on his way to the ovens of Bergen-Belsen.And how much better if this messiah first reveals himself to a group of 11 convicts -- including the last incarcerated Nazi war criminal -- sharing a cell on a prison barge (read ark) that breaks apart during a storm, then walks on water with his cellmates to the shore, recruits a local fisherman as a 12th disciple, raises the aforementioned Obersturmbannfuhrer from the dead twice (no less)

Five picturesque creeks and coves in eastern Baltimore County are being dredged and another four will be scooped in an aggressive $2 million project to enrich the environment and continue to attract recreational boaters.The deepening of the channels is considered crucial to the environment because the process allows sunlight to reach the submerged grasses that serve as natural banquets for fish and crabs. Also, the ebb and flow of tides, or flushing, is vastly improved because of easier passage of water from the creeks into Middle River.

The first alarm sounded in Canton at 8: 40 a.m. on Feb. 17, 1953, signaling the beginning of one of the worst waterfront fires in the city's history.By the time it was over later that morning, the 18-alarm fire, which swept through a lumber yard, marine railway and threatened a quarter-mile long section of industrial plants along Boston Street, had entered the city's record books.It had required 66 pieces of equipment, 354 firefighters, 45 engine companies, 15 truck companies, one hose company, four fireboats and one water tower.

Opposition is growing to the city's decision to permit a Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. restaurant in a public waterway near the National Aquarium, with some of Baltimore's most influential business and civic leaders decrying it as a monumental mistake in the making.Some liken it to paving the canals of Venice or building a taco stand in the middle of the Gettysburg battlefield.On Monday, aquarium director David Pittenger warned that the city's decision to allow construction of an 8,000-square-foot shrimp restaurant in the water between Piers 3 and 4 sets a "dangerous precedent" for Inner Harbor development.

Starr will subpoena the Supreme Court next. Maybe they know something.Northern Ireland would be a great place if they would just quit murdering people. Like Bawlamer.Q. When is a barge not a barge? A. When it stands on pilings. Then it is a pier. If city-owned, it is a pier of the realm.QCCelebrate the World Cup of lacrosse! Hit someone with a stick.Pub Date: 7/20/98

"The results are attributed to my lack of ability," Hashimoto said, resigning. Why can't American leaders do that?With everyone shouting "do something," the Japanese have no government so they can't.It's silly to build a double-decker barge for a fast food joint, when they can fill in the whole Inner Harbor instead.If France could win the World Cup this year, the O's can win the World Series this year.Pub Date: 7/15/98

Fourteen years ago, George Tserkis wanted to build a boat restaurant on the Inner Harbor shores of Fells Point.Tserkis quickly abandoned the plan after learning that he would need federal approval. And city planners operated at the time under a standard for the prized harbor: if a project could be built on land, keep it out of the water.That was then. Bubba Gump is now.A debate is spilling across the Inner Harbor over a city-sponsored plan to place a Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. restaurant near the National Aquarium.

KURT L. SCHMOKE is mayor of Baltimore.The Inner Harbor is the center jewel in the crown for Baltimore. It needs to remain a world-class center by continuing to be a high quality, public waterfront. It is and will remain a place for a diverse selection of family entertainment, including the National Aquarium, the Science Center, restaurants and boating activities.We will work to continue to maintain this mixture and to keep the area fresh and vibrant. Stores and activities will change periodically, but we will maintain our commitment to the space as an inviting center of family-oriented activity.

IN LIGHT of the misinformation campaign being conducted by the National Aquarium regarding the proposed Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. restaurant barge at the Inner Harbor, it is necessary to set the record straight.The Bubba Gump barge does not set a precedent for development on the harbor. Some 99 percent of the harbor is navigable water, and, by law, may not be developed. Conversely, the Bubba Gump barge is to be located in non-navigable waters, where it's perfectly legal to build structures.The Bubba Gump barge was not approved in secret.

Donna Potter's enthusiasm for life aboard ship wasn't dimmed a bit by high winds, cramped quarters or even rain."It was like being part of a big family," explained the 10-year-old, who lives in East Islip, N.Y. "You don't get lonely."She spent a lot of her time aboard the Windjammer sailing ship off the Maine coast watching the chef. "I like to cook," she explained.Six-year-old Scott Malhiet, meanwhile, was just as happy on the Delta Steamboat cruise he took on the Mississippi River with his family.

The body of a man reported to have fallen off a barge about 12 days ago was found Monday morning at the mouth of the South River, Maryland Natural Resources Police said. Gregory S. Luckett, 49, of Pasadena, was found in the chilly waters near Mayo Beach about 11:30 a.m. Anne Arundel County police recovered the body. Luckett was reported missing about 4:05 p.m. Nov. 5 from a 25-foot barge. U.S. Coast Guard officials, joined by several other agencies, had searched for him through the night after they were told he fell into the water while returning from a work site.

My husband and I live in Baltimore and we recently returned from a bike and barge trip down the Mosel River in Germany. This picture was taken after we left our barge to go to the Reichsburg Castle in Cochem, Germany. The vineyards and scenery were spectacular, but I thought this was one of our best shots. The Baltimore Sun welcomes submissions for "My Best Shot." Photos should have been taken within the past year and be accompanied by a description of when and where you took the picture and your name, address and phone number.

A St. Mary's County man has been charged in connection with illegal fireworks that police seized June 28 from a barge anchored in the Patuxent River off the Calvert County community of Patuxent View, the state fire marshal's office said yesterday. Jack R. Beckwith, 58, of the 28000 block of Three Notch Road, Mechanicsville, was charged Friday with possession of fireworks without a permit and possession of fireworks with intent to discharge. Both charges are misdemeanors and are punishable by fines of up to $250.

Baltimore City Federal Hill Victim of fatal shooting identified A man who was shot in a car, dumped on a street in Federal Hill and later died at a hospital Friday night was identified yesterday as Keyva Bluitt, 35, of North Baltimore's Waverly neighborhood, according to a city police spokesman. Police said detectives knew of no motive and had made no arrests in the case. Witnesses told authorities the victim was shot inside a blue Toyota that had been double-parked about 9:15 p.m. in the 800 block of Battery Ave. The witnesses reported that several people jumped in the car and that they heard a shot fired as the car sped away.

ABOARD THE YNOT MABEL - A massive front-end loader wrestled more than 40 stainless steel New York City subway cars off a barge yesterday, swinging them one by one over the gray, choppy water before releasing them with a splash. Some of the cars lingered briefly on the surface before heading for the ocean bottom 85 feet below. Others rolled on their side, emitting hisses as water rushed in and air escaped, creating tiny geysers like whales exhaling. One by one, they became Maryland's most-ambitious offshore artificial reef project to create homes for fish and an underwater playground for divers.

A barge carrying 420,000 gallons of black oil that went aground Wednesday morning on the Nanticoke River in southern Dorchester County was refloated last night after some of its contents were removed to lighten the load, a spokesman for the Coast Guard in Baltimore said. Petty Officer John Edwards, the spokesman, said about 140,000 gallons was pumped into another barge, and that the vessel was refloated about 7:15 p.m. and towed to a power plant in Vienna, about halfway to its original destination, Seaford, Del. Edwards said the double-hulled barge was not damaged.

A barge carrying 420,000 gallons of black oil ran aground yesterday morning near the mouth of the Nanticoke River on the Eastern Shore, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. No oil has been released from the double-hulled barge, according to Petty Officer John Edwards, a Coast Guard spokesman, but a commercial cleanup crew set up nearby as a "precautionary measure." The tug pulling the barge reported the incident to Coast Guard Sector Baltimore about 7 a.m., just after it happened, Edwards said.

A massive barge dumped 1,000 tons of concrete slabs on the floor of the Chesapeake Bay yesterday to begin construction of the state's fourth artificial reef. The site at the mouth of the Choptank River, known as "The Gooses," was once a popular fishing spot that could attract 100 boats in its heyday. Its yield, however, gradually diminished as silt covered the hard bottom. Marty Gary, a fisheries biologist who is overseeing the work for the Department of Natural Resources, said that when construction is complete, the Gooses will be "the crown jewel of the Chesapeake's artificial reefs" to serve as habitat for fish, oysters and crabs.

I'm interested in handicapped-accessible riverboat cruises. I know of a few in the United States, but are there similar cruises in Europe? Handicapped-accessible cruises are not as common on European rivers, but we tracked down a few that might interest you. Before you book, call the company to discuss your physical limitations and ask if the cruise is appropriate for you. Eurorivercruises (euroriver cruises.com), based in New York, offers three cruises on ships with handicapped-accessible cabins.

VENICE, LA. // A platinum sun set on a warm March afternoon as I drove from New Orleans' Louis Armstrong Airport toward the mouth of the Mississippi River to a place known as "the end of the world." When Hurricane Katrina hit Louisiana nearly two years ago, it must have felt like the end of the world. But as I scanned the New Orleans skyline from a highway overpass, the only signs of destruction were the ones playing in my head: the flashbacks from TV news clips during the storm. The Superdome, once battered and overrun with evacuees, had a new roof, and the dry city streets flowed with activity.