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Letter to the Editor

Letter to the Editor: Warren County Board Fails to Address LeTourneau Boat Ramp Issues

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LeTourneau landing boat ramp

The following is a letter to the editor. The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of the Vicksburg Daily News.


Well, here we are again, and if it feels like Bill Murray in the movie Groundhog Day, it might be because another year has passed without the Warren County Board of Supervisors (BOS) taking any action to remedy the calamity that is the LeTourneau boat ramp. All the citizens of Warren County should feel a little tickle…from all the smoke the supervisors keep blowing. While I could simply copy and paste my Letter to the Editor that was published on June 16, 2023, there have been some minor improvements made at the landing, but not by the BOS.

American Cruise Lines and Viking Cruise Lines have both had to invest their time, resources, and money into creating an avenue by which they can unload and load passengers. Last year they both (Viking and American) created limestone (crushed rock) paths to the waters edge to facilitate the loading and unloading or passengers so they could enjoy all that Vicksburg has to offer. They had to do this for one reason, the BOS is unwilling to address the problem we face surrounding the LeTourneau boat ramp. The BOS has been authorized twice (2021 and 2023) to perform the activities needed to remedy the situation yet has taken no action.

The lack of money will surely be cited as the reason nothing has been done, and truly everyone can appreciate the times we are in right now with respect to inflation and the cost of everything, but just think of the economic benefit that will be lost if the tour boats, decide they don’t want to invest their time, resources, and money into patching the county ramp anymore and stop visiting Vicksburg all together, simply because Warren County won’t provide an adequate spot to dock a boat. One could assume with good fiscal practices being executed by our BOS, they would have at least some money saved up for this project, after all, they received their first permit to fix the ramp back in 2021, which is at the least an acknowledgment of a problem that needs addressing.

Again, the importance of a functioning boat ramp for the safety of everyone that uses the Mississippi River can’t be over stressed, it is vital to have access to the river in the event of a water emergency. It also serves as an access point for the multitude of tow boats that traverse the river to allow for crew change and re-supply needs. Yet when the river is below about 25’ on the Vicksburg Gage the ramp is not able to be utilized (last year it was 22’). From July 10, 2023, thru July 10, 2024, the MS River at Vicksburg has been below 25’ for 66.4% of the time, meaning that for more than half the year there is no access to the river at the LeTourneau boat ramp.

I urge you, the citizens of Warren County, to be relentless on your attempts to hold the BOS accountable, not just for the boat ramp at LeTourneau, but for the whole of Warren County, we are owed action from the BOS other than when they attempt to solicit your vote by paving a few roads when it is re-election time. Tackle the problems Warren County faces, including the inability for us to utilize perhaps our greatest resource and economic driver, the Mississippi River.

If the current BOS won’t help us, then vote them out and try someone new.

Jeremy Stokes


The Vicksburg Daily News is committed to telling the whole story regardless of who is involved or who they know. Sometimes that makes people angry, especially those who feel they are above the news.

Send your point of view to info@vicksburgnews.com.

We look forward to hearing from you.

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