Wind and waves: Greater Fall River preps for impacts of Hurricane Lee
Summer beach residents along East Beach Road in Westport were getting a jump on breaking down their camps along the ocean in anticipation for whatever impacts Hurricane Lee will bring later in the week.
On Tuesday, the sky was cloudy, but the water was calm, with no hint that a hurricane was brewing out at sea. Some of the summer residents were anticipating that they may be breaking camp earlier than Nov. 1, when all the campers must move off the island.
David Pelletier and his brother, Dennis Pelletier, were busy breaking down a deck next to his large travel trailer.
“If it's going to come, then you don’t get a lot of notice,” said David.
Next door, Kevin Daly was packing up outdoor items that could become projectiles in high winds.
"I’m pretty much prepped,” said Daly. “I’m just getting anything that could blow away. I’ll wait in the next couple of days and if it gets close, then I’ll move everything out.”
Taking a break, Daly launched his small fishing boat into the water.
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“If it's nice, I’m going to try to fish one more time. It’s beautiful now but when a storm comes it’s a lot different. It’s windy and everything is shaking,” said Daly, who has been coming to this area of Westport near Gooseberry Island since he was a kid, but he bought his camper four years ago.
Across the street, Frankie Ray, a retired Fall River School Department music teacher, was loading a bicycle and other items into a trailer attached to his SUV.
Ray said he “has multiple things going on” to prepare for a possible hurricane.
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“I’m the steward over at the Spindle Rock Club and we need to haul out the work boat, probably Thursday, and I have a boat at (Westport Point) and I need to haul that boat,” said Ray. “So, if this thing goes the wrong way, I can’t wait until the last minute.”
Ray, who runs a sailing school for youth, said he’s used to keeping an eye on the weather and will continue to monitor what is going on in the Atlantic Ocean.
Oyster farmer preps for Hurricane Lee impact
Over at Westport Town Dock, oyster farmer Chelsey Rollins and her all-female crew pulled up in their boat after returning from the oyster farm they were preparing for the coming storm.
“We’re adding buoys to the lines to float the lines so they aren’t as heavy,” said Rollins. “Because when the cages and lines are heavy and the storm surge comes and the waves action, and everything else, it makes the lines drop and we lose oysters.”
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Like everyone else, Rollins said she’s watching the weather and taking some precautions.
“Other things we’re doing is on our river farm we have a bunch of storage rafts with things on them like cages and buoys and we’re tying them up nice and neat, so they aren’t going anywhere,” said Rollins.
Fall River starts preparation
In Fall River, Richard Aguiar, director of Emergency Management, said that crews at the Department of Community Maintenance were preparing with sand and sandbags and have all their chainsaws gassed up and ready to go in the event the storm surges and trees fall.
Aguiar said he’s been in touch with the electric utility company, and they plan to open an emergency operations center on Saturday.
He’s received an advisory from the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency.
“They say that it looks like for now that we are mostly going to get hit more with wind and waves,” said Aguiar. “But we’ll know more tomorrow or the next day.”
Remember this: What are the biggest hurricanes to hit Massachusetts? A look back at 8 storms
Beaches closed to swimming
The state Department of Conservation and Recreation, which oversees Horseneck Beach in Wesport, sent out an advisory reminding visitors that swimming is no longer permitted at the beach now that it's after Labor Day.
"We encourage waterfront visitors to use caution and stay out of the water," they said.
This article originally appeared on The Herald News: Fall River and Westport areas keep eye on Hurricane Lee
