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Stamford Boats Need to Get Behind Hurricane Wall

STAMFORD, Conn. – If your boat is not secure on land or in Stamford Harbor, you had better get moving. With Hurricane Irene on a crash course for the city, the  Army Corps of Engineers will be shutting the Stamford Hurricane Barrier on Saturday.

“You’re already too late,” Bobby Valentine, Stamford’s director of public health and safety, said of boaters wanting slips inside the harbor.

There are about 300 slips inside Stamford Harbor, and they have already been taken, Valentine said. But Mike Pensiero, the city's director of technology management services, said there is more room because boaters can moor their craft in the middle of the harbor before the barrier closes.

Pensiero said Sgt. Peter Wolff, head of the Stamford Police Marine Division, will work with the Army Corps of Engineers to make sure boats are secure while the barrier is shut. Once it is closed, boaters will be out of luck, Pensiero said. Wolff and others will begin allowing boats to moor in the harbor at about noon Saturday, he said.

On Thursday, the Corps of Engineers announced plans to close the Hurrican Barrier on Saturday and open it only once to let the tide out before closing it until Tuesday after the storm has passed. The agency will begin staffing the barrier Saturday evening, according to the Corps of Engineers Facebook page.  

The barrier extends from the West Branch toward the East Branch of Stamford Harbor, the website said. The 17-foot-high wall protects about 460 acres of the city, which includes residential areas, manufacturing plants and the main portion of the commercial district, the site says.

What are you doing to keep your boat safe during the storm? Share below and become a part of the conversation. 

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