Business & Tech
Tiverton and Portsmouth Marina Owners Prepare For Irene's Worst [VIDEO]
Marina owners in Tiverton and Portsmouth are working diligently today to prepare for Hurricane Irene.
As Hurricane Irene approaches, Ken Hilton of said he is trying to keep up with the demand for getting boats out of the water.
“We’re up to 20 boats now,” he said on Friday morning. “Yesterday the upper parking lot was nearly empty, but now it is almost full. We’re running out of room quickly."
Hilton said they are just trying to get boats out of the water, double tying them and checking the moorings. Among other measures, Hilton advises sailboat owners to get the sails, covers and dodgers taken off and to reduce the amount of wind damage.
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"Make sure the chafe gear is in place for the bobstays and double tie the pennant lines because that is what usually snaps off in the wind," he said.
Hilton reiterates to take this storm seriously.
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“There are 150 moorings with boats out there and if one breaks loose, they could target those that are secure and those on docks," he said.
The most practical advice Hilton has for boatowners under these potentially dangerous conditions is "to make sure the insurance is paid up.”
Like a lot of his business and a few residential neighbors up the road on low-lying Riverside Drive, Joe Latinville of has a lot to lose if he does not prepare properly. In his case, that means his business.
“Some people are thinking of riding this [out], but I tell them, 'Are you kidding me? There was nothing but splinters here after 1938 and 1954,” he said of the most destructive hurricanes of the 20th century. “We have a mark out on the telephone pole outside that is at least 10 or 11 feet high that marked how high the storm surge was. It went about halfway up the hill across the street.”
Latinville said he told everyone he knows to watch the 6 p.m. news tonight and if he hears anything bad he may have to empty his home out and come back to get back to the business to get anything of value. Whatever happens, Latinville still has plans for tomorrow to provide bait and tackle and whatever else his customers might need or want.
“We will be open tomorrow,” he added. “People will be fishing.”
Brandon Kidd, owner of Portsmouth's across the way from Standish Boat Yard in Tiverton has been very busy too. “We had experience dealing with storms last year,” he said. “We are just trying to rearrange some boats here and haul others out to put in storage up the road.”
