Storms 'Pummel' Waterways, Zeldin Calls For Emergency Dredge

MORICHES, NY — After a series of brutal winter storms, Rep. Lee Zeldin is calling for an emergency dredge of the Long Island Coastal Waterway, Moriches Bay and Moriches Inlet.

Zeldin will gather with other elected officials, small business owners, boaters, stakeholders and fishermen at the Moriches Yacht Club in Center Moriches Saturday to advocate that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers undertake the emergency dredging after the storms have "pummeled area waterways and worsened navigation conditions with sand virtually closing the Moriches Inlet," Zeldin said.

On Thursday, Zeldin called for an emergency dredge in a letter to the Army Corps of Engineers, after a meeting on the issue Thursday morning with Colonel Thomas Asbery, Commander of the New York District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

“After three strong and unprecedented recent winter storms, not only has the situation significantly deteriorated in Moriches Bay and throughout the entire Long Island Intracoastal Waterway, but sand has virtually closed Moriches Inlet,” Zeldin wrote. “This inlet provides critical access to the Atlantic Ocean and has allowed some boats to bypass the shoaling problems of Moriches Bay."

The threat of a triple closure of the Intracoastal Waterway, Bay and Inlet, however, "will guarantee a major blow to marine related businesses across eastern Suffolk County and increase overall danger to boating safety. Failure to dredge these vital waterways will not only cause economic hardship and create a public safety crisis, but will bring about significant environmental issues," he said.

The full letter is available here.

Patch file photo by Lisa Finn.