Coast Guard warns boaters, swimmers of debris field floating in Long Island Sound

The U.S. Coast Guard and National Weather Service are warning boaters operating in Long Island Sound to beware of "a large debris field" composed of trees, logs and even docks that washed into the Sound during a series of recent summer storms that have caused flooding and damage upstate and in Connecticut.

And with thunderstorms in the area Friday, a spokesperson at the U.S. Coast Guard Sector Long Island Sound station in New Haven said boaters need to remain vigilant.

"We do have a safety broadcast going out," the Coast Guard said, noting that within the past 24 hours a boater near the Connecticut side of the Sound reported a 20-foot-long tree in the water.

In its advisory to mariners issued Wednesday the weather service warned of reports from boaters about the debris, which it said may not be easily visible to boaters.

The debris has washed into streams and rivers that empty into the Sound, officials said, the two major rivers being the Housatonic River just east of Bridgeport and the Connecticut River, which empties into the eastern Sound between Saybrook Point and Blackhall Point — an area almost due north of East Marion and Orient that leads into Block Island Sound.

"Boaters should exercise caution and be mindful of the debris," the statement from the weather service said, advising boaters, swimmers and all watercraft operators to be on alert. "We encourage everyone to make responsible decisions when engaging in water activities near the Connecticut River and Long Island Sound."

Fred Hall, vice president and general manager of The Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Steamboat Company, which operates 32 ferry trips daily between Port Jefferson and Bridgeport, Connecticut, said his operators are always on high alert for debris — but said the recent warnings are unusual.

"The Coast Guard frequently puts out notices," Hall said, noting that "any time you have a river in close proximity there is the possibility of things breaking off and causing problems."

But, Hall said: "I can't recall a summer when we've had this much rain . . . That rain, the flooding, has caused a lot more problems than usual."

Port Jefferson ferry operators say it's the Housatonic River, which drains into the Sound east of Bridgeport, between Stratford and Nells Island in Connecticut, that causes the biggest risk, Hall said. The area is northeast of Port Jefferson and, Hall said, so far tides and water circulation have kept much of that debris runoff east of the routes used by his ferries to and from Connecticut.

Asked if his crews have been impacted by the debris, Hall said: "Not up to this point."

But, he said: "We do keep a lookout for debris, no matter what. You don't want to hit anything."

The weather service warned Friday there could be even more debris on the way, thanks to a series of fast-moving thunderstorms that rolled through the area Friday.

In a weather statement issued Friday, the weather service said the storms that moved across Long Island, South Shore bays and the Sound Friday could ...  "knock down tree limbs" and blow about unsecured objects.

For those in low-lying areas, especially flood-prone shoreline areas, the weather service also warned that heavy downpours could cause flash-flooding.

By John Valenti

john.valenti@newsday.com

John Valenti, a reporter at Newsday since 1981, has been honored nationally by the Associated Press and Society of the Silurians for investigative, enterprise and breaking news reporting, as well as column writing, and is the author of “Swee'pea,” a book about former New York playground basketball star Lloyd Daniels. Valenti is featured in the Emmy Award-winning ESPN 30-for-30 film “Big Shot.”