Prudence Island News

1791- Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton authorized an allowance of 9 cents for every ration that Revenue officers did not draw. 1922- Congress authorized officers of the Customs and of the Coast Guard to board and examine vessels, reaffirming authority to seize and secure vessels for security of the revenue under act of March 2, 1799. 1938-A hurricane hit the northeast coast, wreaking havoc among the lighthouses and the light keepers there. First assistant keeper Walter B. Eberle of the Whale Rock light was killed when his lighthouse was swept into the sea. The wife of head keeper Arthur A. Small was killed when she was swept away from the Palmer Island Light Station.

1791- Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton authorized an allowance of 9 cents for every ration that Revenue officers did not draw. 1922- Congress authorized officers of the Customs and of the Coast Guard to board and examine vessels, reaffirming authority to seize and secure vessels for security of the revenue under act of March 2, 1799. 1938-A hurricane hit the northeast coast, wreaking havoc among the lighthouses and the light keepers there. First assistant keeper Walter B. Eberle of the Whale Rock light was killed when his lighthouse was swept into the sea. The wife of head keeper Arthur A. Small was killed when she was swept away from the Palmer Island Light Station.

James Rall, of Hydroacustics Inc., of New York, explains uses for the Proteus ROV roaming ocean vehicle, used for exploration with cameras and lights. The ROV is controlled by a joystick. PROVIDENCE — Jason Cedro clicked on a computer mouse at the Rhode Island Convention Center yesterday and on the screen appeared a live, gull’s-eye view of Narragansett Bay, from a camera perched miles to the south at Beavertail State Park, in Jamestown. He clicked again to order the camera, by wireless connection, to pan the Bay, then focus more closely on a power boat motoring across the water beneath a blue sky. From the same screen, Cedro was also able to obtain a live view of the Bay’s activity from Prudence Island, another from the area around the Pell Bridge in Newport.

The state Senate of Massachusetts could soon consider a bill that would effectively ban tanker ships carrying liquefied natural gas from moving along Narragansett Bay and the Sakonnet River. Lawmakers in the House passed the bill on May 10. If approved by the Senate and signed by Gov. Don Carcieri, the legislation could severely hinder the operations of a proposed LNG facility in Fall River, Mass. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has approved Weaver's Cove Energy's plan to build a $250m LNG terminal at a former Shell Oil site on the banks of the Taunton River. The terminal would be serviced by tankers that move through Narragansett Bay.

The House of Representatives on May 10 joined a growing list of official bodies erecting hurdles in front of a proposed liquefied natural gas terminal in Fall River, Mass. The House unanimously approved legislation that would, in effect, block LNG tankers from sailing through Rhode Island waters to get to the terminal. Sponsored by Rep. Raymond E. Gallison Jr., D-Bristol, the bill would prevent any tanker from coming within 1,000 yards of any residences, piers, docks, wharves or waterfront facilities. A tanker sailing to Fall River would have to pass within 600 yards of Fort Wetherill in Jamestown, 700 yards of Fort Adams, 400 yards of Sandy Point lighthouse on Prudence Island, 700 yards of the Prudence Island ferry dock and 500 yards of Arnold's Point in Portsmouth.