The dredging of the harbor at Lake Montauk, which is to restore safe navigation to the inlet, hit a snag last month when “they ran into a really big rock,” East Hampton Town Councilman David Lys told the Montauk Citizens Advisory Committee on Monday.
The project, which will increase the navigation channel’s depth to 17 feet, is still on track to be completed on schedule, Mr. Lys said on Tuesday.
A mechanical failure “took it down for about 10 days,” he said on Monday. “They ran into a really big rock,” which sheared a 16-inch shaft on a seven-foot cutter head. Sixteen thousand cubic yards of rock are to be excavated from the channel. “The dredge master ain’t a happy man,” Mr. Lys said.
Following a call with the federal Army Corps of Engineers on Tuesday, Mr. Lys said the equipment may have been repaired by yesterday. H&L Contracting of Hauppauge, the contractor for the project, had not returned calls as of yesterday morning.
The 144-by-60-foot Oyster Bay mechanical dredge, a 30-by-90-foot excavator barge, a 130-by-40-foot barge with walls for cargo, two tugboats, and several skiffs have been on site since last month. Sand dredged from the inlet is being placed on the beach west of the western jetty.
The municipal parking lot on West Lake Drive near the western jetty is closed for the duration of the project, and temporary beach closures may occur during sand placement. The Coast Guard has advised mariners to use caution and operate at the slowest safe speed to avoid wake near dredging equipment.
