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Article: The buoy boys
- Article from:
- Capital (Annapolis)
- Article date:
- August 1, 2009
- Author:
CopyrightCopyright 2009 Capital (Annapolis). Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
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Across the state, more than 4,000 white buoys bob in the waters
of the Chesapeake Bay, rivers and creeks.
They warn boaters of speed limits and no wake zones, designate
oystering and clamming areas and alert people to artificial
underwater reefs.
And each year, every single one of those buoys needs to be
hoisted out of the water and replaced.
That task falls to state employees like Capt. Jeff Lill and his
crew aboard the M/V John C. Widener.
From March through August, the Widener crew spends nearly every
workday replacing buoys over and over and over again. In the colder
months, they perform maintenance, refurbish buoys and take on the
more glamorous job of ice-breaking.
The 72-foot Widener ...