Volunteers removed a huge barge grounded on the Providence Harbor shore during the Hurricane of 1938. The effort involved collaboration of five area organizations: Providence Piers, Clean the Bay, R&P Construction, the city of Providence and Promet Marine.
"The barge symbolizes 69 years of outer harbor neglect," said Dr. Patrick Conley, who with his wife, Gail, owns Providence Piers.
The removal effort was a highlight of Clean the Bay's 2007 focus on cleaning the Providence, Cranston and East Providence Narragansett Bay shorelines.
Dr. Conley, who is a real estate lawyer and developer, coordinated the effort at Providence Piers, where Clean the Bay's salvage boat was docked no charge while undertaking its Providence Harbor clean-up efforts.
Pete St. Lawrence of R&P Construction donated an excavator and labor to help move the decaying barge from the shore.
Clean the Bay volunteers helped break up and move pieces from the demolished barge and other shore debris to containers, donated by the city of Providence. The city also donated transportation to the landfill.
For more information on Clean the Bay, see www.cleanthebay.org. For information on Providence Piers, see www.providencepiers.com.