VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Marina professionals are urging boat owners to check their vessels and make necessary preparations as strong winds and changing tides approach Virginia Beach.
At Rudee's Inlet Station Marina, boat owners are adding extra fenders and checking lines to ensure their vessels can withstand the coming weather conditions.
"You know that you have appropriate fenders, add fenders knowing that the boat is going to move at the dock in substantial wind and current and tide," said Allen Newsome, owner of Marina Electric Unlimited.
Weather
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Newsome emphasized that boat owners should take several precautions before severe weather hits.
"First of all, make sure your insurance is paid, second of all, me being in the electrical business, make sure your batteries are good, turn off all non-essentials stuff on the boat because it could be days before you get back to it," Newsome said.
As dark clouds moved over the marina, Captain Bill Pappas of Playin Hookey Charters explained the importance of properly securing boats with the right amount of line tension.
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"Some of these ropes are loose, and they're loose going to the boats. Loose is fine, it means the boat has enough play to go back and forth, but when the tide gets really high and someone has their lines too tight or some cases the wind will blow the water all the way out the inlet and the tide goes to low, you can put a lot of strain on these cleats and it goes up too high and you're holding yourself down, you can sink the boat," Pappas said.
For charter businesses like Pappas', severe weather events can mean financial setbacks.
"These times do hurt us because we have a lot of trips booked, people from out of town trying to come fish with us, and they got to cancel or reschedule their trips... but that's the way it goes, that's fishing, that's weather," Pappas said.
Both Newsome and Pappas plan to monitor conditions and ensure boats at the marina are properly secured as water levels rise and winds intensify.
