Nor'easter damage causing problems for commercial fishermen

MARSHFIELD, Mass. — The damage from wild March weather is still adding up and it's causing big challenges for commercial fishermen in Marshfield.

In Mike Pratt's line of work, the weekly March nor'easters are still causing problems.

"The way the channel filled in just from the last three storms is the worst I've seen in my lifetime," said Pratt.

Sky25 flew over Green Harbor to see how narrow the entrance has become.

"This is their Route 128. It would be no different than going over a bridge and it was four lanes and it's now down to one lane," said Marshfield Harbormaster Officer Mike DiMeo.

Typically, the channel should be about 5-6 feet under water at low tide.

"We need 4 or 5 feet to get through. It's really, really narrow. It's definitely dangerous," said Pratt.

Marshfield is trying to secure emergency permits and funding to dredge the channel as soon as possible. The Army Corp of Engineers had been finalizing a repair project from 2015 storm damage, but the recent round of weather caused a lot more damage.

The concern is the harbor problems turning into an economic impact, as well.

"There has been more than one occasion we've sat there hard at ground, damaged our propellors," said Pratt.

>> MORE: These before and after photos show how much damage the nor'easter did

"If the fleet can't get out fishing, can't bring in their catch on time, the buyers, tuna buyers may go to a different port to offload," said DiMeo.

DiMeo says this jetty really should get major improvements, including making it higher to keep the fleet of about 50 year-rounders thriving.

"We make the best decisions we can and we hope it gets fixed," said Pratt.

Cox Media Group