Hull Police arrest another person for vandalizing historic fort

The Hull Police Department arrested a Cohasset woman Friday for allegedly vandalizing Fort Revere. That arrest came less than 24 hours after police arrested a trio of East Bridgewater residents on the same charge.

Margaret St. Sauveur, 20, of Cohasset was arrested and charged with tagging property.

At 2:49 p.m. Friday, Hull Police responded to Fort Revere to investigate a report of graffiti in progress. Police were told that the suspect got into a black Ford Escape. An officer located the vehicle nearby and made a traffic stop.

The driver, identified as St. Sauveur, allegedly had blue paint on her hands. The officer saw paint and paintbrushes on the floor of the car in plain view. Police also found a can of blue paint at the site of the tagging, Hull Police Chief John Dunn said today.
St. Sauveur was arrested and released on personal recognizance pending arraignment at Hingham District Court.

At about 8 p.m. the night before, Jacob Looney, Emma Pimental, and Emily Rose, all 18 and all of West Bridgewater, were arrested and charged with malicious destruction of property after Hull police were called to Fort Revere for a tagging report.

The Hull Redevelopment Authority and the state Department of Conservation & Recreation paid for anti-graffiti paint that a corps of volunteers applied to the historic fort in June.

Since then, Hull Police have stepped up patrols in the area. The state police have also made multiple arrests for vandalism and trespassing over the last couple of weeks.

Chief Dunn said law enforcement will continue to closely monitor Fort Revere and will not hesitate to charge those who are found to be breaking the law.

"Fort Revere is a historic site and is hallowed ground, as it serves as a burial ground for French soldiers who died assisting our young nation in the American Revolution. We will not tolerate the desecration of this site," Dunn said. "If you tag or vandalize at Fort Revere, we will arrest you."

[This story has been updated to correct the hometown listed for the trio arrested on Aug. 24. The police statement listed it as East Bridgewater. The police log has the three as residents of West Bridgewater.] 

Hull Police arrest 3 for Fort Revere vandalism

Chief John E. Dunn reports that the Hull Police Department arrested three individuals Thursday evening for alleged vandalism at Fort Revere.

Jacob Looney, Emma Pimental, and Emily Rose, all 18 and all of West Bridgewater, were arrested and charged with malicious destruction of property. 

At 7:47 p.m Thursday, a Hull Police officer and a Massachusetts state trooper responded to a report that people were seen tagging at Fort Revere Park. Upon arrival, the police officers located the teens, who allegedly were holding cans of spray paint. As the officers walked down the stairs to interview the three suspects, Looney dropped his paint can. 

All three were taken into custody as a result of the investigation; each was later released on $40 cash bail pending his or her arraignment in Hingham District Court.

[This story has been updated to correct the hometown listed for those who were arrested. The police statement listed the addresses as East Bridgewater. The police log has the three as residents of West Bridgewater.] 

Delivery snafu delays this week's Times

Due to a problem with its new distribution system, our printer failed to deliver the papers to the Hingham Post Office in time for today's delivery.

As we understand it, local subscribers should get their Hull Times tomorrow. The newsstand copies went out on time and are at local vendors today. The e-edition is also up, as is usual.

This is just the second time in nearly 40 years that the paper's delivery has been delayed. We sincerely regret the inconvenience.

– Susan Ovans, publisher

Officials seeking seaweed strategy

The Hull Board of Health posted the following message on its Facebook page today:

"Residents of Gunrock Beach area and T St.- Bradford Ave., we are aware of the large accumulation of seaweed in those areas. We are working with the DPW and Conservation on a plan and to resolve it. Thank you for your patience."

Times photographer Roger Jackson took the photo at an almost deserted Crescent Beach this afternoon.

Fundraising page set up to benefit Judeth Van Hamm

The Times received a letter from Judeth Van Hamm's son yesterday that we want to share with our readers.

Longtime residents know how much the town owes to Van Hamm's long efforts to preserve Hull's resources, natural and historic. It is not too much to say that we would not have the lifesaving museum, the carousel, the Weir River Woods, and many other town treasures, without her.

Van Hamm last week lost her longtime partner, Michael Connelly, who died unexpectedly. So she is faced with financial hardship to compound her grief. We know that her many friends and admirers will want to help. Here's one mechanism to do so:

To the Editor:

Readers of The Hull Times might like to know about a fundraiser set up for Judeth Van Hamm in memory of her late parter, Michael Connelly. Michael passed away July 21st after sharing three decades of sunsets over Hull Bay with my mother. His unexpected departure has come with additional financial pressures for Judeth. If any readers would like to contribute to her wellbeing through this difficult time, the link is https://www.gofundme.com/picture-judeth-a-millionaire. Thoughts on peace, love, light, joy, health, and abundance also welcome!

Thank you, Blake Wiers

Settlement paves way for cable, dredging work in Boston Harbor

By Colin A. Young
State House News Service

An electrical cable under Boston Harbor that has been the source of delays for a dredging project required before new supertankers can dock in Boston will be removed and replaced, the result of a federal court settlement that clears the way for the Boston Harbor Deep Draft Navigation Improvement Project.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Massachusetts Port Authority are pursuing a $310 million project to carve out a deeper channel in Boston Harbor, making the port accessible to the larger class of ships now able to fit through an expanded Panama Canal and already serving deeper ports.

But a cable laid in 1990 to bring power to the Deer Island Wastewater Treatment Plant was installed closer to the seafloor surface than allowed by a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers permit and would pose a danger to people and equipment dredging the harbor, according to the suit filed by the federal government and MassPort.

Last week, the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority and Eversource settled the suit filed against them over the cable that spans two of the harbor's shipping channels, the U.S. Attorney's Office announced, an outcome that will allow the dredging to move ahead.

“The Deep Draft project is necessary to keep the Port of Boston and its shipping facilities competitive with other East Coast ports,” William Weinreb, acting U.S. attorney for the district of Massachusetts, said in a statement. “The settlement also means there will be no interference with the provision of electricity to the Deer Island Waste Water Treatment Plant, which is critical to keeping Boston Harbor clean. This is a victory for both the local economy and the environment.”

The Deer Island facility was built by the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA) as part of the effort to clean up Boston Harbor. The MWRA now serves 2.5 million people, supplying 215 million gallons of water and treating an average of 350 million gallons of sewage daily.

The settlement requires Eversource to install a new cable connecting the K Street substation in South Boston to Deer Island and have it powered by Dec. 31, 2019. That cable is expected to cross land in South Boston, cut through MassPort's Conley Terminal, and enter the harbor just north of Castle Island. It is to be laid at least 75 feet below the low-water line.

The existing and improperly installed cable is to be de-energized by Feb. 28, 2020, per the settlement, and the 1.4-mile section closest to the container terminal is to be removed by May 31, 2020. The settlement allows the other portion of the cable to be abandoned in place if the various permitting agencies allow it.

“We're pleased to have reached a resolution with all parties that permits us to continue providing safe and reliable service to MWRA, while also accommodating the moving forward of the Massport/ACOE harbor dredging project,” Eversource spokesperson Rhiannon D'Angelo said in a statement.

D'Angelo said Eversource is still working to determine the cost of installing a new cable and removing the old one, and expects to file its plan with the state Department of Public Utilities later this summer.

"Once the cost recovery is approved by the DPU, we'll recover the cost from the MWRA, Harbor Electric Energy Company's sole customer," she said, referring to the Eversource subsidiary that powers Deer Island.