Under blue skies, active repairs of damages caused by corrosive saltwater were underway at Eleanor’s Pier. The deteriorations are far more extensive than previously thought. RIOC, the state agency that never gets it wrong, has not commented on the damages or the repairs.
by David Stone
The Roosevelt Island Daily News
Maybe RIOC’s $150K per annum communications AVP was too tied up with composing salutes to himself and Selcom Seen Shelton J. Haynes. In any case, he has not pushed out any copy about the railing collapse at Eleanor’s Pier nor the active repairs.
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But, as we reported last week…
The Effects of Saltwater
Eleanor’s Pier, extending into the East River along the West Promenade, is living proof of saltwater’s degrading effects on wooden structures. In recent years, it has become the victim of the tides as the Atlantic Ocean daily drowns its structural integrity.
The powerful mixture of salt and water acts like a cleansing agent and weakened Eleanor’s Pier beyond repair in some places.
Constant contact between seawater and wood deprives the pier of essential oils, softening it and making it vulnerable to breakage.
But consistent with observations nearby, it appears as if RIOC has paid little or no notice. As a consequence, the most recent example of collapsing infrastructure came as a surprise.
Active Repairs Expose Extensive Damages
As suspected, work on the pier exposed more damage to the underlying pier infrastructure. The railings are being replaced, but the workers tore up much of the nearby deck for restorative work.
While RIOC maintains a thick wall of silence, observers wonder about the stability of the rest of Eleanor’s Pier. It’s reasonable to expect the constant exposure of saltwater to have the same effect along the rest of the structure.
But of course, RIOC says nothing.
Until and if we hear something from the Haynes/Hochul administration in Blackwell House, we advise extreme caution in using the wooden deck area of the pier.
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