Due to the efforts of NYS Senators Carl Marcellino and Flanagan and Assemblymen James Conte and Andrew Raia, the foghorn service at Eatons Neck and Huntington Harbor will continue. Rear Admiral V.S. Crea, U.S. Coast Guard Commander, announced that after a thorough analysis of the Huntington Bay waterway and based on input from many mariners and local officials, it was worth continuing.

After receiving many calls from concerned mariners and reading a proposal of the possibility of discontinuing sound signals at each lighthouse, the elected officials worked together in an effort to lobby the coast guard, explaining several justifications for continued sounding service for Huntington Bay.

"I'm pleased that Admiral Crea has rescinded the proposal of discontinued foghorn service," said Assemblyman Conte. "Understandably, the Coast Guard's Office of Aids to Navigation (OAN) utilizes the proposal process in order to assess waterway user opinions and for collecting information, but my concern was the impact on recreational and commercial mariners, causing significant revenue loss to our area and the issue of safety."

Assemblyman Raia added, "Foghorn service provides a vital service to combat the variable hazards mariners regularly encounter, especially in Huntington Bay. Rough sea conditions, the presence of shallow rocks, and failure of on-board navigational systems are all common occurrences mariners face. Add these external factors to conditions of low or poor visibility and you have a recipe for disaster."

The lawmakers were pleased with the swift, positive response from Rear Admiral Crea, following in the tradition of the United States Coast Guard, promoting excellence in maritime safety.