The New York Power Authority started the final phase of the Lake Erie-Niagara River ice boom installation Thursday.
The ice boom is series of steel pontoons placed in the water to help prevent large chunk of ice from traveling down the Niagara River.
Lou Paonessa is the Community Affairs Director with the Niagara Power Authority. He says ice flowing down the Niagara River, could possibly result in costly property, shoreline damage, and eventually cause problems or the power authority.
"It doesn’t eliminate the release of lake ice, but it does diminish the probability of large scale ice blockages in the river," he said. "Which can cause flooding damage to docks and shore structures and a reduction to the flow to the hydroelectric power intakes.”
The ice boom is usually removed around April 1st.
