Construction on Miss Katie, a shallow-draft hopper dredge under construction by Conrad Shipyard in Louisiana, is closer to completion, Dare County officials announced Tuesday.
The final coat of exterior paint has been applied and the dredge is scheduled to be finished in the spring, according to the county. When the dredge has been delivered, it will be used to address ongoing shoaling issues.
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The Oregon Inlet Task Force will manage the vessel that can operate up to 12 hours a day.
Miss Katie will provide “the strategic dredging that is needed to keep area waterways open and navigable for commercial and recreational vessels,” officials said.
The Dare County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved in May 2019 a contract for the construction and operation of the dredge. Funded through a public-private partnership with the state, the legislature allocated $15 million from the Shallow Draft Navigation Channel Dredging and Aquatic Weed Fund to buy the dredge.
