ESSEX, MASS. (WHDH) - Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey Monday handed out $300,000 in relief payments to shellfish harvesters on the North Shore who were impacted by the massive sewage leak in Haverhill in June.
Healey stopped by Woodman’s of Essex to hand out the payments to eligible harvesters.
During a storm in June, officials said a pressurized sewer line broke in two spots near the City of Haverhill’s main pumping station, sending millions of gallons of wastewater flowing into the Merrimack River. The leak prompted the closure of several beaches in the area, and the state issued an emergency shellfish closure for parts of the North Shore that lasted 12 days.
On July 10, Healey announced a $300,000 economic relief program administered by the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries for shellfish harvesters and oyster growers who were impacted by the emergency closures.
“I said we got to find a way to get these guys some relief because you were losing money at a high point of the season,” Healey said Monday. “Clams were at the highest price they have been at the worst possible time, so I said we got to find some funds to take care of folks who are important to our economy and who lost out, because you are also feeding families.”
The relief checks were given to approximately 130 clammers across Salisbury, Newburyport, Newbury, Rowley, Ipswich, Essex, Gloucester and Rockport.
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