SWAMPSCOTT — The Department of Public Works takes its Barber Surf Rake to the town’s beaches not to catch waves, but to catch trash.
The Surf Rake is a tractor-towed beach-cleaner machine that collects debris, such as trash and seaweed, from the sand while simultaneously leveling and smoothing the surface. The machine is equipped with individual stainless-steel tines that cycle through a conveyor belt designed to remove both surface and submerged debris.
The collected refuse travels up the conveyor belt into a hopper, which is later emptied.
“When it combs through the sand, it picks up any object that doesn’t fit through the teeth, rotates it around, and throws it into a hopper,” Director of Public Works Gino Cresta explained. “We store it and we haul it away at the end of the year.”
From Memorial Day to Labor Day, DPW staff member Paul Erickson operates the Surf Rake every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday before sunrise.
“We don’t want him operating that heavy piece of equipment when there are people on the beach,” Cresta said.
Cresta expressed his gratitude to Erickson for his commitment to raking at such an early hour, as he typically begins at 4 a.m.
“He ran the beach rake all but one week this year,” Cresta said.
The rake is used on King’s Beach, Fisherman’s Beach, Whales Beach, Eisman’s Beach, and Preston Beach. Cresta said that sometimes, Erickson will be called upon to man the machine after Labor Day if the weather is adequate.
