Christine James spoke with Lawton Friday morning about why this sunken treasure could turn out to be just a tall tale.

A proposal by the MBTA to cut ferry service to Hull, Hingham and other local ports, is not sitting well with MBTA boat riders on the South Shore. WATD’s Steven Dodrill has the details

Todays informal meet and greet with riders comes ahead of a formal hearing next Wednesday in Hingham, which will allow for the MBTA to get comments on the proposal, aimed at cutting an extensive MBTA budget deficit.

However, Superintendent of Schools Scott Borstel said because these two fields will be in high demand, they’re trying to find money in the budget for lights, “We’re thinking more about youth because youth will lose so many fields on this site. So if we could temporarily light those for the year it takes before the building opens it will allow for a longer days use for the youth activities.”

Borstel further explained the electrical source for permanent turf field lighting is the new Marshfield school which opens in 2014.

Due to lighting and parking, Marshfield High School Principal Bob Keuther said his students may be on the road for two years.

“This site that encompasses the High School, Furnace Brook, and Martinson has the most number of fields and the most significant amount of play. Our high school uses just the facilities here. The town recreation and town youth use the five elementaries,” stated Superintendent Borstel

Principal Keuther said he is working on securing the closest location possible in another town to play home games. All fields will be back online by 2016.

Weston constantly monitors seismic activity in New England. Ebel gave a history of local quakes and their causes. Of particular interest to the audience of more than 100 people, could an earthquake similar to the one in Japan hit Plymouth and damage the nuclear power plant.

“I can’t say what are the chances that it would be damaged by an earthquake, because, of course, that depends on the way it’s constructed,” Ebel said after the presentation. “What I can say is, we’ve had felt, small earthquakes, magnitude 2, 2 1/2, up to nearly 3 in the Plymouth area and any place where we have small earthquakes, in my opinion, we do have the potential at some time, maybe tomorrow, maybe not for hundreds or thousands of years, of having a stronger, potentially damaging earthquake.”

Damaging earthquakes generally have a magnitude of at least 5. The earthquake in Japan had a magnitude of 9, one of the strongest in 100-year history of seismic records. Written records describe New England earthquakes as early as the 17th century. Ebel estimates the magnitude of the 1638 earthquake at 6.5. It had an epicenter near Concord, New Hampshire and damaged structures in Boston and Plymouth.

He delivered two bits of good news. The epicenter of the Virginia earthquake last spring was 11 miles away from the North Anna nuclear power plant. Seismic detectors at the plant sensed the quake and immediately shut the plant down. Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Plymouth replace all its seismic detectors three years ago. If the worst happens along the coast, the plant has a good chance of shutting down quickly.

Rockland Fire Chief Scott Duffey says that around 10 a.m. the Rockland Fire Department and the Abington Fire department were doing a training exercise at 136 Weymouth Street–a building set to be demolished as part of the development of the former South Weymouth Naval Air Station.

Crews were practicing cutting through the roof of the building, when a spark from a saw lit the insulation in the roof on fire.

“You don’t see it every day,” said Chief Duffy. “But it was good that we had enough manpower doing training that they were able to quickly get hold of the situation.”

The fire was knocked down by about 10:30 a.m.

She spoke with WATD’s Steven Dodrill on Thursday afternoon.

Seawall Chair Joe Rossi announced Wednesday night that Marshfield Selectmen want the coastal committee gone, “Their reason to dissolve this committee is because they do not agree with us informing the public by going to the media as often as we do with updates of what the committee is doing. Not once were we informed that we were doing anything wrong. We were following our mission statement.”

The Marshfield Seawall Committee has been working with Hull and Scituate to form the brand new Southeast Regional Coastal Coalition, in order to swap knowledge and spread awareness along the South Shore.

Marshfield resident Deb Stuart stated the Seawall Committee was just doing their job, “I think one of their greatest accomplishments has been the transparency and distribution of information to the townspeople. And I find with great sadness tonight that I intend this meeting.”

Rather than getting lost in limbo or a verbal battle, the five Seawall members unanimously voted to leave the committee and continue their goal as a community action group.

Rossi explained they’re focused on protecting residents and the coastline, “I’m trying to be as productive as I can in an environment of destruction. And I think that’s probably the most helpful thing for the people that are directly affected.”

Rossi further stated the Marshfield citizen group will replace the Seawall Committee’s position in the new regional coalition.

“It’s a very emotional topic and there’s some serious money involved,” Pembroke Town Administrator Ed Thorne said. “It’s going to be one of the biggest topics that this town has faced in recent memory.”

Thorne joined the recent walk-through. He’s done the same with an engineering group. They found the building lacking handicap access and in need of new gutters and downspouts. They found evidence of asbestos. A rehabilitation would have to address those and other problems. They also warn that bricks coming loose from the walls may prove a fatal flaw.

The town erected the building in 1934 as its high school in the center of town. After 20 years an elementary school replaced the high school. After some years vacant, the building became the community center, hosting the recreation department, the COA, the Center Pre-School and others.

Thorne said the town will gather as much information as it can regarding future options for the building. Because either rehabbing or replacing the building involves large amounts of money, voters will make the final decision.

Selectmen will consider the issue during their meeting Monday night.