Red, Right, Returning: When returning to harbor, keep the red marker on the right side of the boat.

The phrase has been drilled into the heads of mariners for generations. But it has never been applicable to those returning to Menemsha Harbor at night. That is until last Friday, when a red LED light was placed atop the entrance marker on the Lobsterville jetty per order of Justin Longval, senior chief at Station Menemsha.

“It’s a project we’ve been working on for a year or so,” Chief Longval said. “There was visual indicator there before, but it was only visible during the day.”

The project was only recently approved by the District Waterway Office, a federal organization that oversees waterfront safety regulations such as proper lighting in the mouth of a harbor. Following the approval, a team of five Coastguardsmen from the aids to navigation team stationed in Woods Hole promptly carried out the electrical engineering and installed the light.

Chief Longval added that a survey had to be conducted of boaters that frequent the harbor, which yielded favorable results.

“This will drastically improve the visibility and safety of mariners going in and out of the harbor during the night,” Chief Longval said. “If you don’t have a light, the harbor can appear much further away than it is.”