Residents of the Fenway and Kenmore neighborhoods have been put on alert for several loud bangs that will be heard near the area starting Wednesday.
The bangs are a result of structural testing for the Muddy River Restoration project, which began in February, as part of an effort to address serious flooding issues.
The Boston Parks and Recreation department posted details about the disturbances on its website for residents.
“Residents may hear a loud bang three times a day through May 10,” the website stated. “The bang is in connection to load testing for the $30.9 million Muddy River Flood Risk Management and Environmental Restoration project.”
Mike Keegan, project manager with the Army Corps of engineers, said residents should not be alarmed by the bangs.
“The tests will sound like gunshots,” he said. “They will last for less than a second.”
Keegan said there would be mild traffic delays but no major disruptions caused by the bangs.
“We don’t want somebody driving and distracted by a loud noise,” he said. “The tests are short and traffic will only be stopped for a short time so we aren’t anticipating any traffic delays.” Area residents received an email notifying them to the activity.
“Please be advised that there will be loud blasts associated with Stat-Namic testing as a part of the Muddy River Restoration Project,” the email stated. “Given the recent events in Boston, we want you to be aware of such activity.”
Residents around Fenway Park and Kenmore Square had mixed reactions to these blasts, which will happen in close proximity to the site of the Boston Marathon bombings.
Harold Castillo, 64, said he though the timing of the blasts were very inappropriate.
“People are still very on edge here,” he said. “I still get nervous when I hear sirens, and blasts will only be worse.”
Kelly Hartman, 24, said victims in the area should have been thought of before these tests were allowed.
“I know a lot of people who live down here were at the finish line when it happened,” he said. “They are just trying to recover. The last thing they need is more s**t blowing up near their homes.”
Hartman said she understands that construction and other projects need to continue despite such significant adverse events as the bombings.
“It is definitely bad timing,” she said. “But we can’t expect to halt everything else in this city because of what happened. Things have to start returning to normal and that includes construction.”
Jeffrey Wallace, 27, said he was displeased with the timing but glad the city notified residents beforehand.
“I am not happy that they are voluntarily setting off explosives this close to the bombings,” he said. “But I do appreciate that the city took the time to be considerate and notify us. People would have panicked if the explosives had just started going off.”
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