Ask Sharon Tripp, an employee at Davis & Tripp marina in Padanaram how busy Friday has been and she has one response: Laughter.

“It’s been busy,” she said.

Tripp couldn’t estimate the number of boats that have come ashore through the marina but she was pleased to see boaters heeding warnings of an impending storm that could be the first direct hit from a hurricane in this area in 30 years.

“I’m so glad people are paying attention and taking care of their boats,’’ she said.

Boats are more than financial investments, she said. The vessels are “like family members,’’ she said.

She suspects that when the storm passes, mariners will return their boats to the sea rather than store them early.

“The season’s still young,” she said. 

The Padanaram bridge opened frequently throughout the day to allow boats to pass as they seek safe harbor.

Harbormaster Steve Melo would be pleased to see the efforts to protect boats from the storm.

He urged mariners Friday to take their boats out of the water as soon as possible in advance of a significant storm expected to impact the area Saturday evening through Monday.

A hurricane watch has been issued by the National Weather Service for southern Bristol County through 5:22 a.m. Monday Aug. 23 as tropical storm Henri makes it way up the coast.

“The time to prepare is now,” Melo said. “This is not a drill.”

Waiting too late to take boats out of the water can have disastrous results, he said. “Plan to haul it out today or tomorrow,’’ he said Friday, “or have plans to have people pick it out of the trees Tuesday or Wednesday.’’

Boats that remain in the water should minimize wind exposure by removing canvas (such as bimini tops, dodgers, sails and sail covers) and removing any dinghies, kayaks, paddleboards, towable toys and chairs from boats, according to dartmouthharbormaster.com/2021/08/20/hurricane-henri.

Be sure to check and add chafing gear to all mooring and dock lines, minimizing any sharp corners or hard bends against securing lines, the site reported. 

Tropical Storm Henri is forecast to strengthen to a hurricane as it heads northward Friday, the National Weather Service reports, and is expected to make landfall near Newport, R.I. Sunday evening, possibly as a Category 1 hurricane, the National Weather Service reports.

The main hazards include damaging winds, flooding rain, and storm surge flooding, the service reports. 

A hurricane watch is issued when sustained winds of 74 mph or higher are possible within the specified area of the watch. Because hurricane preparedness activities become difficult once winds reach tropical storm force levels, the watch is issued 48 hours in advance of the onset of tropical storm winds, the service reports. 

The hurricane watch flag is already flying at the maritime center, Melo said.

Peak wind forecast is 45-60 mph, with gusts possibly as high as 80 mph predicted. The window for tropical storm force winds is from Saturday evening until Monday morning.

Storms can always pick up speed or alter course, Melo said, which is why he urges people to react sooner rather than later.

Melo is concerned that less experienced mariners, including some who took to boating during the pandemic when social distancing was crucial, will procrastinate. 

“Wiser boaters know you don’t want to wait in line’’ to take boats out of the harbor, Melo said.

“It’s never too early,’’ he said. “Quite often it turns out to be too late.”

This story has been updated to include the scene at the marina as of Aug. 20.