By Thomas J. Morgan
NEWPORT, R.I. -- Small boats will be firing machine guns this week in the East Passage of Narragansett Bay, but it's the U.S. Navy and Coast Guard at work, not pirates.
Coastal Riverine Squadron 8 will be shooting blanks from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. in the area between the Melville Boat Basin and the Pell Bridge, said Lisa M. Woodbury Rama, public affairs officer for Naval Station Newport.
About a half-dozen 26-foot inflatable boats will take part, she said. The exercise is part of an annual training program.