Mike Walls, who lives on Stutts Creek in Mathews, headed out to fish on the Chesapeake Bay during the weekend before the July 4 holiday only to find that all the lateral channel markers at Hole in the Wall had been changed to “Danger” markers.

He said he was stunned and frustrated because he hadn’t seen a notice anywhere saying that the change was imminent.

The Coast Guard had said last year that there would possibly be a change to the markers in the shallow entrance to Chesapeake Bay which runs between Gwynn’s Island and the mainland of Mathews. Walls was of the understanding that those markers would be replaced with floating buoys rather than changed to danger markers. He said the Coast Guard should have provided the local newspaper with information about such proposed changes ahead of time so that residents have a chance to comment on them.

After he returned to shore, Walls immediately began calling people to find out what had happened, seeking to enlist t...