Profile
Photos
Comments
Waves take bites out of South Florida's shoreline
Waves sweep over A1A in Lauderdale, forcing closure of parts of road
By Jerome Burdi, Maria Herrera, Joel Marino and Rafael Olmeda
SunSentinel.com
8:34 AM EDT, September 26, 2008
The
high surf warning has ended, and the swells that caused beach erosion
across South Florida are diminishing, the National Weather Service in
Miami said this morning.
But coastal cities are still feeling the effects of the strong surf and
waves that crashed onto shore and even made it to the streets in some
areas Thursday.
The beach in Lantana will remain closed today as officials deal with
the erosion. Not that we'll be experiencing beach weather anyway: From
today to Sunday, there is a high risk of showers, rain and clouds.
"An umbrella may be a good thing to have this weekend," said weather service specialist Bob Ebaugh.
Sea grape trees were stripped down to their roots. Sea walls cracked
and crumbled. A rickety boardwalk remained standing on its weakened
wooden legs. It all happened after surf and wind hammered the shoreline
Thursday near the Manalapan municipal beach and along the South Florida
coast.
"It's only going to get worse if someone doesn't do something about
it," said Frank Martis, a frequent surfer who watched the wind and
water hit the shore. "In my 15 years of coming here I have never seen
anything like this."
The culprit: a high-pressure system in the Atlantic butting against a low-pressure system off the coast of the Carolinas.
Waves were expected to be highest in Palm Beach County, with swells of 5 to 8 feet, although unusually high tides were reported in Hollywood and Hallandale Beach.
"We could see minor flooding around high tide," said National Weather Service meteorologist Chuck Caracozza.
After high waves pounded Fort Lauderdale beach and reached State Road
A1A on Thursday night, a four-block section of the road was closed to
traffic. Chunks of seaweed made it to the street, clogging some flood
drains, authorities said.
Northbound lanes were closed from the 1300 block to the 1700 block of
A1A, city police spokeswoman Detective Kathy Collins said. One lane was
reopened, but it was unknown when the second lane, closer to the ocean,
would be passable.
At low tide Thursday afternoon, water lapped onshore less than 10 yards
from the sea wall at several points north of Sunrise Boulevard.
In Pompano Beach, swells rolled in all day but erosion issues were no
worse than usual, said Beach Patrol Capt. Wade Rickerson. "We've had
waves but Pompano Beach hasn't experienced the erosion the other
beaches have," Rickerson said. The yellow flag was flying to warn
swimmers of rip currents. A few were in the water, but most were
surfers, he said.
"It's a little nerve-wracking," said Bonnie Fischer, who lives on the
ground floor at Imperial House, a co-op in the 4500 block of South
Ocean Boulevard in Lantana. "I've never seen pieces of walkway floating
by. It's been a real scary event."
The National Weather Service issued a hazardous weather outlook that
includes warnings of rip currents and strong swells, effective until 8
a.m. today.
That means a sleepless night for Fischer, who last year watched
the backyard of her oceanfront co-op and those of several neighbors
almost disappear overnight. It cost homeowners $300,000 afterward to
put up a retaining wall. "My patio is cracked and I presume by tonight
I'll have a sinkhole, too," she said.
At the Dune Deck Cafe also in Lantana, owner Costa Panais wondered if
he would have a dining room today. He hopes the state steps in with a
beach restoration project that won't blow away at the first sign of
strong winds. "This is going to affect the town as well as our
business," he said. "If they don't do anything about it, our restaurant
won't be here."
The issue of beach erosion is as old as the beaches themselves. Of
Florida's 825 miles of sandy shores, 48 percent are classified as
"critically eroded." But renourishing a beach is a costly proposition,
and controversial at times. Environmentalists have expressed concern
about certain methods of restoration harming coral reefs.
Other methods shoot sand from one portion of beach to another, but that could cost taxpayers millions, as is the case with the Boynton Beach Inlet's $8 million transfer plant renourishing project.
"We're not taking care of things. We need to use taxpayers' money to
take care of stuff like this," said Al Wilson, of Merritt Island, who
watched the beach at the Ritz-Carlton in Manalapan.
"It's like most places — look at Minnesota not taking care of its
bridges. You'd hate for something bad to happen and for us to learn
from it that way. But sometimes it is what it takes."
Staff Writers C. Ron Allen and Sallie James contributed to this report.
AJ