COURT HOUSE – Following the nor’easter associated with the remnants of Hurricane Ian, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) conducted a damage assessment along the entire length of the Cape May County shoreline. The results showed a line could have been drawn just below North Wildwood.
All the beaches north of that imaginary line saw major erosion and those south of it had only minor impacts from the extended duration storm.
The Cape May County portion of the report started with Ocean City where the DEP found 50’ of sloped erosion up to 2’ through the city. The agency reported scarps from 2’ to 6’ in height and total dune loss from south of 5th Street through near 7th Street. Just to the north of Ocean City, in the municipalities from Longport to Atlantic City, the DEP found minor erosion. South of Ocean City was a different story entirely.
The shoreline from Strathmere through to Sea Isle City and continuing south to Avalon and Stone Harbor had major damage. The report noted vertical dune scarping in parts of Strathmere up to 14’ in height and up to 20’ in width from Seaview Avenue south through Whale Beach. 50% of the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) dune is missing for several blocks with almost no dune left at Seaview Avenue.
In Sea Isle, the DEP report found up to 75’ of sloped erosion with scarping up to 14’ in height and up to 15’ in width. Much of the damage again is to a USACE’s dune.
7 Mile Island fared no better with major sand loss, with scarping up to 14’ high in Avalon and 10’ high in Stone Harbor. Vehicle and pedestrian access points were damaged, and many were closed. In both communities, wave runup and tide action came to the upper beach and dunes with some run up into the dunes.
North Wildwood had major damage from 2nd Avenue to the Wildwood border according to the report. Much of the city saw 80’ of sloped erosion and scarping that in places was 14’ in height.
At the Wildwood border, things changed. Shorelines along the rest of 5 Mile Island and Cape Island all saw minor erosion and damage.
For the several days that the nor’easter pounded the county coastline, offshore buoys recorded wind gusts near 60 mph. The damage assessment was conducted Oct. 6. Of the 81 sites surveyed, from Perth Amboy to Cape May Point, 12 were designated as having experienced major beach or dune erosion with half of those in Cape May County.
The report notes that much of the eroded sand sits offshore and some will return to the beach in time. Several factors will determine how much sand will return to the dry beach and in what time frame. Meanwhile, the lost sand and damaged dunes present a portion of the county coastline with vulnerability to another storm.
The DEP coastal storm damage report following the Mother’s Day nor’easter similarly showed four county sites with major erosion damage, including Ocean City, Avalon, Stone Harbor and North Wildwood.
Speaking of the October storm, Avalon Mayor and County Coordinator for Emergency Management Martin Pagliughi said the beaches and the dunes did exactly the job they were designed to do, protecting lives and property. He also cautioned that many areas of the county are exposed to damage from any new storm until the protective beach/dune system is repaired.
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