00:00A number of coastal communities in New Jersey are taking emergency action after the recent storms wiped out a large portion of its beach.
00:10Look at that.
00:11Now, communities along the Jersey Shore are losing valuable coastline and with it, their protection from future storms.
00:17Our Allie Reed joins us live from Strathmere to share more on what's being done.
00:21Hey, Allie, you know, when we talked to you before we got live, I know you were astonished by the views.
00:30Yes. Well, also, Ari, Bernie, it's so beautiful on a day like today here in Strathmere, New Jersey, that it's hard to imagine how dire this situation really has become.
00:41In fact, it's become so severe here that the mayor has declared a state of emergency in Upper Township in Strathmere, the village of Strathmere, because of the beach erosion problem.
00:52And that's all due, in fact, to the recent storms that we saw here.
00:56Now, we didn't see a landfall here in New Jersey for hurricane season.
01:00But because of Aaron and because of the coastal storm, even as recent as two weeks ago, it has become an issue here.
01:07It has washed away a lot of the dunes along the coast, and it's now making homes and roads in this community very vulnerable.
01:15So with that, officials say that sand replenishment certainly helps here, but it's just not enough anymore.
01:21I want to take this in video.
01:23This is what those conditions looked like two weeks ago here when talking about that coastal storm.
01:27It really slammed the Jersey Shore over Columbus Day weekend.
01:32It brought wind gusts near 60 miles an hour, pounding surf, and nearly five inches of rain.
01:37Those conditions chewed away at beaches up and down the coastline, including here in Strathmere, where dunes were breached in multiple spots.
01:45And access points are now blocked off to prevent anyone from falling off the steep drop-offs.
01:49Upper Township's mayor says the damage is extensive, and this all comes after a major beach replenishment project in 2024.
01:57But with no sand left to move, local leaders are urgently calling for help from counties, state, and federal agencies.
02:05Officials have already asked the Army Corps of Engineers to step in and activate disaster recovery efforts,
02:10while also calling attention to the financial ripple effects that come when the coastline disappears.
02:15The economic impact is significant, and even like some of our neighboring communities that have boardwalks.
02:22I mean, it affects their business.
02:23It affects everything.
02:24If there's no beach, there's no boardwalk, there's no place for...
02:27It's not just our community, it's all the communities.
02:29I hope it can turn around, and we need to come up with more of a solid long-term solution.
02:35Pump and sand, it works.
02:37It is a solution, but it's not a long-term.
02:40And I don't know what the long-term answer is, whether it's jetties, seawalls, we need a long-term solution.
02:49The mayor says township engineers will review survey data to determine how much sand was lost and explore new options,
02:56including a pilot program using heavy offshore water barriers designed to absorb wave energy before it actually hits the coast.
03:03For now, officials are warning residents that without additional funding or new technology,
03:09these disappearing dunes could leave more homes and infrastructure at risk before the next storm even arrives.
03:15And I do want to quote the mayor for just a second here.
03:18He says if a storm, the next storm to potentially hit New Jersey here, could be catastrophic.
03:26That's the mayor's words.
03:27The other thing I want to point here, you can kind of see the ocean just over my right shoulder here.
03:32That tells you how little sand is left on the beach here.
03:36In fact, in about 30 minutes' time at high tide, there will be no beach left here in Strathmere.
03:43You won't see me live, or maybe you'll see me in the corner here on the beach,
03:47but probably not because there's not going to be much left.
03:49And what does that mean, guys, for next summer?
03:52A lot of questions still in play over the next couple of months.
03:55And, Ali, just so you know, our long-range team, we are concerned about a coastal storm middle part of next week,
04:04a powerful one that would have a lot of problems here with the northeasterly wind and more damage.
04:12So that's something to keep in mind moving forward.
04:15Not saying it's going to happen, Ali, but there is a potential for a strong coastal storm
04:21that would batter the Jersey Shore, the mid-Atlantic Shore, middle part of next week.
04:26All right.
04:26We appreciate Ali reporting.
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