May 2022 Nor’easter

As happens most winters there are low pressure regions off shore that drive winds from the north-north-east down our coast. These winds drive waves that beat our shoreline for days and cause considerable damage to our beach. The beach elevation drops, the waves rush in and the face of our dune, no matter how tall, erodes.

The 2020 County engineering report identified 35 oceanfront homes in Corolla whose foundations would be undermined by the next major Hurricane, like 2003’s Isabel. These included homes in Ocean Hill, Corollla Village, Whalehead, Ocean Sands and Spindrift. Given CAMA regulations they might not be able to be rebuilt at their current size. But the County has elected to defer a decision on whether or not to replenish our beaches, even though hundreds of other beach vacation communities have done successfully along the east coast.

Here are pictures of Ocean Hill and Villages at Ocean Hill taken May 12, 2022, as the winds subsided. I have aligned them with the County’s beach “stability” survey study results where they show 10, 20 and 30 year migration of the 4 ft above sea level line. Just this one storm, in less than a week, has achieved a decade of erosion in some areas destroying 20 sets of beach stairs, beach decks and undermining about six pools. Following this are photos of similar devastation at the southern part of Corolla in Spindrift.

The County needs to immediately start the four year process of additional research to find a sand source off-shore, apply for the State and Federal permits required, then to select a contractor With luck Northern Corolla beach homes will be able to hold back the storms for another four years without permanent loss.