Nor’easter leaves steep beach cuts from Manasquan to Brigantine as towns assess losses
Four days of surf stripped sand from several shore communities. Recently widened beaches helped protect some southern towns, officials say.
The surf has eased, but parts of the Jersey Shore look markedly different after a slow-moving nor’easter pushed waves and repeated high tides against the coast for four days. Local crews began clearing sand and debris Monday, September 28, while officials assessed damage to beaches, dunes and waterfront structures. A complete accounting is still to come.
In Manasquan, emergency management coordinator and police Lt. Johne Ringo told NJ.com that some beach sections now have sand cliffs five to eight feet high. The storm exposed portions of the borough’s bulkhead that are normally buried, and sand was pushed onto the path between the beach and oceanfront homes. Ringo described the erosion as the borough’s worst since Superstorm Sandy, citing the unusually long duration of the storm.
Farther south, Atlantic City Beach Patrol Chief Steven Downey reported particularly severe erosion between New Jersey and Virginia avenues, near Steel Pier and the Hard Rock Hotel Casino. Waves cut into dunes in that area. Downey told NJ.com that exposed pilings beneath a lifeguard stand at South States Avenue did not mean the structure was in danger of collapse.
Brigantine Mayor Vince Sera said a long stretch of the city’s beach had lost substantial sand, with especially heavy damage near South 13th and 14th streets. The sea also battered the northern promenade seawall, where several pedestrian ramps collapsed. Sera warned that weakened defenses could leave streets vulnerable if another coastal storm arrives before repairs are made.
The outcome was different in some towns with recent federal beach work. Ocean City Mayor Jay Gillian said the ocean did not breach the city’s dunes and credited its replenishment project with limiting property damage. In Strathmere, Upper Township Mayor Curtis Corson said newly widened beaches helped avert more serious damage, though some erosion and sand cliffs appeared. Avalon closed beach entrances between 18th and 21st streets after damage there; additional sand placement was expected as Army Corps work resumed. These are local officials’ early assessments, not a final measure of how much sand each project retained.
The storm’s reach extended beyond the beach. New Jersey’s September 25 emergency order covered Atlantic, Burlington, Cape May, Cumberland, Middlesex, Monmouth, Ocean and Salem counties. On Monday, Rep. Frank Pallone asked state officials for a prompt damage survey to determine whether the losses might warrant a federal disaster declaration. His letter described flooding and damaged infrastructure in parts of his district; it did not announce that federal assistance had been approved.
For shore residents, the next milestones are beach and infrastructure inspections, access decisions and a fuller state and federal damage assessment. Conditions can vary block by block, so visitors should follow local beach access notices rather than assume an entire town’s shoreline is open or closed.
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