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As you know, Monday was a tumultuous day in the Pines, as a powerful storm ravaged our beach and put much of the harbor boardwalks and freight dock under water. Throughout the day, the prospect of potential property loss hung over us as a violent ocean and waves up to 18 feet high flooded the beach and eroded our dunes.
When the skies cleared and the ocean finally receded, it was clear that no homes were lost, and the community emerged mostly intact, thankfully. But the storm took a significant toll in important ways. The dunes suffered major erosion, particularly at the western half of the community, leaving us more vulnerable to future storms. The ocean is still up to the steps in some areas. The east end of the Pines, which has a wider, higher dune and berm, fared much better, as the wide berm allowed the waves to dissipate before reaching the dunes.
The bayside dune under the PSEG power station located just a few yards from the western boundary of the Pines suffered significant erosion and is in need of repair. Sandbags recently installed by PSE&G were successful in mitigating what could have been a far bigger problem. The west cut is currently closed. And the beach is only drivable for 2-3 hours each day, severely limiting access for emergency vehicles and utility trucks.
We have been in touch with state, county and town officials since the storm began, alerting them of the damage and discussing next steps to address it. We have spoken with aides to Governor Hochul and publicly encouraged her to declare a state of emergency, a mechanism that could free up funds and ease bureaucratic hurdles for repairs (here is a press release we issued).
The storm occurred at a pivotal moment for us. Last week, the Army Corps of Engineers agreed to re-evaluate their steadfast opposition to conducting an emergency replenishment project. Their decision to reconsider came in the wake of an aggressive campaign that we have been waging for several months in partnership with Seaview. Both of our United States senators, the governor, our congress member and other elected officials and government agencies have joined our cause and worked hard to turn the Corps around on this issue. The media coverage that we have solicited has been beneficial to the cause.
The growing political and governmental support led to a meeting last week with a Corps official, joined by aides to Hochul, Senators Schumer and Gillibrand. The Corps, a division of the U.S. military, is tightly wedded to rules and regulations that they have interpreted negatively. But they are planning to complete their review of our situation by mid-January. We do not know if they will change their position. But we are going to protect our community regardless of how it happens or what it takes.
This has been a trying week, and I want to pay special thanks to several members of our community. Karen Boss, FIPPOA board member Leland Rechis, and a small group of other Pines winter residents went out of their way Monday to keep the community informed during the emergency. They helped hundreds of us stay in touch throughout the nerve-wracking day and we are deeply grateful to them. Though Sayville Ferry service was cancelled yesterday due to terminal flooding, determined FIPPOA employees, Karen McCutcheon (our Community Manager) and Joe Micheels (our Facilities Manager) found their way to the beach and took a series of pictures at the request of the Town of Brookhaven to help document the storm’s impact. We are grateful to them and others as we always come together to help one another during challenging times.
This is a crucial matter to all of us, and I will continue to keep you informed during each step of this process.
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