Masterpieces rise again on Florida beach after weather disaster
By
Lauren Fox, AccuWeather staff writer
Published Nov 24, 2020 6:09 PM EDT
Storm surge from Eta wiped out a weeks' worth of work from professional sand sculptors on Treasure Island, Florida, who had to rush to rebuild in time for this weekend's "Sanding Ovation" showcase.
After professional sand sculptors spent a week working on their beach masterpieces on Florida's Treasure Island, about 30 miles east of Tampa, Tropical Storm Eta ravaged the coast, destroying all the hard work put into the extravagant sculptures. Now that the storm is long gone, however, sculptors are back on their game, working fast to make up for the week of lost work.
The sculptors were participating in Sanding Ovation, an exhibition that features their creations made of just water and sand. Treasure Island, where Sanding Ovation is held, is home to the widest beach on the entire west coast of Florida, which typically would provide enough of a buffer to protect the sand sculptures from the Gulf of Mexico's surf. Tropical Storm Eta, however, proved to be too much even for the expansive beach.
Eta made landfall near Cedar Key, about 150 miles north of Treasure Island, on Thursday, Nov. 12. The storm packed 50-mph winds as it battered the coast. As the storm crashed into Cedar Key -- which was the second of two Florida landfalls -- it tore roofs off buildings and flooded streets. Many people were left without power.
"Last week was kind of horrid. We had about 500 man hours into this thing already, [the sculpture] was about half complete when the storm came through and this turned into a lake," Dan Doubleday, a sand sculptor involved in Sanding Ovation, told AccuWeather National Reporter Jonathan Petramala.
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Meredith Corson Doubleday, who was an organizer for the event, said the storm whipped up the water, which then sucked up their sand sculptures and left them with nothing.
"The whole thing just collapsed like a pancake," Corson Doubleday said.
This year marks the 12th that Sanding Ovation has been held in Treasure Island. It was unclear if the coronavirus pandemic would lead to the cancelation of the event like it has for many other festivals of its kind, but according to The Tampa Bay Times, the size of the beach allowed for more than enough space for sculptors to practice social distancing.
However, the dynamic of the event did change due to the pandemic, and because international travel became too complicated, Sanding Ovation was for the first time held as an exhibition featuring 10 sculptors rather than a competition. The exhibition featured a "sun henge sundial" as the centerpiece that is actually able to track the sun every day.
The beach of Treasure Island, Florida, became like a lake after Tropical Storm Eta whipped up water onto the shore, washing away the sand sculptures that were to be featured in Sanding Ovation. (Photo/Meredith Corson Doubleday)
After a week of progress was entirely demolished by Eta's landfall, Doubleday said his team had to start over entirely, working to make up for lost time.
"It was like a nice practice session," Doubleday said of the first week.
Despite having to scramble, Corson Doubleday had an optimistic outlook on their finished creation.
"The Phoenix rises from the ashes," Corson Doubleday said. "We created this in a week, which is definitely at least two weeks' worth of work."
Reporting by Jonathan Petramala
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News / Hurricane
Masterpieces rise again on Florida beach after weather disaster
By Lauren Fox, AccuWeather staff writer
Published Nov 24, 2020 6:09 PM EDT
Storm surge from Eta wiped out a weeks' worth of work from professional sand sculptors on Treasure Island, Florida, who had to rush to rebuild in time for this weekend's "Sanding Ovation" showcase.
After professional sand sculptors spent a week working on their beach masterpieces on Florida's Treasure Island, about 30 miles east of Tampa, Tropical Storm Eta ravaged the coast, destroying all the hard work put into the extravagant sculptures. Now that the storm is long gone, however, sculptors are back on their game, working fast to make up for the week of lost work.
The sculptors were participating in Sanding Ovation, an exhibition that features their creations made of just water and sand. Treasure Island, where Sanding Ovation is held, is home to the widest beach on the entire west coast of Florida, which typically would provide enough of a buffer to protect the sand sculptures from the Gulf of Mexico's surf. Tropical Storm Eta, however, proved to be too much even for the expansive beach.
Eta made landfall near Cedar Key, about 150 miles north of Treasure Island, on Thursday, Nov. 12. The storm packed 50-mph winds as it battered the coast. As the storm crashed into Cedar Key -- which was the second of two Florida landfalls -- it tore roofs off buildings and flooded streets. Many people were left without power.
"Last week was kind of horrid. We had about 500 man hours into this thing already, [the sculpture] was about half complete when the storm came through and this turned into a lake," Dan Doubleday, a sand sculptor involved in Sanding Ovation, told AccuWeather National Reporter Jonathan Petramala.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
Meredith Corson Doubleday, who was an organizer for the event, said the storm whipped up the water, which then sucked up their sand sculptures and left them with nothing.
"The whole thing just collapsed like a pancake," Corson Doubleday said.
This year marks the 12th that Sanding Ovation has been held in Treasure Island. It was unclear if the coronavirus pandemic would lead to the cancelation of the event like it has for many other festivals of its kind, but according to The Tampa Bay Times, the size of the beach allowed for more than enough space for sculptors to practice social distancing.
However, the dynamic of the event did change due to the pandemic, and because international travel became too complicated, Sanding Ovation was for the first time held as an exhibition featuring 10 sculptors rather than a competition. The exhibition featured a "sun henge sundial" as the centerpiece that is actually able to track the sun every day.
The beach of Treasure Island, Florida, became like a lake after Tropical Storm Eta whipped up water onto the shore, washing away the sand sculptures that were to be featured in Sanding Ovation. (Photo/Meredith Corson Doubleday)
After a week of progress was entirely demolished by Eta's landfall, Doubleday said his team had to start over entirely, working to make up for lost time.
"It was like a nice practice session," Doubleday said of the first week.
Despite having to scramble, Corson Doubleday had an optimistic outlook on their finished creation.
"The Phoenix rises from the ashes," Corson Doubleday said. "We created this in a week, which is definitely at least two weeks' worth of work."
Reporting by Jonathan Petramala
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Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
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