Ashburn, VA

77° F
Location Chevron down
Location News Videos
Use Current Location
Recent

Ashburn

Virginia

77°
No results found.
Try searching for a city, zip code or point of interest.
settings
Ashburn, VA Weather
Today WinterCast Local {stormName} Tracker Hourly Daily Radar MinuteCast Monthly Air Quality Health & Activities

Around the Globe

Hurricane Tracker

Severe Weather

Radar & Maps

News

News & Features

Astronomy

Business

Climate

Health

Recreation

Sports

Travel

Video

Podcasts

Winter Center

News & Features AccuWeather Prime Astronomy Business Climate Health Recreation Sports Travel

News / Weather News

Jersey Shore drama: Not enough sand at beach ahead of Memorial Day

The Jersey Shore is not known for having cliffs on its beaches, but after a storm wiped out a massive amount of sand, some cliffs as tall as 6 feet were left. And one town won't be able to open beaches in time for the unofficial start of summer.

By Allison Finch, AccuWeather staff writer

Published May 18, 2022 1:43 PM EDT | Updated May 19, 2022 10:49 AM EDT

Copied

With less than two weeks before Memorial Day, officials are working quickly to fix storm-damaged beaches.

With the unofficial start to summer quickly approaching and AccuWeather meteorologists forecasting temperatures in the 90s for areas along the East Coast this weekend, the summerlike weather is bound to make many people eager to grab their towels and head to the beach, but one part of the beach on the Jersey Shore won't be opening anytime soon.

Due to a recent storm that had stalled off the coast earlier this month, some beaches along the Jersey Shore don't have enough sand to accommodate beachgoers.

The Jersey Shore encompasses about 141 miles of beaches bordering the Atlantic Ocean, and tourism is the economic lifeline for many of the beach towns along that stretch of coastline. Each time a coastal storm rolls through, residents of Ortley Beach, which is roughly 45 miles north of Atlantic City, are reminded of the ongoing erosion that is eating away the beach and damaging dunes throughout the barrier island.

Drone images showed a long stretch of the beach in Ortley Beach, New Jersey, which was wiped out by heavy surf from a recent coastal storm. The beaches there don't have enough sand to be opened for Memorial Day weekend, the unofficial start of summer.

AccuWeather

While the erosion on Ortley Beach is not a new problem, the recent Mother's Day coastal storm that washed away homes in the Outer Banks of North Carolina and exposed "ghost tracks" on a beach in Cape May, New Jersey, also wiped out a massive amount of sand along the 4,000-foot-long beach and left cliffs as tall as 6 feet.

The high tide reached all the way up to the base of the cliffs, and as waves continue to come crashing down, more and more of the beach is eroded away in a vicious cycle. Drone footage shot this week from above Ortley Beach showed lengthy cliffs carved out by heavy surf kicked up by the recent coastal storm.

"After the Army Corps [of Engineers] came out, they had built us a nice, flat beach, and that's very good for energy dissipation," Robert Chanklian, the Toms River town engineer, told AccuWeather National Reporter Jillian Angeline. "The waves roll gently up a beach; their energy is dissipated. As the storm erodes the sand and ends up with these vertical surfaces, the waves, instead of giving up the beach, they pound into this and create more erosion."

Robert Chanklian, Toms River Town Engineer

According to Toms River Mayor Maurice "Mo" Hill, the storms that create significant coastal erosion along the Jersey Shore typically occur in the winter months. This allows officials ample amount of time to clean up and rebuild the beaches and dunes before the warmer months come around -- and the beachgoers arrive in droves.

Ortley Beach officials said that they must rebuild the beach and surrounding dunes on the closed section of Ortley Beach before reopening it to the public because it poses a fall hazard to beachgoers. And officials say the replenishing won't happen quickly.

While a combined effort from local engineers and the Army Corps will be needed to fully restore the beaches along the Jersey Shore from erosion, a local contractor has been hired to rebuild the section of Ortley Beach. Workers will bring in truckloads of sand to fill the beach and surrounding dunes. Officials estimate the damaged area will be filled by the end of June, which is just time for the beginning of local schools' summer vacation.

GET THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP

  •   Have the app? Unlock AccuWeather Alerts™ with Premium+

The Army Corps will then come to the beach later in the year, or early next year, to address the erosion even further as part of a federal, state and locally funded, 50-year agreement to upkeep the beach. Crews from the Army Corps will have the horsepower to rebuild the beach so that the small refilling project won't be needed as often, according to Chanklian.

"They use a dredge," Chanklian said. "It scours up the sand, sucks it up like a vacuum, pumps it onto the beach, and then as they pump that slurry of sand and water on the beach, the water runs down, and we're left with sand."

The beach in Avalon, New Jersey, also suffered significant coastal erosion during the Mother's Day storm. (Evan D'Ambrosio)

Ortley Beach was hardly the only town impacted by the recent storm. Beaches in Avalon, which is about 67 miles south of Ortley Beach, were left with cliffs after strong waves ate away at the beach. Similar scenes were spotted in nearby Ocean City as well.

A team at Stockton University Coastal Research Center has been tasked with surveying the damage along the Jersey Shore. Evan D'Ambrosio, a field specialist, shared a photo of the massive cliffs lined along Avalon's beach.

"That's the most substantial damage I've ever seen since I've been working for four or five years now," is how D'Ambrosio described the recent erosion.

The team D'Ambrosio is a part of will deliver the damage assessment survey results to the impacted towns when completed. This will help give town officials a better idea of how much work will be needed to repair the beaches and surrounding dunes.

Rebuilding the dunes is crucial ahead of the 2022 Atlantic hurricane season, which is predicted to be an above-normal season according to AccuWeather's veteran meteorologist and hurricane expert Dan Kottlowski.

"The beaches are nice to have, but the dunes are what we need to protect everything," said Hill. "This dune is going to protect the coastline, and that's what's important."

AccuWeather National Reporter Jillian Angeline stands next to cliffs left in the sand at Ortley Beach after heavy surf from a recent coastal storm devoured the town's beaches.

AccuWeather

Sand dunes protect inland areas from storm surges and large waves propagating inland, which in turn reduces the amount of coastal flooding and structural damage in an area. Coastal areas without dunes are more susceptible to higher rates of erosions and more frequent coastal flooding.

Along with restoring the dunes, the reopening of beaches along the Jersey Shore is vital for many business owners as well as the state. Tourism at the Jersey Shore is key for the New Jersey economy. Many business owners along the shore depend on vacationers visiting during the summer months to make their income for the year, and with beaches being closed, business owners could take a hit in their earnings.

"The beach is a big economic driver for the Jersey Shore," said Hall. "A lot of businesses will make their money over the summer months."

Additional reporting by Jillian Angeline.

Read more:

116-year-old ‘ghost tracks’ unearthed following pesky coastal storm
Coastal storm washes away homes, puts residents and visitors on edge
New study finds increase in Atlantic hurricanes linked to cleaner air

For the latest weather news, check back on AccuWeather.com. Watch the AccuWeather Network on DIRECTV, Frontier, Spectrum, fuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios. AccuWeather Now is now available on your preferred streaming platform. 

Report a Typo
Comments that don't add to the conversation may be automatically or manually removed by Facebook or AccuWeather. Profanity, personal attacks, and spam will not be tolerated.
Comments
Hide Comments

Weather News

Severe Weather

About 50 million at risk for severe weather in Northeast

Jul. 1, 2022
Severe Weather

Explosive weather setup could ignite derecho as holiday winds down

Jul. 1, 2022
Hurricane

5 strange things about Tropical Storm Bonnie

Jul. 1, 2022
Severe Weather

It's been 10 years since a destructive derecho tore through DC

Jun. 30, 2022
Weather News

Rare 'white rainbow' caught on camera gracing skies over city skyline

Jun. 30, 2022
Recreation

Fireworks frighten your furry friends? Here are tips to keep them calm

Jul. 1, 2022
Weather News

‘Truly biblical’ swarms of cannibalistic insects ravage crops out West

Jun. 28, 2022
Climate

Drought and triple-digit temperatures result in disaster for farmers

Jul. 1, 2022
Climate

Supreme Court rules to curb EPA authority on greenhouse gas emissions

Jun. 30, 2022
Weather Forecasts

Storms to rumble over Western US into Independence Day

Jul. 1, 2022
Weather News

Miner unearths 'most important discovery' in North America

Jun. 28, 2022
Travel

Bison gores visitor at Yellowstone for second time in a month

Jun. 29, 2022
Weather Forecasts

Record-high temperatures scorching Alaska as July kicks off

Jul. 1, 2022
Recreation

Why a zero-gravity chair is what you should add to your yard this year

Jun. 17, 2022
Recreation

How to keep your pup cool in the tough summer heat

Jun. 20, 2022
Show More Show Less Chevron down

Topics

News & Features

AccuWeather Prime

Astronomy

Business

Climate

Health

Recreation

Sports

Travel

Top Stories

Hurricane

Sandy victims, still displaced 10 years later, could face foreclosure

9 hours ago

Astronomy

Milky Way to set backdrop for summertime comet, meteor showers

1 day ago

Hurricane

Tropical Storm Bonnie makes landfall Friday night in Central America

1 hour ago

Damaging floodwaters sweep through Turkey

4 days ago 0:47

Podcast: Lightning safety awareness

More Stories

Featured Topic

Local Arthritis Forecast

Featured Stories

5 ways people stayed cool before air conditioning was invented Top picks on homeware and outdoor furniture from Wayfair's July 4th sa... Trusty weed trimmers to tackle your overgrown garden & lawn this summe...
AccuWeather Weather News Jersey Shore drama: Not enough sand at beach ahead of Memorial Day
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs Podcast RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Shop AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Weather Blogs Winter Weather
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs Podcast RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Shop AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Weather Blogs Winter Weather
© 2021 AccuWeather, Inc. "AccuWeather" and sun design are registered trademarks of AccuWeather, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Cookie Policy | TAG Disclosure | Do Not Sell My Data checkmark Confirmed Not Selling Your Data

We have updated our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy.

I Understand

Get AccuWeather alerts as they happen with our browser notifications.

Notifications Enabled

Thanks! We’ll keep you informed.

FEEDBACK