Environment & Weather

Big Waves Great For Surfing, Bad for Beach Erosion: Here’s How Local Beaches Look

by
Daniel Nee
September 23, 2020

Hurricane Teddy, twisting slowly offshore, didn’t stop the sun from shining and the temperature from rising to near 80-degrees Tuesday, but it did churn up the surf and lead to beach erosion up and down the Jersey Shore.

Large waves as Jersey Shore beaches impacted by Hurricane Teddy, Sept. 22, 2020. (Photo: Daniel Nee)

The southernmost beaches in New Jersey received the worst of the erosion, but Ocean County beaches also took a hit, with waves reaching within a few feet of some beach entrances. The massive dunes constructed over the past several years by the federal government, however, were not touched and remain fully intact.

A boat is disabled and secured by the U.S. Coast Guard and Brielle Fire-Rescue in Manasquan Inlet, Sept. 22, 2020. (Photo: Patricia Nee)

Large waves as Jersey Shore beaches impacted by Hurricane Teddy, Sept. 22, 2020. (Photo: Daniel Nee)

There were some mishaps. A buoy washed up on the beach in Brick Township, and a boat lost power in Manasquan Inlet, forcing the helmsman to anchor as the boat drifted toward the jetty on the Point Pleasant side. The U.S. Coast Guard assisted and there were no injuries.

The National Weather Service extended its rip current advisory through Wednesday, characterizing them as “dangerous.”

“Entering the surf is discouraged,” the advisory said. “Rip currents can sweep even the best swimmers away from shore into deeper water.”

A green lateral buoy washed up on Brick Beach III, Sept. 22, 2020. (Photo: Daniel Nee)

Large waves as Jersey Shore beaches impacted by Hurricane Teddy, Sept. 22, 2020. (Photo: Daniel Nee)

Spotty minor flooding is possible with the afternoon high tide on Wednesday, the NWS warned, though the heavy surf advisory that had been in effect previous has expired.