NAHANT, MASS. (WHDH) - With Memorial Day weekend upon us, state lawmakers are still awaiting the funding needed to repair and reopen beaches along the coast that were battered by this winter’s brutal nor’easters.
State Sen. Brendon Crighton represents a chunk of North Shore towns, including storm-ravished Nahant. He recently toured some of the hardest hit coastal areas, concluding Massachusetts is still vulnerable to severe beach erosion.
“You’ll notice that the dunes are really destroyed,” Crighton said. “It looks like an asteroid has hit the beach.”
Massachusetts recently spent $20 million on a project to reinforce the causeway out to Nahant. Without it, the town would be an island. The project included funds to build up a protective layer of dunes. Much of the work has since been washed away.
“The governor has requested the federal government to reimburse municipalities that were affected by the storm,” Crighton said. “We’re hoping that money comes soon.”
In Sandwich, waves whipped up by hurricane-force winds ate away at dunes near Town Neck Beach, leaving seaside homes in danger and destroying a boardwalk.
“It’s getting worse,” a local resident told 7News. “I would not want to own beachfront property right now.”
Waves also crumbled a seawall in Duxbury, leaving beautiful homes on the brink of destruction.
Since the storms, state officials have committed to conducting risk assessments in coastal communities.
Baker has written a letter to President Trump seeking federal disaster relief. He’s pegged the damage at $24 million but that figure will likely climb much higher.
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