If storms are worse now, why did they need a sea wall 150 years ago?

Posted: 17 Jul 2013 in Politics

Yeah, why is that?

Watts Up With That?

From Virginia Tech something that makes you wonder about past storm intensity and the need to protect shorelines from storms coming from the sea. With all the hype surrounding “Superstorm Sandy”, it is interesting to see that 150 years ago, simple engineering made the storm less intense in this one area.

Long-forgotten seawall protected New Jersey homes from Hurricane Sandy’s powerful storm surges

Virginia Tech researchers say relic seawall came in handy for New Jersey town

Picture two residential beach communities on the New Jersey shore: Bay Head and Mantoloking, which sit side-by-side in Ocean County on a narrow barrier island that separates the Atlantic Ocean and Barnegat Bay.

Before Hurricane Sandy landed on Oct. 29, 2012, a motorist traveling north on Ocean Avenue would seamlessly travel through Mantoloking into Bay Head, noticing few changes in residential development, dunes, beaches, and shoreline.

The difference was hidden under the sand.

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