Army Corps: Fire Island erosion not 'Sandy' enough

Daily Point

Schumer, Gillibrand's request to fix Fire Island beaches rejected

The coming winter on Fire Island, ravaged by severe erosion from recent storms, just got a bit colder.

The Point has learned that the Army Corps of Engineers has rejected a request by New York’s two U.S. senators — and backed by Fire Island homeowners — to provide emergency repairs to a large sand replenishment project that has been largely swept away. Federal inspectors determined the damage to the shoreline in places like Davis Park and Fire Island Pines doesn’t qualify for immediate repair under existing guidelines.

“Based on an analysis of water levels, waves and duration, the recent storms impacting areas of Fire Island do not meet the minimum eligibility requirements to qualify for financial support,” James D’Ambrosio, a Corps spokesman, told The Point.

The Corps’ decision is a disappointment to many on Fire Island, said Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, who joined with Sen. Chuck Schumer in asking for the immediate repairs.

“Without emergency efforts to rebuild Fire Island’s eroded beaches that have weathered a series of violent storms, EMTs, firefighters, police, and other first responders won’t have reliable pathways needed to serve nearly 5,000 homes on the barrier island in the case of an emergency,” Gillibrand told The Point in an email. “Since Fire Island lacks paved roads, beaches along the southern shore of Long Island connect residents to essential services needed to live safely in these communities.”

In September, Schumer sent a letter to the Corps complaining that “emergency repair is particularly needed in the eastern Fire Island communities where the beachfront has diminished.”

Starting in 2019, more than 2.3 million cubic yards of sand were poured by the Corps on the eroded shorelines of Davis Park, Fire Island Pines, Cherry Grove, Point O’ Woods, Water Island and Ocean Bay Park. It was all part of the ongoing $2.1 billion Fire Island to Montauk Point (FIMP) project, stretching 83 miles, that resulted from 2012’s Superstorm Sandy that caused millions in damage along Long Island’s shoreline.

However, the Corps’ sand rehab didn’t last as long as hoped and was largely swept away by a recent series of no-name storms.

To qualify for emergency repairs, D’Ambrosio said, the Fire Island coastline needed to be substantially eroded and damaged “by extraordinary wind, wave or water action”-- roughly the same magnitude as Superstorm Sandy or even worse. Under federal law, this is defined as a Category III hurricane or higher with sustained winds of 110-129 mph. He defined this scenario as when “well-built homes may incur major damage or destruction of roof decking; many trees snapped or uprooted blocking numerous roads; and that electricity and water will be unavailable for several days/weeks after the storm.”

However, not everything may be lost with the hope for new sand along the Fire Island beachfront. Despite the denial of emergency repairs, D’Ambrosio said, the Corps will be conducting beach surveys this month between Ocean Bay Park and Davis Park to determine “present conditions” and the need for “periodic beach replenishment” under the overall ongoing FIMP project.

Overall, the Corps is working with New York State Department of Environmental Conservation on awarding new beach rehab projects that will cover areas from Cupsogue to Westhampton Beach under the FIMP plan. Another project near downtown Montauk is 100% federally funded. Moving forward, D’Ambrosio said, these projects “will deposit significant quantities of sand” across Long Island’s South Shore.

— Thomas Maier thomas.maier@newsday.com

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