Development, erosion keep coast at risk

By Rich Fahey
Globe Correspondent / February 7, 2008

Thirty years ago today the Blizzard of '78 was ravaging the South Shore. Wind gusts of more than 100 miles per hour combined with heavy snowfall to destroy thousands of homes and boats. Before it was over, more than two dozen people would be dead statewide.

What would happen if the same storm hit the South Shore today? Would the flooding, destruction of property, and beach erosion be as severe? Or would changes in building codes and in the way we respond to storms result in less property damage and fewer lives lost?

The answer: We might be better prepared, but the damage could be just as great - or greater.
Specialists say the almost continuous beach erosion from storms in the ensuing 30 years has created a new set of problems, should a storm like the Blizzard of '78 hit the South Shore again.

"The erosion shifts from previous storms have moved the flood plain, putting more homeowners in jeopardy," said Rebecca Haney, a coastal geologist for the state Office of Coastal Zone Management. "In addition, there has been a significant amount of construction in those flood plain areas."

Many of the summer cottages that were unoccupied in coastal towns during the storm 30 years ago have been converted to year-round residences, putting more families squarely in the bull's-eye of a sequel to '78.

"Those cottages are now year-round residences, many of them still vulnerable to a storm," said state Senator Robert L. Hedlund of Weymouth, who represents many of the coastal communities that were devastated in the Blizzard of '78.

Partly offsetting that vulnerability is the fact that homes along the coast, while more exposed, are better built than they were 30 years ago.

Neil Duggan, Scituate's building commissioner for the past 14 years, saw his home - a converted cottage on Lighthouse Road - heavily damaged during the blizzard. Duggan, like others, wanted to rebuild. By 1979, revisions to the state building code required that any rebuilt home in a danger area had to be elevated on 11-foot-high pilings or columns, said Duggan. In 1982, he said, improved federal maps were developed for Scituate, requiring higher elevations in some hazard areas.

Portions of the state building code are routinely refined; the most recent change is a requirement for high-impact windows in debris-borne areas and more stringent hurricane-resistant construction requirements.

Still, erosion is eating away at the buffer between the ocean and coastal communities. Communities such as Scituate and Duxbury have been losing on average a half-foot of beach each year.

While some emphasis has been on building sea walls, the beaches and dunes - not the walls - are the first line of defense against coastal flooding. Hedlund said he was able secure federal money for beach renourishment at Nantasket Beach in Hull, but not for sea wall construction, because "the federal government considered the beach more important when it comes to flood control."
Haney, the state coastal geologist, said the Massachusetts Wetlands Protection Act and subsequent regulations designed to protect beaches and dunes have helped, but storms have still wreaked havoc with the shoreline.

Towns and cities have taken it upon themselves to prepare for the worst. In Hull, which was devastated by floods in '78, an emergency operations center was built as part of renovations to Memorial Middle School.

Acting fire chief Robert Hollingshead, who is also in charge of Hull's emergency preparedness, meets with the heads of town agencies several times a year and whenever a major storm is forecast.

Hollingshead, who joined the Fire Department just after the 1978 storm, said that advancements in technology have improved communication with the public in emergencies. "We have cable TV and the Internet, and we can reach many people quickly."

The state has recognized the issues. In February 2006, Governor Mitt Romney created the Massachusetts Coastal Hazards Commission to review practices and policies, identify information gaps, and draft recommendations for improvements.

In May 2007, the commission released its final report, including a series of recommendations to help safeguard coastal areas. They included updating coastal maps to pinpoint risk and measure rising sea levels due to climate change; modeling potential damage from future storms to alert communities; and providing incentives, such as insurance discounts, for homeowners along the coast to retrofit their homes against storms.

Peter Judge, public information officer for the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency, the successor to the Massachusetts Civil Defense Agency, said that after the '78 storm, Governor Michael Dukakis issued an executive order creating an emergency management team. It includes federal, state, and local officials, including liaisons from a dozen state agencies, and meets regularly.

"I think if there's two areas we've improved in since 1978, it would be in communication and coordination," said Judge.

In 1978, some people didn't believe the forecast or disregarded it, and thousands were trapped on roads or in makeshift shelters such as car dealerships and restaurants.
"We can't stop people from going out into the storm, but we can let them know what they're in for," said Judge.

Rich Fahey can be reached at faheywrite@yahoo.com