Hurricane Hugo, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and Charleston, South Carolina, September 17-22, 1989 (1994) / Chapter Skim
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Coastal Processes
Coastal Processes
Pages 211-222
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From page 211... ...
would have been much more severe and widespread if landfall had occurred along the microtidal barrier islands constituting the Outer Banks of North Carolina. The South Carolina coast represents a transition zone between that of North Carolina and Georgia.
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From page 212... ...
Building codes were subsequently strengthened and upgraded and Hurricane Diana in 1984 caused relatively little damage (National Research Council, 1986~. South Carolina was spared this experience and, hence, did not change its coastal building standards, so the damage inflicted by Hurricane Hugo was devastating.
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From page 213... ...
Driftlines of debris and floatables were found across this road just north of Bull Bay, indicating the landward extent of saltwater flooding. Actually, the best data acquired by FEMA for the determination of surge heights for the plotting of isolines across the flooded area were the many houses on the developed barrier islands and inland mainland area.
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From page 214... ...
The large storm surge generated by Hurricane Hugo was primarily due to the wind set-up (65 knots [74.5 mph] sustained onshore winds aloft)
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From page 215... ...
The degree Of erosion also tapered off toward the Grand Strand, where the most heavily developed portion of the South Carolina coast exists at Myrtle Beach. COASTAL EROSION Ground reconnaissance and aerial surveys were made of the entire South Carolina coast.
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From page 216... ...
These preparations were largely ineffective, as the high surge allowed the storm waves to overtop these coastal engineering structures and inflict heavy damages to the beachfront houses. The Atlantic House, a local landmark and popular seafood restaurant on Folly Beach, was completely destroyed by Hurricane Hugo (Figure Il-4~.
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From page 217... ...
Coastal Processes FIGURE 11-4a Pre-storm photograph of the Atlantic House restaurant. FIGURE 11-4b Post-storm photograph of the Atlantic House restaurant.
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From page 218... ...
While there was extensive damage at Isle of Palms from inundation of the island, beachfront houses were generally protected by a wide beach and sand dunes (Figure Il-5~. This storm buffer zone served its purpose well, with damage concentrated where the beaches were narrow and dunes small to absent.
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From page 219... ...
For example, the beaches at Pawleys Island and Garden City have been eroding at rates exceeding ~ ft per year (Kane, 1988~; this certainly contributed to the widespread destruction experienced in these barrier island communities. Lack of a sufficiently wide buffer zone, coupled with severe storm-induced erosion, produced catastrophic damage to beachfront houses.
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From page 220... ...
. A quick survey of Folly Beach and some of the other barrier islands indicated that over 200 heavily damaged houses fell into this category, making lots valued up to $500,000 essentially worthless (non-buildable)
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From page 221... ...
7. At the national level, FEMA needs to incorporate erosional trends into its flood insurance program, as clearly stated in the 1990 National Research Council report, "Managing Coastal Erosion." Failure to consider erosion as part of the natural flood hazard and overall shore vulnerability tends to undermine federal programs by allowing insurance rates to be set substantially below those for the actual risk and by condoning inadequate construction regulations.
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From page 222... ...
1989. Preliminary Post-Storm Survey Report on Hurricane Hugo to FEMN West Palm Beach, Florida Unpublished report sponsored by Proper Claims Service and Flood Insurance Company.
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