For Immediate Release
Contact: Ryan Murphy
631.702.1700
Town of Southampton, NY January 9, 2024 — In preparation for the winter storm expected to impact our area on January 9th and 10th, the Town of Southampton will be temporarily closing the vehicular beach access points at Road L and on the East side of the Tiana Beach parking lot.
A post-storm analysis of the area following the December 18, 2023 storm showed signs that these access points were areas that allowed overwash to more freely occur. There was evidence in the form of sand displacement and elevated water levels on Dune Road in the vicinity of both locations.
Current forecasts suggest that we may see similar wave action in this storm to what we experienced in the December 18th storm. Current forecasts are predicting 15-20 foot breaking surf on the Ocean beaches.
In an effort to make these areas more resistant to overwash, the Town is going to attempt to fill those two possible weak points ahead of the storm. “It is our hope that this will reduce the amount flood waters in the roadway, and the amount of sand that is displaced into the road and Tiana Beach parking area,” said Town Emergency Manager Ryan Murphy. “We’re hopeful that temporarily closing these weak points may also reduce the possibility of waterflow that could have otherwise eroded the dune structure in an East-West direction as it flowed through,” Murphy said.
Town Supervisor Maria Moore stated that, “We are constantly trying to evaluate ways in which we can enhance our Town’s resilience to flooding and storm threats. I look forward to working with our partners in government to develop long-term mitigation strategies to address our coastal erosion concerns. Our plan is to temporarily close these two access points and then reopen them as soon as possible following the storm. If these preparedness actions are effective, then we may adapt our pre-storm planning to incorporate these actions going forward.” Supervisor Moore also encouraged residents and visitors to use caution when traveling the roadways during the storm due to possible flooding conditions.
