People hoping to fish off one Florida pier will need a long cast to find the water, because the structure is now surrounded by sand.
The St. Johns County Ocean and Fishing Pier in St Augustine Beach, once a prime spot for fishing and ocean views, no longer reaches the water, thanks to a recent sand dump, part of a beach renourishment project.
Speaking to Action News Jax, Jason Nix, a visitor from Georgia, said it was the longest he had seen the beach in 50 years of visiting the county.
"I've been coming down here since the 70s. It's going to be a long walk to the water! But other than that, it's nice. I like to see that restoration," said Nix.
Speaking to local television station First Coast News, visitor Joshua May said the sand-surrounded pier was taking away from the "beach atmosphere" his family was used to enjoying. "We've never had something like this going on," he said.
The $33 million federally funded renourishment project is part of ongoing efforts to maintain the county's coastline, including neighboring beaches in Anastasia State Park. It aims to combat beach erosion and protect coastal infrastructure.
Led by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in collaboration with St. Johns County officials, the renourishment involves depositing large quantities of sand along the beach to rebuild eroded shorelines and protect against storm surge and flooding.
For now, the pier remains unusable for fishing and boating activities until further notice. However, David Ruderman, a spokesperson for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers told Newsweek that water would return to the pier in the coming months, adding that the site was one of the most highly erosive points of coast in the county.
There's been some hubbub about the fishing pier being 'left high and dry,'" he said, "but the initial sand placement will return to the near shore system over time as a result of wave and storm erosion, and anglers will once again be able to fish from the pier, we just can't predict when that will be."
St. Augustine, the oldest city in the United States, sits on a section of the Southeast Coast highly exposed to erosion and the wilds of the sea. In the past, it has been hammered by hurricanes and storm surges, which have destroyed homes and flooded its downtown.
www.newsweek.com
The St. Johns County Ocean and Fishing Pier in St Augustine Beach, once a prime spot for fishing and ocean views, no longer reaches the water, thanks to a recent sand dump, part of a beach renourishment project.
Speaking to Action News Jax, Jason Nix, a visitor from Georgia, said it was the longest he had seen the beach in 50 years of visiting the county.
"I've been coming down here since the 70s. It's going to be a long walk to the water! But other than that, it's nice. I like to see that restoration," said Nix.
Speaking to local television station First Coast News, visitor Joshua May said the sand-surrounded pier was taking away from the "beach atmosphere" his family was used to enjoying. "We've never had something like this going on," he said.
The $33 million federally funded renourishment project is part of ongoing efforts to maintain the county's coastline, including neighboring beaches in Anastasia State Park. It aims to combat beach erosion and protect coastal infrastructure.
Led by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in collaboration with St. Johns County officials, the renourishment involves depositing large quantities of sand along the beach to rebuild eroded shorelines and protect against storm surge and flooding.
For now, the pier remains unusable for fishing and boating activities until further notice. However, David Ruderman, a spokesperson for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers told Newsweek that water would return to the pier in the coming months, adding that the site was one of the most highly erosive points of coast in the county.
There's been some hubbub about the fishing pier being 'left high and dry,'" he said, "but the initial sand placement will return to the near shore system over time as a result of wave and storm erosion, and anglers will once again be able to fish from the pier, we just can't predict when that will be."
St. Augustine, the oldest city in the United States, sits on a section of the Southeast Coast highly exposed to erosion and the wilds of the sea. In the past, it has been hammered by hurricanes and storm surges, which have destroyed homes and flooded its downtown.
Florida beach pier no longer reaches ocean after sand dump
A coastal restoration project has shut down the structure for fisherman and boat users.
www.newsweek.com
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