The Cool House: Backed Up Beauty

Monday, April 19, 2010

Backed Up Beauty


Remember those storms that hit the north-east in March? They came a couple of weeks apart and each dumped 6-8" rain right on Long Island. Roads flooded, basements flooded, cesspool overflowed; people are still pumping water from the houses and parts of particularly swamped roads are still under water.
Here on the beach the erosion was substantial: steps washed away; bulkheads compromised and fields underwater. Yesterday we walked along the beach (carefully negotiating the damaged wooden stile) and waved to owners of beach front properties who were hard at work digging out their drainage pipes, trying to give the sodden lawns some relief. Some of the flooded areas, though, are beyond the scope of one man (or woman) and a shovel. Willow Pond backed up, flooding the yards of many residents; there's little sign that it will drain anytime soon.
The fence in the photo marks the boundary between two properties; it's the first time I've seen it under water for more than a day or two. Some residents blame construction in the area, others the loss of a large portion of the reeds that covered much of the pond. I'm sure the sand and beach stones that were forced up inside the drainage pipes have formed an effective stopper that needs to be uncorked. Whatever the underlying cause and however great the inconvenience it's quite beautiful to walk the strip of sand between the extended pond and Long Island Sound.

2 comments:

Nadine @ BDG said...

What a winter! I hope the area recovers fully.

house things said...

Hard to understate the damage all that water can do. What a huge mess.