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Beaches, reefs took major hit
By Kevin Smith
Staff Writer
September 6, 2004
Hurricane Frances maliciously meandered across the state, ripping off roofs and delivering sheets of rain, but not all of Florida was able to hide behind plywood and concrete.
Coral reefs endured hours of pounding waves, millions of pounds of sand were carried from east coast beaches and wildlife nests were torn apart by the storm. But while officials said Sunday they would not be able to assess the environmental damage fully until Frances passed, they were not overly concerned.
"The one thing we have always found, in all of these cases, is the environment is resilient," said Florida Department of Environmental Protection spokesman Russell Schweiss. "It always recovers. We're confident that as damage occurred, there will be a natural healing, just as it always has in the past."
The effects observed after last month's hurricane might give some hints of the bruise Hurricane Frances could leave on Florida, one official said.
"Look at Charley," said Florida Department of Agriculture spokesman Mark Fagan. "It's already taken a big toll, on the citrus industry in particular. About 20 percent of that was wiped out."
While flooding seemed limited in South Florida, Fagan said the department was extremely worried about how heavy rains might damage plants, crops and animals further north. Another problem, one the department didn't face when Hurricane Charley struck, was how the heavy winds of Hurricane Frances might have spread citrus canker disease.
Citrus canker wasn't a problem along Charley's path, Fagan said, but because of its prevalence in Miami-Dade and Broward counties, inspectors would be extremely vigilant in evaluating trees. Crews worked on Thursday to remove all infected trees in Palm Beach County to prevent the spread there.
The combination of driving winds and heavy rain gave the Atlantic Ocean even more ammunition than usual as its waves swept ashore. They didn't make it all the way to the beaches, and what stopped them might have suffered.
"You could see the waves breaking off shore, and they were breaking off the reefs," said Ken Banks. "So there's a possibility they were damaged."
As manager of the Marine Resources Program of Broward County's Department of Planning and Environmental Protection, Banks expected to assess the reefs off of Broward County late this week, after the waters have cleared.
The storm's hammering of the coastline probably affected only about two dozen sea turtle nests in Palm Beach County, said conservationist Kirt Rusenko of the Gumbo Limbo Nature Center in Boca Raton.
The eggs were likely were crushed by the waves.
"The native beach was washed clean, but I think the dunes were okay," he said. "Luckily, it's late in the breeding season and we didn't have a lot of nests which were active."
Fortunately, while the hurricane might have caused some damage to their habitats, most of the state's various forms of animal life were able to "hunker down" and ride out the storm, Schweiss said.
"I think they've been able to deal with hurricanes for 200 million years," Rusenko said of the sea turtles. "So I'd say they're pretty well adapted to them."
Staff Writers David Fleshler, Neil Santaniello and Brittany Wallman contributed to this report.
Kevin Smith can be reached at kssmith@sun-sentinel.com or 954-572-2009.
Beaches, reefs took major hit
By Kevin Smith
Staff Writer
September 6, 2004
Hurricane Frances maliciously meandered across the state, ripping off roofs and delivering sheets of rain, but not all of Florida was able to hide behind plywood and concrete.
Coral reefs endured hours of pounding waves, millions of pounds of sand were carried from east coast beaches and wildlife nests were torn apart by the storm. But while officials said Sunday they would not be able to assess the environmental damage fully until Frances passed, they were not overly concerned.
"The one thing we have always found, in all of these cases, is the environment is resilient," said Florida Department of Environmental Protection spokesman Russell Schweiss. "It always recovers. We're confident that as damage occurred, there will be a natural healing, just as it always has in the past."
The effects observed after last month's hurricane might give some hints of the bruise Hurricane Frances could leave on Florida, one official said.
"Look at Charley," said Florida Department of Agriculture spokesman Mark Fagan. "It's already taken a big toll, on the citrus industry in particular. About 20 percent of that was wiped out."
While flooding seemed limited in South Florida, Fagan said the department was extremely worried about how heavy rains might damage plants, crops and animals further north. Another problem, one the department didn't face when Hurricane Charley struck, was how the heavy winds of Hurricane Frances might have spread citrus canker disease.
Citrus canker wasn't a problem along Charley's path, Fagan said, but because of its prevalence in Miami-Dade and Broward counties, inspectors would be extremely vigilant in evaluating trees. Crews worked on Thursday to remove all infected trees in Palm Beach County to prevent the spread there.
The combination of driving winds and heavy rain gave the Atlantic Ocean even more ammunition than usual as its waves swept ashore. They didn't make it all the way to the beaches, and what stopped them might have suffered.
"You could see the waves breaking off shore, and they were breaking off the reefs," said Ken Banks. "So there's a possibility they were damaged."
As manager of the Marine Resources Program of Broward County's Department of Planning and Environmental Protection, Banks expected to assess the reefs off of Broward County late this week, after the waters have cleared.
The storm's hammering of the coastline probably affected only about two dozen sea turtle nests in Palm Beach County, said conservationist Kirt Rusenko of the Gumbo Limbo Nature Center in Boca Raton.
The eggs were likely were crushed by the waves.
"The native beach was washed clean, but I think the dunes were okay," he said. "Luckily, it's late in the breeding season and we didn't have a lot of nests which were active."
Fortunately, while the hurricane might have caused some damage to their habitats, most of the state's various forms of animal life were able to "hunker down" and ride out the storm, Schweiss said.
"I think they've been able to deal with hurricanes for 200 million years," Rusenko said of the sea turtles. "So I'd say they're pretty well adapted to them."
Staff Writers David Fleshler, Neil Santaniello and Brittany Wallman contributed to this report.
Kevin Smith can be reached at kssmith@sun-sentinel.com or 954-572-2009.
