Beach erosion threatens Plum Island homes

NEWBURY, Mass. -- Beach erosion continues to be a concern on Plum Island, where three homes were evacuated due to the recent heavy rain.

"This is the closest I've seen it, and I've been here since '79," said Tommy Nee, a concerned homeowner.

The deck was torn away at the home belonging to Nee's neighbor. Nee is now worried for the safety of his own house.

"I have a 91-year-old father. What am I going to do with him if I have to move out?" wondered Nee.

Other local homeowners are pleading with politicians for help, as building inspectors continued to assess the damage from Monday's storm.

The erosion has led to dangerous conditions on the beaches. Police are trying to keep visitors away from the shore.

In nearby Amesbury, conditions are improving after the Powwow River overflowed. Some Amesbury residents, like Alberta Grunbeck, were relieved the situation wasn't worse.

"We didn't lose our power this time, so that was a good thing. A couple weeks ago, we were out for days," said Grunbeck.

The evacuated Plum Island homes are located on the southern side of the island on Annapolis Way. The ocean has been ravaging those homes for three days, and after high tide came through at around midnight on Tuesday morning, the water knocked down the deck of one house.

Earlier on Monday, fire officials said several Plum Island families were ordered to evacuate.

“We got told today that we have a half-hour to get out of here,” said Dolly Martin, who evacuated her residence along with Frankie Rizzuto.

Rizzuto said it was hard to decide what to grab and what to leave behind.

“Sentimental pictures and photos, my mom is gone so there is a lot of her stuff I’m trying to get out,” said Rizzuto.

The pair, who had anticipated they might be evacuated, say they had started packing several days ago.

“This is our dream place, and now, it’s become a nightmare. I don’t enjoy hearing the waves anymore,” said Rizzuto.

Plum Island is prone to beach erosion, and houses have been known to crumble into the ocean. A home was destroyed by beach erosion in 2008.

Officials said the main concern is the high tide, which will next occur at around 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday.

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