Declaring a state of emergency expedites the permitting process to dredge and restore sand in the area and opens the town to additional sources of funding and reimbursement from the Massachusetts emergency management agency (MEMA).
A strong storm with winds of 50 miles per hour hit the Vineyard Tuesday night, causing erosion, destructive washovers and scattered power outages throughout the Island.
Although initial cleanup efforts of the Dec. 18 storm have been completed, towns still face hard decisions as erosion continues to eat away at the edges of the Island.
Weather watchers were keeping an eye on a winter storm moving through the mid-Atlantic Monday that was expected to bring snow to the Island. Only small accumulations were forecast, according to the National Weather Service in Taunton, with predictions for two to four inches of snow.
Ferry cancellations and beach closures were widespread Friday as the remnants of tropical storm Elsa lashed Martha’s Vineyard with gusty winds and pelting rain.
The Sunday snowstorm on the Island led to a bevy of minor traffic accidents, downed trees and scattered power outages, but no major incidents, public safety officials said.
Erosion on the Island’s coastline — a process as old and familiar as the Island itself — has accelerated to a point of critical concern this winter, battering South Beach, flattening dunes in Katama, flooding key intersections and roadways and crumbling cliffs at Lucy Vincent and Squibnocket.
