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 National Weather Service reported winds up to 52 miles per hour at the airport.
The Donnelly house on South Beach, the last of several old fishing shacks, was demolished Thursday, another victim of the ceaseless march of the sea.
The road along South Beach initially closed in December, when a sinkhole opened up during the first of a trio of storms. A culvert in the area failed during a second storm, causing even further damage.
The three pounding winter storms that took a toll on the Island’s south shore also have scientists who study the area pondering retreat.
Edgartown officials recently met with the state and federal government to survey the damage at South Beach and Norton Point. Though emergency aid is in limbo, work has already begun.
The storms have rung alarm bells about potential environmental hazards, both from the continual undermining of the south shore’s barrier beaches that protect these ponds and from the longer-term effects of more salt water breaching the fresh water environment.
