Posted on July 14, 2021
One of the crossovers, south of Carlin Park, has a 7-foot drop from the end of the staircase to the sand.
JUPITER — Palm Beach County has closed two beach access points in Jupiter, saying erosion has made them unsafe, according to a social media post from the town.
Beach crossovers Nos. 46 and 47, along State Road A1A just north of the Ocean Club Condominiums, were deemed dangerous Thursday after sand from underneath the stairs disappeared, leaving a 7-foot drop-off onto the beach.
A ridge left by erosion spanned at least two beach access points, where dog walkers and families visiting the beach Friday morning stepped precariously up onto the unstable sand to leave through other beach crossovers. Waves left large deposits of shells at the base of the ridge.
County officials did not immediately return a call seeking comment.
Andy Studt, an environmental program supervisor with the county’s Department of Environmental Resources Management, told TV station WPBF-25 on Thursday that the areas affected by the erosion are “hotspots.”
Beach erosion happens when moving water pulls sand away from the shore during strong tide cycles, according to the National Ocean Service.
Higher winds are thought to speed up erosion, and it is common to see erosion after a hurricane or a strong storm. It was unclear Friday whether Tropical Storm Elsa led to this episode of erosion.
To cope with beach erosion, Jupiter and other coastal municipalities pump offshore sand onto their beaches, a process known as beach renourishment.
The town completed a renourishment project last winter that pumped 970,000 cubic yards of sand onto beaches in southern Jupiter and Juno Beach.
The project cost Palm Beach County $14.3 million.
Studt told WPBF-25 that permitting processes prohibit the county from just adding extra sand to the areas in Jupiter affected by erosion this week.
