Brevard County faces beach erosion, power outages after Hurricane Matthew

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — Beach erosion and power outages were among the lingering effects of Hurricane Matthew, two days after the powerful storm pounded Brevard County.

More than 10,000 Florida Power & Light customers in Brevard County are still in the dark.

Relentless sheets of rain washed away important sand dunes at some of the county’s beaches and downed trees and power lines caused thousands of customers to lose power.

Outside Melbourne’s Sandy Shoes Resort, large waves chewed away at the beach, washing away more than half of the dunes.

Photos: Skywitness 9 surveys Hurricane Matthew damage

“They did their job in the storm event,” said Don Walker, a Brevard County Emergency Management spokesman. “They protected the house upland and they protected the roads. That's why it's important we keep our beaches in good shape."

Though storm surge swept away some of the county’s beaches, Walker said renourishment projects helped to prevent significant erosion. %

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“We had done some restoration of our beaches post 2013 and 2014,” he said. “They fared pretty well under the circumstances.”

Photos: Aftermath of Hurricane Matthew

Walker said the county will survey the coastline to determine which beaches are most in need of replenishment.

At the resort, owners said they still have some cleaning up to do. They said they’re hopeful the sand dunes will be restored in time for sea-turtle nesting season, which begins in March.

Elsewhere in Melbourne, utility crews continue to slowly restore power to customers.

Related story: Hurricane Matthew washes away parts of A1A in Flagler County

More than two days after the storm, resident Charles Mabry said power lines crisscrossed the driveway and the front yard of his Wind Song Court home.

“It’s lying in water,” he said. “Part of it goes over a road that people in my neighborhood have to use to get to their homes. I don't know if it's a hot line or whether it's dead.”

Mabry said he and his wife used a generator to power their refrigerator and freezer, but having power lines strewn across their property left them feeling uneasy.

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“Somebody could die if they step on a hot power line,” Mabry said. “And I would have thought that something this serious would have had a much higher priority in the big scheme of things.” %

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Neighbors were relieved Sunday afternoon when workers arrived to repair the damage.

Crews are still working to restore power to traffic lights, including those strung above North Wickham Road and Northgate Street. It was one of the county’s 22 intersections without functioning traffic lights.

Florida Power & Light said it hopes to restore all power by midnight Monday, but pockets of the county could still experience outages throughout the day. %

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Video: Skywitness 9 over Flagler County storm damage

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