Waves off the Atlantic have hit the Jupiter Inlet Colony beachfront hard since November, causing drop-offs as tall as 10 feet from the top of dunes.
Palm Beach Post
JUPITER INLET COLONY — The town has closed Jupiter Inlet Colony beach and its public access walkways until further notice because of how much its shoreline has eroded in the past few months.
The erosion has created steep drop-offs, some of them 10 feet high, from the dunes to the beach.
At high tide, the ocean has covered the bottom of stairways leading to the shore, blocking access to beachgoers.
Town engineers and building officials are inspecting homes along the beach to assess damage. Mayor Ed Hocevar said the erosion has caused a “substantial loss of property and significant threat to public safety.”
Several homes among the 25 that sit on the beach have sustained damage from the erosion. The ocean has carried away fences, pool structures, trees, bushes and parts of patios, but all of the houses, many of which cost their owners millions of dollars, are still standing.