RAPID: Quantification of Sediment Erosion and Deposition, Debris Accumulation, and Associated Damages to the Built Environment from Storm Surge and Waves during Hurricane Helene

The big bend coast of Florida was recently impacted by subsequent storm events including Hurricane Idalia (Cat 3; Sept 2023), Hurricane Debbie (Cat 1: July 2024), Hurricane Helene (Cat 4; Sept 2024), and Hurricane Milton (Cat 3; Oct 2024). These represent a unique series of storms impacting the same region within a short period of time. Hurricane Helene also stood out because of rapid intensification and last moment changes in course that allowed limited time for warnings and evacuation, and storm preparation by residents.

The goal of this Grant for Rapid Response Research (RAPID) project is to collect perishable data that will enable to quantify sediment erosion and deposition, debris transport and accumulation, and resulting damages to the built environment from storm surge and wave action during Hurricanes Helene and Milton through comparison of data collected pre-storm, during-storm, and in-between storms. The effort will yield a data set that will improve current predictions of tropical cyclone impacts on coastal communities and will likely serve as a benchmark data set for future research studies.

Data will be shared widely through NSF Natural Hazard Engineering Research Infrastructure (NHERI) DesignSafe-CI and with local communities to increase awareness and understanding of risk assessments.

The project will collect detailed field data, including measurements in the nearshore and in coastal environments in Cedar Key, Shired Island, and Horseshoe Beach, Florida. The findings may lead to improved understanding, prediction, and mitigation of erosion and scour and impacts thereof during severe tropical storm events from storm surge, inundation, and wave action.

Specifically, this data set will be unique in providing information both before and during a Cat 4 storm with a 4m storm surge. These observations, combined with post-storm surveys and with additional measurement during Hurricane Milton and between Hurricanes Helene and Milton will enable researchers to understand the effectiveness (and potential unintended consequences) of different shoreline protection systems.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.