Damage at Keel Point, Anegada when Hurricane Sandy’s outer bands threw high-impact surf at the Virgin Islands recently may have been caused in part by a degraded barrier reef, said a scientist after a visit to the sister island this week.
Dr. Aurelio Mercado-Irizarry, a physical oceanographer at the University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez, said the damage at Keel Point suggests that where there was once shelter off the coast in the form of rock or a coral reef, recent strong waves are hitting the area much harder.
Dr. Mercado-Irizarry said between Anegada’s ongoing erosion problems and the anticipated rise in sea level, the island faces serious threats.
“It’s difficult to say this in the sense that it sounds apocalyptic,” Dr. Mercado-Irizarry said, but “sea level has increased by a lot in the last few months.” In Puerto Rico, he added, some beaches are disappearing.
Dr. Mercado-Irizarry’s visit was facilitated by the United Nations Development Programme under the Regional Risk Reduction Initiative and an agreement between his university and the VI government.
See the Nov. 29, 2012 edition for full coverage.
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