Heavy rain carves deep canyons into West Haven beach
Crews are repairing significant erosion at Seaview Beach in West Haven after heavy rain from Tuesday’s storm caused flooding and carved deep canyons there.
Backhoes were working along Ocean Avenue on Wednesday to restore the beach after nearly 5 inches of rain fell in the city. According to West Haven officials, an aging drainage system carried streams of water instead of a controlled flow into Long Island Sound, contributing to the erosion.
Visitors were surprised by the damage.
Megan Jasperson, who was visiting her aunt’s beach home from Minnesota, said she was shocked to see the aftermath of the storm.
“I didn’t know it could do that. It definitely puts into perspective how dangerous the ocean can be,” she said.
Colleen Kiel, who has lived in West Haven for seven years, said the storm brought an extraordinary amount of rain.
“Tremendous amount of rain really. Just sheets of rain,” she said.
Kiel said she was not surprised to see crews replacing the sand because similar damage occurred at the same beach after flooding in July 2023.
“I’m not really, really surprised to see them dealing with replacing the sand,” she said.
West Haven Mayor Dorinda Borer said city crews began repairs the morning after the storm and that the city has enough sand available from another beach, eliminating the need to bring in material from elsewhere.
“Down the street we have another beach that has excess sand so that’s a good thing. We don’t have to take sand in from any other city or anywhere else,” she said.
Borer said the city is also moving forward with plans to modernize its aging stormwater system.
“Our storm water system is very archaic and it’s about a $4 million project to fix all of this down here,” she said.
According to Borer, the city expects the drainage project to be completed by the end of next year.
As cleanup continues, Kiel said she appreciates the city’s efforts to maintain its shoreline.
“West Haven is very big on maintaining five miles of beach so, it’s good that they’re taking care of it,” Kiel said.
The mayor said crews are expected to continue working through Friday before the weekend, when more visitors are expected at the city’s beaches. She also noted that there are miles of other beach available for people to enjoy in West Haven.
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