CAROLINA BEACH — A year’s worth of data compiled by university researchers has revealed the contributors to standing water on Canal Drive, a notorious area for flooding in Carolina Beach.
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Last year, the town joined the Sunny Day Flood Project, put together by researchers from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University. By studying chronic flooding on Canal Drive, the team plans to identify the factors contributing to flooding and provide potential solutions.
Also part of the project is Beaufort, New Bern and Ocracoke.
At a meeting in April, when Carolina Beach Town Council approved a revenue bond-funded plan for the next decade (albeit without projects on Canal Drive), Barbee said Canal Drive improvements have been put off his whole life. Residents in the nearly 100 homes along the road have to deal with the consequences, which involve wading through the water, parking at higher elevations and tracking water level predictions via weather apps.
In May, researchers Miyuki Hino, Katharine Anarde and Thomas Thelen presented data from three sensors installed along Canal Drive. At the intersection with Clamshell Lane, they found standing water present on 45 days from April 2022 to April 2023. Three days were affected by Hurricane Ian in October and 14 were due to rain; however, 28 flooding events are referred to as “sunny day floods,” meaning the excess water was coming from tides.
The findings are preliminary and researchers noted there are some gaps in data collection that would probably increase the number of days affected by standing water. Half of the record is missing from February to August, and 9% absent from August to May. The researchers noted the sensors can lose signal when fully submerged, likely contributing to a loss of information.
Still, the 12 months of data showed some patterns that affect Canal Drive flooding. By developing a model to map the flooding event on Jan. 22, as an example, the researchers found the habor’s tides alone, while overtopping Florida Avenue, would not reach Canal Drive. But when wind forces were incorporated in the model, the water was pushed onto Canal Drive.
“The scientific approach validates what people feel already, but it’s great to see the data line up,” Carolina Beach Mayor Lynn Barbee said during the May presentation.
The community can also track water levels in real-time online. In May, the Clamshell Lane and Oystershell Lane intersections with Canal Drive noted water levels exceeded road elevation once. At the Starfish Lane intersection, the sensor marked water above road elevation 13 times.
Water surpassed all three sensors, located in the storm drain, almost every day in May.
Flooding frequency is expected to increase with rising sea levels. According to predictions from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, sea levels along the East Coast are anticipated to rise 10 to 14 inches on average by 2050. Moderate flooding events (typically damaging) could occur more frequently, on average four events per year by 2050; major flooding is expected to occur five times as often.
With 1.5 to 5 feet of higher water levels by 2100, per current emission levels, Canal Drive, only 2 to 3 feet above sea level, could be threatened even further.
According to the researchers, they anticipate finalizing the flood model this fall, then soliciting community input on impacts and potential mitigation strategies. These could include raising the town’s installed bulkheads, adding a stormwater pond, or elevating road segments. The researchers intend to model chosen strategies in spring 2024 to evaluate impacts, which can then inform council decisions on action plans.
Until then, the town plans to construct a bulkhead-like structure on Florida Avenue, with two others either completed or in progress, according to town manager Bruce Oakley. He noted a few private properties have also recently installed bulkheads to assist with flooding mitigation.
The town established a Canal Drive Flooding Advisory Committee in February 2018, enacting a $250 fine for driving through floodwaters on Canal Drive the following year. The committee found the issue could really only be resolved by a group of private property owners installing bulkheads on their vulnerable properties. Though the $50,000 installation, requiring CAMA approval, was characterized by some council meetings as too large an imposition on residents.
In April, Barbee said he would like to see the town approach Canal Drive the same way it did its needed utility upgrades, by developing a timeline and funding plan.
Until then, the public can track the Canal Drive water levels and sign up for flooding alerts through the Sunny Day Flood Project.
Reach journalist Brenna Flanagan at brenna@localdailymedia.com.
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