Hermine may threaten coastal area amidst replenishment plans

there is concern about what will happen to our coastal areas. we know that some beaches and dunes around the peninsula — are still in less than optimal shape — because of past storms. 47 a-b-c’s lili zheng joins us live in the studio tonight — to tell us what some natural resource experts have to say about weathering this approaching storm. hi there lili — emily — i spoke with the e nvironmental program manager for dnrec’s shoreline and waterway program today. and — he admits they are preparing for the possibility of more beach erosion and dune damage. the coastal areas were hit hard by a winterstorm in january — which destroyed sand dunes — meant to protect buildings and boardwalks during severe weather. the good news is that the beaches are in good shape overall. that’s because of the relatively calm summer we’ve had — so far. and it appears beach replenishment efforts are on schedule — set to begin later this fall. it’s not clear how tropical storm hermine her-meen — will affect the amount of work planned for the coming months. the army corps of engineers will start beach restoration — with dewey beach and rehoboth beach. that work — includes not only repairing the dunes — but widening the beach. and — as the damage currently stands — it is expected to take about a month or two. aside from this update on their beach restoration efforts– dn-rec also had a word of warning for property owners today. now is the time to make sure you’re familiar with your flood insurance coverage. evacuate if there’s an order to do so come back, assess whether your property has been damaged and if you have flood insurance, which we highly recommend for people in flood prone areas to do, to make a claim if you believe you’ve been damaged earlier this year — officials including u-s senator tom carper mentioned tens of millions of dollars have gone into building protective dunes all over delaware. but in terms of these projects — it’s unclear how much they will cost. we reached out to the army corps of engineers — and are still waiting for a response. emily — alright — thank you, lili. 47 a-b-c’s lili zheng reporting live in our studio tonight. in virginia — governor terry mcauliffe has declared a