The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Fort Monroe Authority, has installed a new tide gauge station at Fort Monroe to help emergency planners protect the shorelines in the Hampton Roads region.
Tide gauges provide real-time water levels and local meteorology data in areas that are susceptible to the effects of storm-tide flooding.
The sensors are arranged in long lines perpendicular to the coast to help measure how local topography, natural features and land use can affect flood damage and wave heights.
The monitoring station, to be located at the former Navy Pier at Fort Monroe, will provide decision makers long-term water level data and real-time warnings of storm surge.
Hurricane Sandy’s landfall affected many coastlines from the mid-Atlantic and northeastern states, including Virginia. Coastal changes, such as beach erosion, over-wash deposition and island breaching, occurred along the Virginia shoreline.
“ Fort Monroe, with its strategic location as a former military base, has a long history of being a point of protection for this region. The placement of the tide gauge at the former Navy Pier will provide valuable information for the protection and preservation of the shoreline ,” said Glenn Oder, executive director of the Fort Monroe Authority . “ It will also provide strategic information to the mariners, fishermen, and pleasure boat operators as they navigate the Chesapeake Bay.”