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Crews Work To Fix Duxbury Seawall As Next Storm Looms

DUXBURY (CBS) - The damage along the South Shore from last week's nor'easter is something many have never seen before. As they work to clean up, the fear of another storm on Wednesday looms.

"Before we could do much about the damage, another high tide would come and do more damage and eventually, it collapsed," Paul Flavin said.

Flavin says five high tides, driven by the nor'easter, bashed away at his sister-in-law's Bay Avenue home. Each onslaught of ocean water stripping away the siding of the home, and ultimately the porch.

"My sister in law's family has owned it since 1944 and spent a lot of time on that porch," Flavin said.

The relentless waves also took a toll on Duxbury's seawall.

Seawall
Seawall in Duxbury damaged by March nor'easter (WBZ-TV)

Further down on Bay Avenue, just the top part of the wall crumbled away, causing the surf to stream into homes.

Homeowners on Cable Hill Way were forced to fill in a gaping hole where the seawall withstood the water until Monday morning.

Now, town officials estimate nearly 30% of the wall is compromised, sparking fears that some homes could be washed away.

"If this gets back too close to the house, we are going to end up with the footing to the house actually being undermined," said Scott Lambiase, director of Duxbury Municipal Services.

Duxbury seawall
Seawall in Duxbury damaged by March nor'easter (WBZ-TV)

As the wall gave way, the water rushed in, sitting in the lower lying areas off the ocean. Where the water didn't strike, downed tree limbs had crews working hard to restore power.

Those who live here say that the powerful storm is like nothing they have seen in decades.

"The Blizzard of '78 was some comparable damage, but this, this is awful," Flavin said.

Despite the widespread damage, Duxbury schools will be open on Tuesday. Full power may not be restored in the town until Saturday.

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