‘It was quite a scene’: Hampton Beach dries out after winter storm floods

HAMPTON – Residents were still cleaning up the damage and debris Tuesday from a winter storm that ripped through the Seacoast with strong winds the day before.

Hampton Police Deputy Chief Alex Reno said the worst of the flooding was over Monday afternoon after the tide had receded from the back streets of Hampton Beach and the marsh section of Route 1 between Hampton and Hampton Falls. He said there was still plenty to clean up at the beach Tuesday morning, and that New Hampshire State Parks was going down there to assist with removing debris and clearing off the sea wall. He said some cars were seen covered in sand that were parked near the ocean and looked like sandcastles in the shape of vehicles.

“It was definitely an event,” said Reno, whose department closed off numerous flooded roads during the storm Monday.

Reno said the worst flooding was at the main beach area where water was high on Ashworth Avenue and many side streets like Auburn Avenue and Perkins Avenue. By 3 p.m. the roads were back to normal, and the water had gone out to sea with the tide, he said.

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The storm began overnight Sunday and early Monday morning. No one was critically injured, but numerous cars were damaged as motorists attempted to drive through high water. Two parked cars caught fire as a result of saltwater impacting their electrical systems, according to Hampton Fire Chief Michael McMahon. He said they were dangerously close to buildings that could have also caught fire had his department not arrived soon enough.

Bob Preston Jr., of Preston Real Estate, said he had to drive south down Ocean Boulevard, a northbound one-way street, to reach his office to avoid the flooding on Ashworth Avenue.

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“Everybody was careful, moving along slowly,” Preston said. His brother Charlie’s house on Glade Path was completely surrounded by water.

“Every piece of my land was underwater,” Charlie Preston said. “When you can’t drive to and from your house, that creates a little bit of a problem.”

Flooding was also severe in the area of Kings Highway and along High Street, according to Reno, as well as the section of Route 1 that stretches across the marsh from Hampton to Hampton Falls.

Dave Cropper said he underestimated the coming storm when he left Monday morning for his surf shop Cinnamon Rainbows Surfing Co. on the corner of Ocean Boulevard and High Street. He said they lost power that morning and decided to close for the day when the flooding worsened. The following morning, he had to have a window replaced after it was broken by debris that flew in from the ocean across the street.

“I didn’t realize the potential of how strong this storm was going to be,” Cropper said. “It caught me by surprise.”

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Chucky Rosa who lives at Seabrook Beach near the Hampton-Seabrook bridge, said he walked to the beach during the storm to briefly dive in the water, as he does twice a day as a ritual to honor his late sons. He said he could not tell if the small specks flying through the air were rain, sleet or sand blowing in his face.

“It was quite a scene,” Rosa said. His wife also took photos of the flooding across the bridge in front of the Goat and Wally’s Pub that showed large chunks of ice floating in the street that apparently froze over the frigid weekend.

It was also trash day in his neighborhood, which he said meant trash barrels and garbage were strewn all over his street. He also had some lattice ripped from his deck by the wind like a sail and broken in half. The water rushed down the opening of the beach into the street where he lives at high tide, he said.

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McMahon said Monday was one of the highest tide and coastal flooding events he has seen in Hampton, but he said the fact the rain ended by mid-day made it easier for his department to respond to calls.

Normally, he said storms like nor’easters are followed by harsh precipitation.

“It was windy and it was a particularly high tide, but it was a sunny afternoon,” McMahon said. “That makes it a little bit easier.”

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Hampton Beach NH dries out after winter storm floods