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Emergency repairs continue at Bathtub Beach

Posted at 6:42 PM, Nov 13, 2017
and last updated 2017-11-13 18:42:54-05

Bathtub Beach in Stuart remained closed Monday as work continued on dune restoration.

“What this is is a band-aid on a very small section of the beach," said Martin County Coastal Engineer Kathy Fitzpatrick.

Bathtub Beach is much beloved, and has undergone a number of multi-million dollar renourishment projects in recent years.   Fitzpatrick says this work, is restoration work.

“So that we can maintain the dune which is the storm protection for a very important access route which is McArthur Boulevard," said Fitzpatrick.

After Hurricane Irma, the beach had held its’ own, but still lost between 40 and 50 feet. 

“If I see beach erosion in a storm then I say it’s working because that energy is going to go somewhere," said Fitzpatrick.

To put this project in perspective, about 8-thousand tons of sand is being trucked in to buffer a 400-foot stretch of beach. The price tag is 130-thousand dollars. Compare that to 300-thousand tons of sand used during a major renourishment project in 2016 that stretched down to Sailfish Point.

Fitzpatrick says it's not clear at this point if the beach will reopen before the Thanksgiving holiday.