DELMARVA. - Neighbors and business owners in Ocean City and Fenwick Island are assessing damage and beginning cleanup after a nor’easter brought flooding and rough conditions to the coast.
In Ocean City, some bayside properties remained surrounded by standing water, though flooding had begun to recede. Along the Boardwalk, businesses worked to clear sand and debris from entrances.
Despite the storm, some businesses benefited from crowds who stayed indoors for football and entertainment.
Douglas Buxbaum, owner of Buxy’s Salty Dog Saloon, said Friday night turned into one of his favorite nights in more than 27 years in business after the bar hosted a surprise performance by singer KT Tunstall. Buxbaum tells CoastTV that Tunstall decided to stay in town despite the cancellation of Ocean's Calling, a large music festival put on in Ocean City.
“In this business, we all have to pivot pretty quick,” Buxbaum says.
He tells CoastTV that businesses in areas hit hardest by flooding struggled, while other parts of Ocean City remained busy.
“A lot of folks did tremendous, and obviously the folks downtown where the flooding was, they took a hit,” Buxbaum says. “But throughout town everybody was busy. All the festival goers from around the world, from Canada, out west, they were just great.”
Farther north in Fenwick Island, floodwaters had also dropped but in some areas, remained several inches deep on some streets and in yards. Debris piled up near the ends of streets as those in town began cleaning up.
Both the Bethany Beach Volunteer Fire Company, which responds to calls in Fenwick Island as the town does not have a fire department, and the Ocean City Fire Department say that the majority of their calls came from cars stuck in floodwaters and electrical unit issues.
Vincent Sanzone, who lives in Fenwick Island, compared the flooding to Hurricane Sandy and said water rose higher than the precautions he had taken around his property.
“All my stuff is built up 12 inches or so because I expect I get flooded even on heavy rains,” Sanzone said. “So everything is built up, but the water had come up 14 inches. Knocked out my freezer, knocked out my refrigerator.”
Sanzone says he anticipates the recovery process will take considerable time.
“It’s probably going to take me a week,” he says.
With floodwaters continuing to recede, residents and businesses along the coast are now turning their attention to cleanup and repairs.
The Town of Ocean City says that assessment and cleanup efforts have begun. As for the Town of Fenwick Island, Public Works was seen out working on the beaches this morning. CoastTV reached out to Fenwick Island Public Works for cleanup specifics and has not heard back.
