Beaufort to FEMA: Help us with Waterfront Park, dock repairs

The dock at Pigeon Point Landing suffered $5,000 in damage due to rain and "king" tides after reopening in mid-October following a more extensive repair, city manager Bill Prokop said.

Tides and wave activity are also believed to have damaged the seawall fronting Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park and the pavers and sidewalk along the wall. An estimate on those repairs and an engineering study on the wall is not yet available, Prokop said, but he expects the costs to exceed $50,000.

Nine officials from the Federal Emergency Management Agency visited the city Dec. 3. Two FEMA representatives returned Monday to inspect the site with public works director Lamar Taylor and police Capt. Robert Carson, the city's operations and emergency management director.

The city is asking FEMA to reimburse costs to repair both areas, Prokop said. He expects FEMA's review to last close to a month.

The Pigeon Point dock was closed in August and shipped to a contractor for $25,000 in repairs. Taylor said those structural issues were likely related to the heavy boat wake in the area.

The dock was returned and reopened in the middle of October. A round of unusually high tides occurred at the end of that month.

Beaufort County is one of 35 counties in the state eligible for public assistance. The county is one of only 12 not also eligible for individual assistance.

Also in Beaufort County, Hilton Head Island is exploring the possibility of FEMA funds to reimburse beach renourishment costs, town manager Steve Riley said. Riley said he is not sure how much federal assistance the town might be eligible for.

The public assistance grants are money used to help communities quickly respond and recover from major disasters or emergencies, according to FEMA's website. The categories of public assistance include work needed to address imminent safety issues and permanent work needed to restore facilities to pre-disaster condition.

As of Friday, the state had received more than $15 million in FEMA public assistance money, according to the agency's website, almost $14 million of that for emergency work. Only $166,871 has been dedicated to permanent work such as Beaufort is requesting.

The October tides also led the city, Beaufort County and S.C. Department of Transportation to address several stormwater issues.

Three drainage issues were identified downtown and an eroded bank rebuilt in Mossy Oaks near Batttery Creek.

Follow reporter Stephen Fastenau at twitter.com/IPBG_Stephen.

Related content:

• Beaufort County set for another helping of 'king' tides for Thanksgiving, Nov. 22, 2015
• How did the heavy rains, high tides affect Beaufort County? Oct. 5, 2015
• Work targets Beaufort drainage, erosion issues, Oct. 25, 2015

This story was originally published December 10, 2015 at 8:50 AM with the headline "Beaufort to FEMA: Help us with Waterfront Park, dock repairs."