Community Corner
VIDEO: Cards Pond Floods, Spills Into Ocean
Flooding at Cards Pond in Matunuck last week caused a breach to the ocean.
Late last week, Card's Pond breached and spilled into the ocean, cutting an eight-foot wide, deep channel across the beach.
According to a Sheree Ross at the Trustom Pond National Wildlife Refuge, Card's Pond usually breaches once a year, and was most likely caused this time by the heavy rain we experienced last week.
As of Monday, an approximately 30-foot wide swath of sand dunes had been eroded away, causing water to rush out rapidly and significantly dropping the water level of the pond.
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The breach is a natural process and is typically beneficial because it exposes mudflats in the pond, which are ideal foraging areas for shorebirds.
Eventually the breach is filled by wave action depositing sand in the area, however, according to Ross, the impending threat of high waves and flooding due to Hurricane Irene may be an issue, and the site will probably be evaluated again after the storm.
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The area is part of the Trustom Pond National Wildlife Refuge, which provides a protected habitat for over 300 species of birds as well as mammals, reptiles and amphibians.
