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Cape Region battered by Ophelia
Storm downgraded to post-tropical cyclone
Lewes Beach suffered significant erosion. At high tide Sept. 23, waves were breaking up to the dunes and destroying the beach crossover at the Lewes Yacht Club. RON MACARTHUR PHOTO
September 23, 2023
Ophelia has been downgraded to a post-tropical cyclone, after battering the Cape Region with high winds, rough surf and coastal flooding. High water forced closure of Route 1 southbound from Dewey Beach to Fred Hudson Road Sept. 23. The roadway is currently open.
Surf was choppy in Rehoboth Beach, Dewey Beach and Lewes, giving sightseers an eyeful. Flooding was reported in many coastal areas, including Lewes Beach, Dewey Beach, Milton and Oak Orchard, where high water made some roads impassable.
Beacon Middle School student Brody Godbout looks for his feet as his father Rich Godbout takes his photo outside Ivy in Dewey Beach. ELLEN DRISCOLL PHOTO
A Pennsylvania couple checks out the storm in Broadkill Beach, where the surf was already battering the dune three hours before high tide. NICK ROTH PHOTO
A City of Lewes trash truck blocks access to Savannah Beach. High winds blew sand covering the parking lot. RON MACARTHUR PHOTO
The City of Lewes started plowing sand off the Savannah Beach parking lot on Saturday afternoon. RON MACARTHUR PHOTO
Several roads, including Pilottown Road in Lewes, have been closed due to flooding. RON MACARTHUR PHOTO
A look to the north in Broadkill Beach. NICK ROTH PHOTO
The rough surf is eating away at the dune in Broadkill Beach. NICK ROTH PHOTO
Front Street in Milton is closed to vehicles due to flooding. NICK ROTH PHOTO
The Broadkill River is creeping into Milton Memorial Park. NICK ROTH PHOTO
Despite windy and rainy conditions, people are still on the roads. NICK ROTH PHOTO
No jacket? No umbrella? No problem. Torrential rain comes down on Rehoboth Avenue. BILL SHULL PHOTO
The best seat in the house to see the huge waves in Rehoboth Beach. BILL SHULL PHOTO
T.R. Marshall of the Rehoboth Beach Patrol keeps an eye out for anybody who tries to ignore the beach closure and go in the ocean. BILL SHULL PHOTO
Tropical storm warning flags blow on top of the Rehoboth Beach Patrol station on the Boardwalk. BILL SHULL PHOTO
Walking on the Boardwalk means turning away from blowing sand. BILL SHULL PHOTO
Hold on to your hats if you are going on the beach. Winds gusts of more than 60 mph were recorded Saturday. BILL SHULL PHOTO
Hold onto your wigs if you are taking part in the Mrs. Roper Romp in Rehoboth Beach. BILL SHULL PHOTO
Running between the raindrops to look at the big waves in Rehoboth Beach. BILL SHULL PHOTO
Umbrellas were a required accessory for the Mrs. Roper Romp in Rehoboth Beach Saturday. BILL SHULL PHOTO
Lifeguard stands block an entrance to the beach on the Rehoboth Boardwalk. The beach patrol is warning people not to go into the ocean. BILL SHULL PHOTO
The buoys in the middle of the Lewes-Rehoboth Canal in Lewes mark the spot of a sunken sailboat. RON MACARTHUR PHOTO
Waves break on the Roosevelt Inlet breakwater in Lewes on Saturday afternoon. RON MACARTHUR PHOTO
The end of Pilottown Road in Lewes, which floods frequently, is getting covered from two sides – Canary Creek and Roosevelt Inlet. RON MACARTHUR PHOTO
Although there hasn’t been major flooding along Cedar Street in Lewes, water from the canal is overflowing in the low areas of marsh. RON MACARTHUR PHOTO
The kayak launch along the Lewes-Rehoboth Canal in Canalfront Park is under water at high tide on Saturday. RON MACARTHUR PHOTO
On Saturday afternoon, Lewes-Rehoboth Canal water is overflowing, covering docks along Pilottown Road. RON MACARTHUR PHOTO
A U.S. Coast Guard ship sails through the Indian River Inlet about 2:30 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 23. ELLEN DRISCOLL PHOTO
Waves eat at the dunes on the north side of Indian River Inlet. ELLEN DRISCOLL PHOTO
Waves roll onto shore north of the Indian River Inlet bridge. ELLEN DRISCOLL PHOTO
The storm kicked up a bit of foam in Dewey Beach. ELLEN DRISCOLL PHOTO
Wind whips the flag at the Lifesaving Station in Dewey Beach. ELLEN DRISCOLL PHOTO
The bay creeps toward the entrance of Ivy on Dagsworthy Avenue in Dewey Beach. ELLEN DRISCOLL PHOTO
View from the DelDOT webcam, looking north from the Indian River Inlet Bridge. SOURCE: DELDOT.GOV
Bay water fills Dagsworthy Avenue. ELLEN DRISCOLL PHOTO
View from DelDOT webcam looking south toward the Indian River Inlet Bridge. SOURCE: DELDOT.GOV
Read Avenue bayside in Dewey Beach closed to cars the afternoon of Saturday, Sept. 23. ELLEN DRISCOLL PHOTO
Read Avenue in Dewey is a no-wake zone as baywater fills the street. ELLEN DRISCOLL PHOTO
It’s hard to tell where the parking lot ends and the bay begins at Dewey Beach Yacht Club on Rodney Avenue. ELLEN DRISCOLL PHOTO
Water begins to surround the Lighthouse Restaurant in Dewey. ELLEN DRISCOLL PHOTO
Water begins creeping up the stairs at the Lighthouse Restaurant in Dewey. ELLEN DRISCOLL PHOTO
The bay is almost up to the pier at the Rusty Rudder in Dewey. ELLEN DRISCOLL PHOTO
Finding a dry parking spot was tough at the Rudder in Dewey. ELLEN DRISCOLL PHOTO
Better take the ramp, not the stairs, off the Lighthouse Restaurant deck in Dewey. ELLEN DRISCOLL PHOTO
Rehoboth is barely visible to the north as foam and waves cover the sand in Dewey. ELLEN DRISCOLL PHOTO
Several roads are closed in Oak Orchard due to flooding. PHOTO COURTESY OF INDIAN RIVER VOLUNTEER FIRE COMPANY
Flooding at the end of Old Orchard Road. PHOTO COURTESY OF INDIAN RIVER VOLUNTEER FIRE COMPANY
River Road is flooded in Oak Orchard. PHOTO COURTESY OF INDIAN RIVER VOLUNTEER FIRE COMPANY
River Road is impassable in Oak Orchard. PHOTO COURTESY OF INDIAN RIVER VOLUNTEER FIRE COMPANY
Feffie Barnhill sent this image of the ocean breaching the dunes at the beach near the Point parking lot at Cape Henlopen State Park. SUBMITTED PHOTO
A sailboat became a casualty of Ophelia. Dan Vansciver said the boat had been anchored off shore before the storm started. He said nobody was onboard but it damaged the pier at Cape Shores in Lewes.
DAN VANSCIVER PHOTO
