The Storm of ‘62 is one of the most destructive weather events in history to hit the Mid-Atlantic region. The powerful nor’easter caught everyone – including the National Weather Service – off guard as it pummeled the Delaware coast for three days, March 6-8, with five record high tides, winds up to 70 miles per hour, rain and 20-foot waves along the Atlantic coast, and 40-foot waves offshore. Nearly 2,000 homes were destroyed from Rehoboth Beach to Fenwick Island, and damage was estimated at $50 million, which is about $450 million in today’s dollars. Seven lives were lost in Delaware due to flooding, including six children from one family in Bowers Beach, and three were lost in Maryland.
Many of the structures and houses, and most of the Boardwalk, were either damaged or destroyed along Rehoboth Beach. The same fate hit Dewey Beach, with houses and structures knocked down and moved off their foundations as the ocean and Rehoboth Bay met. Most of Route 14 (now Route 1) from Rehoboth Beach to Fenwick Island was closed because of deep sand washed in from the ocean. All of the bays along the coast flooded as record or near-record high tides were recorded. The highest tide in Lewes was 9.3 feet above normal.
It’s estimated that more than 2 million cubic yards of sand washed off the coastline beaches.
During a 50th anniversary seminar on the storm, officials noted that in the 1960s, 50 percent of the available construction parcels along the coastline were vacant; today it's less than 2 percent. Today, 50 percent of the nation's population lives along the coastlines. Sixty years ago, none of the strict coastal building codes in place today existed. National flood insurance was not offered throughout Sussex County until 1976. Federal-state funded beach nourishment projects did not begin until 2005.
![Dolle’s in Rehoboth Beach has collapsed into the sand amid the ruins of the Boardwalk. The damaged Atlantic Sands Hotel is in the background. DELDOT PHOTO](/sites/capegazette/files/2022/02/field/image/null_86-BW-Dolle_sSaltWaterTaffy3-8-62.DelDot_2.jpg)
![The front section of the Atlantic Sands Hotel in Rehoboth Beach has collapsed. The day following the storm, more of the structure collapsed. DELAWARE PUBLIC ARCHIVES PHOTO](/sites/capegazette/files/2022/02/field/image/418142_10150720079006995_1661330511_n.jpg)
![This aerial photograph shows the utter destruction on the north end of the Rehoboth Beach Boardwalk, including the damaged Henlopen Hotel. DELDOT PHOTO](/sites/capegazette/files/2022/02/field/image/Storm 1.jpg)
![Unrelenting waves pounded the Rehoboth Beach coastline for three days, completely washing away the Boardwalk at the end of Rehoboth Avenue. DELDOT PHOTO](/sites/capegazette/files/2022/02/field/image/Storm 5.jpg)
![Playland, now Funland, was damaged by the storm, but the steel foundation under the structure held up. MARIE QUILLEN PHOTO](/sites/capegazette/files/2022/02/field/image/Storm Quillen 1.jpg)
![Work starts on rebuilding amid the ruins on the Rehoboth Beach Boardwalk. In the distance is Playland, one of the few structures left standing. MARIE QUILLEN PHOTO](/sites/capegazette/files/2022/02/field/image/Storm Quillen 2.jpg)
![This photo shows damage at Playland, which was in the process of being sold to later become Funland on the Rehoboth Beach Boardwalk. DELAWARE PUBLIC ARCHIVES PHOTO](/sites/capegazette/files/2022/02/field/image/426644_10150720082816995_750406572_n.jpg)
![Nearly all of the Rehoboth Beach Boardwalk was destroyed. This section near New Castle Street was the only part with boards still left on the pilings. DELAWARE PUBLIC ARCHIVES PHOTO](/sites/capegazette/files/2022/02/field/image/427011_10150720081996995_1292246696_n.jpg)
![Nearly all Dewey Beach streets are flooded from extreme high tides on Rehoboth Bay. DELAWARE PUBLIC ARCHIVES PHOTO](/sites/capegazette/files/2022/02/field/image/420454_10150720080361995_360898285_n.jpg)
![The Grier House along Rehoboth Beach has been knocked off its foundation. This was the fate of many homes and structures along the coast. DELAWARE PUBLIC ARCHIVES PHOTO](/sites/capegazette/files/2022/02/field/image/420593_10150720082081995_1664729610_n.jpg)
![The highest tide recorded in Lewes was more than 9 feet above normal. Savannah Road leading to the beach was impassable except for National Guard vehicles. DELAWARE PUBLIC ARCHIVES PHOTO](/sites/capegazette/files/2022/02/field/image/425060_10150720081311995_215775695_n.jpg)
![The best way to get around the Town of Milton the day after the storm passed was by boat. DELAWARE PUBLIC ARCHIVES PHOTO](/sites/capegazette/files/2022/02/field/image/419207_10150720081376995_1398442333_n.jpg)
![Work to remove the rubble began just a few days after the storm along the Rehoboth Beach Boardwalk at the Dolle’s location. Most of the area was back in business by the time the summer season started. DELAWARE PUBLIC ARCHIVES PHOTO](/sites/capegazette/files/2022/02/field/image/420783_10150720082991995_957947867_n.jpg)
![Damage along the Bethany Beach boardwalk was extensive. Twenty-eight of 29 oceanfront homes were destroyed in Bethany, and every home in South Bethany was destroyed. DELAWARE PUBLIC ARCHIVES PHOTO](/sites/capegazette/files/2022/02/field/image/420975_10150720079851995_718530847_n.jpg)
![Houses are moved off their foundations and sand washes debris inland along Dewey Beach. DELAWARE PUBLIC ARCHIVES PHOTO](/sites/capegazette/files/2022/02/field/image/422098_10150720079481995_1349799898_n.jpg)
![Rooms of the Atlantic Sands Hotel along the Rehoboth Beach Boardwalk are ripped open. DELAWARE PUBLIC ARCHIVES PHOTO](/sites/capegazette/files/2022/02/field/image/422133_10150720079171995_847008603_n.jpg)
![Sand, resembling drifting snow, is removed to clear a path to get into Dewey Beach. DELAWARE PUBLIC ARCHIVES PHOTO](/sites/capegazette/files/2022/02/field/image/422664_10150720080541995_1947571903_n.jpg)
![Nearly all of the Rehoboth Beach Boardwalk is damaged or destroyed after three days of unrelenting waves and high tides. DELAWARE PUBLIC ARCHIVES PHOTO](/sites/capegazette/files/2022/02/field/image/422669_10150720082171995_2087742181_n.jpg)
![As far as the eye can see, Route 1 – then called Route 14 – is covered with sand washed ashore by an onslaught of waves and high water. The old Indian River Coast Guard station withstood the storm. DELAWARE PUBLIC ARCHIVES PHOTO](/sites/capegazette/files/2022/02/field/image/429966_10150720081096995_541732490_n.jpg)
![Damage to houses along Bowers Beach was a commonplace scene following the Storm of ‘62. DELDOT PHOTO](/sites/capegazette/files/2022/02/field/image/Storm 12 - Bowers.jpg)