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Cost to repair blizzard damage to Chapel's Cove beach almost as high as town's entire budget

Adam Walsh/CBC
Adam Walsh/CBC

January's intense blizzard and storm surges caused nearly a million dollars in damages to a public beach in Harbour Main-Chapel's Cove-Lakeview — almost as much as the town's entire annual budget.

The mayor says the beach is a primary source of financial income for the town, which is applying for disaster relief from the federal and provincial governments.

"What you see here is an environmental event that took out an economic cornerstone for a community. That's really sad for the residents here, for us," said Mike Doyle.

Doyle said the town is asking for help paying for repairs to the damage down by the storm — nicknamed "Snowmageddon" — which he said is estimated at $970,000. The town's annual budget is $1 million.

Aside from taking away one of the town's biggest attractions, he's worried the destroyed breakwater could leave the area vulnerable to other storms.

"We're fully at risk here. We have nothing to protect us."

Some rocks from the breakwater are now sitting on the road near the beach. In its current state, he said, getting to the water requires climbing over rocks and boulders.

Adam Walsh/CBC
Adam Walsh/CBC

Parts of the town's infrastructure were affected, too.

"The storm drain from the other side of the road that handles our storm water is now lifted. Ripped that culvert completely out of the ground and placed it across the other side of the road," he said.

"If it continues to erode, with any of the future storm surges … under that road is our water and sewer lines."

Any community events that revolve around the beach — including the town's annual festival — need to be reconsidered, he said.

"[It] looks like something of a World War Two war movie."

Felt throughout the community

Adam Walsh/CBC
Adam Walsh/CBC

He said he's afraid of some of the long-term ramifications of the damage. People will find another beach to use, he said.

"If they can't come to this beach, you're going to go to a beach somewhere else — and rural communities are trying to hold on to our residents.… This is now a deterrent to that."

For residents who do stay, he's worried one of the town's revenue options for combating rising energy costs expected when Muskrat Falls comes online may have just disappeared.

"Energy costs are going to be going up in this province. That's a big hit to the rural communities here," he said, adding the town is trying to come up with economic initiatives to offset rising power costs.

"Once again that is now washed away, when the tide came in and washed all that away."

He said he's hoping for help fixing the damage, but wants preventive measures installed so more taxpayer money isn't required down the line.

"It's going to take the provincial, federal government to really help us out with this," he said.

"Those are taxpayers.… We can't keep going to them again and again and again. So we really need to fix this up, and let's put some breakwater, some engineering controls in here so that when we go for help we do it one time and we don't have to go back."

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