Damaging Wind in Delaware, November 11, 1995

A very strong cold front blasted through the region the evening of the 11th. Southerly winds increased during the day and started gusting over 50 mph during the early evening. They peaked as the cold front moved through between 8 pm and 1030 pm. The worst damage occurred in Dewey Beach as a severe thunderstorm exacerbated the damaging wind gusts. The Dodd Avenue and Chicago Street areas were hardest hit. Four houses were severely damaged and more than thirty others suffered minor damage. Part of the roof of one Dodd Street house was found three blocks away. Delaware State Route 1 within Dewey Beach was closed because of strewn debris. Damage estimates were around one million dollars and miraculously no serious injuries were reported. Wind related damage was reported elsewhere throughout the state. About 2,500 Delmarva Power and Light customers lost power in Cecil and New Castle Counties. Porter Road south of Christiana was closed because of fallen trees. In Kent County, a house near Clayton suffered major wind damage. In Sussex County, a chicken house in Millville collapsed, killing 10,000 chickens. Elsewhere in Sussex County a house was badly damaged in Angola, a barn was destroyed in Cool Spring, a garage was flattened and chimney damaged in Georgetown and the Pilot Tower at Cape Henlopen recorded a wind gust to 78 mph. ~ DEZ002>004,14,1200EST- *,14,1600EST,,,0,0,,,Coastal Flooding The first nor'easter of the fall/winter season caused minor tidal flooding the afternoon of the 14th in Kent and Sussex Counties. The gradient between a high pressure system in Quebec Province and the developing nor'easter east of North Carolina produced a stiff east wind. Consequently, the high tides were a little more than three feet above normal. This produced a high tide of 7.1 feet (Above Mean Low Water) in Lewes. Roads susceptible to tidal flooding were covered and/or closed at high tide. In Kent County Hubbard Avenue in Bowers Beach was under water. A parking lot in Little Creek was submerged. Parts of the bayside communities of Woodland Beach and Pickering Beach were inaccessible. South Bowers became an island as waves were breaking on Kent County Road 121, the only road into South Bowers. In addition, the high tide caused flooding along the Murderkill River, which flooded near Webb Landing shutting it off further. In Sussex County the road between the Indian River Outlet and the South Shore Marina was under two and a half feet of water. Tidal flooding caused roadway flooding in Lewes, Dewey and along State Route 54. By the overnight high tide, the nor'easter moved inland into Southern New Jersey and tidal flooding was less.