What's behind giant holes in the sand at this NJ state park
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BARNEGAT LIGHT, N.J. - On the beach at Barnegat Lighthouse State Park, gaping holes in the sand have appeared in recent days, some ranging about 6 feet deep.
"Nature's very powerful," said local resident Marianne Cooper. "To see it this close, though, is interesting."
"The power of water," said Carl Soehnlein of Bergen County. "I mean, you just don't mess with Mother Nature."
"I've never seen anything like this," said Bob Selfridge, a training officer for the Barnegat Light Volunteer Fire Company. The department posted about the holes on Facebook out of concern for people's safety.
"When it first came to our attention, one of our members took pictures and said, 'Look, this could be dangerous,' and we talked about it amongst the officers, and we decided that year, it's probably good to make a PSA and let people know this is happening," said Selfridge.
Officials say the holes stem from a recent maintenance project in the channel.
The New Jersey Department of Transportation says dredging for channel improvements was done, and dredged sand was placed in the beach area of the State Park, which officials say had been losing sand to wave action over time.
They say it was expected that while the project's sand settled into its new location, voids could appear. They say tidal influences shifted the sand, causing the current condition.
In the meantime, the holes have been cordoned off with a temporary fence.
"Well, it feels like they were really on top of it very quickly," said resident Bob Cooper, "so that's very reassuring."
NJDOT officials say this is an active construction zone and ask the public to avoid the area for now.