Ocean overwash at Pea Island bring may hang around for a few days

Motorists on Pea Island this afternoon were reporting ocean overwash on the south end of the temporary bridge at Pea Island Inlet, and the National Weather Service at Newport says overwash will be possible at high tides on Thursday and Friday also.

The Weather Service says that tides have been running about a foot above normal this week with a northeast wind and an east swell from very distant Hurricane Eduoard.

The hurricane is now in the far northeast Atlantic with winds of 85 mph, but as it moved up from the tropics it sent out swell energy that is now hitting the Outer Banks.  A swell of 4 to 5 feet from the east with winds at 14 from the northeast was reported at the Diamond Shoals buoy earlier this afternoon.

At 5 p.m. at the NWS automated weather station in Frisco, the winds were northeast at 13 with gusts to 22.

By late afternoon, the ocean was reported to be pouring over the beach on the south end of the temporary bridge and running down the highway in both lanes to the old parking turnout, which is just south of the bridge. The road was passable.

The Weather Service says the winds will pick up from the northeast Thursday and Friday — perhaps sustained at 20 mph with gusts to 25.

Even though the swell from the hurricane will no longer be a factor, there is a possibility of some overwash at high tide through Friday.  High tide will be about 4:30 in the early morning and afternoon on Thursday and about 5:30 on Friday morning and evening.

There was also overwash on Highway 12 several days in the middle of last week in a northeast wind and under a full moon.