Hurricane Sally punched 3 holes in this Florida island
Before-and-after photos offer snapshot of Category 2 storm’s destructive force
Garrett Pelican, Digital executive producer
Satellite images show what Perdido Key looked like before and after Hurricane Sally made landfall along the Gulf Coast. (Courtesy of NOAA)
Hurricane Sally left its mark on Florida when it slammed into the Gulf Coast this month.
The hurricane made landfall as a Category 2 storm Sept. 16, lashing buildings with 105-mph winds, dropping over two feet of rain in some parts of the Panhandle and leaving behind billions of dollars in damage.
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But perhaps the clearest visual evidence of Sally’s destructive force can be found at the easternmost point of Perdido Key, a barrier island situated southwest of Pensacola.
Satellite images captured by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration before and after Sally’s arrival show the three holes the hurricane punched in the uninhabited stretch of the barrier island.
Dan Brown, superintendent of Gulf Islands National Seashore, said he hasn’t seen a breach like this in the decade he’s spent working there but noted that it has happened in the past.
“We’re waiting to see what happens with those three breaches, if there’s enough sand for them to heal themselves or not,” Brown said.
He said it’s not unusual for storms to create the kind of overwash that results in breaches — Hurricane Sandy cut similar holes in Fire Island when it came ashore in 2012, breaches that have yet to be filled.
“Sometimes breaches are so expansive that they’re not able to heal up naturally, but those things happen with barrier islands,” Brown told News4Jax in a phone interview Monday.
He said it’s too early to say if the Perdido Key breaches will heal on their own.
In general, Brown said, the National Park Service allows nature to run its course — unless, of course, there are man-made impacts that contributed to a breach.
“We let nature be nature,” he said. “We don’t stare out at the rim of the Grand Canyon and it look at it as an erosion problem that needs to be fixed.”
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Storm damaged boats sit at the dock in a marina, Thursday, Sept. 17, 2020, in Pensacola, Fla. Rivers swollen by Hurricane Sally's rains threatened more misery for parts of the Florida Panhandle and south Alabama on Thursday, as the storm's remnants continued to dump heavy rains inland that spread the threat of flooding to Georgia and the Carolinas.(AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Storm damaged boats sit at the dock in a marina, Thursday, Sept. 17, 2020, in Pensacola, Fla. Rivers swollen by Hurricane Sally's rains threatened more misery for parts of the Florida Panhandle and south Alabama on Thursday, as the storm's remnants continued to dump heavy rains inland that spread the threat of flooding to Georgia and the Carolinas.(AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
This photo provided by Tina Austin shows damage at the Barber Marina in Elberta, Ala., Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2020, caused by Hurricane Sally. (Tina Austin via AP)
This photo provided by Tina Austin shows damage at the Barber Marina in Elberta, Ala., Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2020, caused by Hurricane Sally. (Tina Austin via AP)
Sammie Jenkins and Raquel Knight observe flood waters, Thursday, Sept. 17, 2020, in Brewton, Ala. Rivers swollen by Hurricane Sally's rains threatened more misery for parts of the Florida Panhandle and south Alabama on Thursday, as the storm's remnants continued to dump heavy rains inland that spread the threat of flooding to Georgia and the Carolinas.(AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Workers look over a damaged ferry , Thursday, Sept. 17, 2020, in Pensacola, Fla. Rivers swollen by Hurricane Sally's rains threatened more misery for parts of the Florida Panhandle and south Alabama on Thursday, as the storm's remnants continued to dump heavy rains inland that spread the threat of flooding to Georgia and the Carolinas.(AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Darlene Burch views floodwaters covering a road, Thursday, Sept. 17, 2020, in Brewton, Ala. Rivers swollen by Hurricane Sally's rains threatened more misery for parts of the Florida Panhandle and south Alabama on Thursday, as the storm's remnants continued to dump heavy rains inland that spread the threat of flooding to Georgia and the Carolinas.(AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Brenda Davenport holds her dog Harley as floodwaters cover a road, Thursday, Sept. 17, 2020, in Brewton, Ala. Rivers swollen by Hurricane Sally's rains threatened more misery for parts of the Florida Panhandle and south Alabama on Thursday, as the storm's remnants continued to dump heavy rains inland that spread the threat of flooding to Georgia and the Carolinas.(AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
This March 30, 2020, photo, provided by Maxar Technologies shows homes along Little Lagoon in Gulf Shores, Ala., before Hurricane Sally. (Satellite image 2020 Maxar Technologies via AP)
This Sept. 17, 2020, photo, provided by Maxar Technologies shows homes and property damaged along Little Lagoon in Gulf Shores, Ala., after Hurricane Sally. (Satellite image 2020 Maxar Technologies via AP)
A damaged business is seen in the aftermath of Hurricane Sally, Thursday, Sept. 17, 2020, in Perdido Key, Fla. Rivers swollen by Hurricane Sally's rains threatened more misery for parts of the Florida Panhandle and south Alabama on Thursday, as the storm's remnants continued to dump heavy rains inland that spread the threat of flooding to Georgia and the Carolinas. (AP Photo/Angie Wang)
Storm damaged boats sit at the dock in a marina, Thursday, Sept. 17, 2020, in Pensacola, Fla. Rivers swollen by Hurricane Sally's rains threatened more misery for parts of the Florida Panhandle and south Alabama on Thursday, as the storm's remnants continued to dump heavy rains inland that spread the threat of flooding to Georgia and the Carolinas.(AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Trent Airhart wades through floodwaters, Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2020, in downtown Pensacola, Fla. Hurricane Sally made landfall Wednesday near Gulf Shores, Alabama, as a Category 2 storm, pushing a surge of ocean water onto the coast and dumping torrential rain that forecasters said would cause dangerous flooding from the Florida Panhandle to Mississippi and well inland in the days ahead.(AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Joe Mirable surveys the damage to his business after Hurricane Sally moved through the area, Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2020, in Perdido Key, Fla. Hurricane Sally made landfall Wednesday near Gulf Shores, Alabama, as a Category 2 storm, pushing a surge of ocean water onto the coast and dumping torrential rain that forecasters said would cause dangerous flooding from the Florida Panhandle to Mississippi and well inland in the days ahead. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
A man watches floodwaters, Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2020, in downtown Pensacola, Fla. Hurricane Sally made landfall Wednesday near Gulf Shores, Alabama, as a Category 2 storm, pushing a surge of ocean water onto the coast and dumping torrential rain that forecasters said would cause dangerous flooding from the Florida Panhandle to Mississippi and well inland in the days ahead. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Storm damaged boats sit at the dock in a marina, Thursday, Sept. 17, 2020, in Pensacola, Fla. Rivers swollen by Hurricane Sally's rains threatened more misery for parts of the Florida Panhandle and south Alabama on Thursday, as the storm's remnants continued to dump heavy rains inland that spread the threat of flooding to Georgia and the Carolinas.(AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
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