SuPeRsToRm SaNdY!

In 2012 alone, NJ had been hit by 3 storms that have been declared as federal disasters: Hurricane Irene, a severe storm on June 30th, and then Superstorm Sandy.

Prior to, the last hurricane to have hit NJ was in 1894.

The worst case scenario that could happen for NJ is a storm coming up from the south near Delaware.  That puts New Jersey in the Northeast quadrant of a storm, which has the most force aka is the most damaging.  In this case, the storm was 900 miles wide.

Water Damage

The Storm lasted three days which means 3 high tide cycles.  This led to record tidal flooding.
Additionally, the storm was projected to hit NJ during a full moon, which causes tides to be exacerbated.  Sandy was projected to hit land at the same time as the highest high tide was projected.

AC already has flooding during full moons..
Historically, the worst flood NJ had had prior was an 8 foot flood.

With this storm and the rise of the tides, there water level rose to 10 ft above normal.  Following, there was an additional 8 foot surge.  A surge is defined as : a rising of the sea as a result of atmospheric pressure changes and wind associated with a storm.
 Before Sandy had even hit, NJ was experiencing tropical storm force winds.  These sustained winds were in excess of 80 mph.  Lastly, on the ocean side there was an additional 10 ft of wave action. 

 To put in another way, in the barrier islands of NJ, the bay and the ocean touched, with houses scattered amidst the water.

Atlantic County was announced to be in a state of emergency on October 29,2012.  For a variety of reasons, Atlantic County is still in a state of emergency, although this will hopefully change soon.