Storm-damaged bulkheads in Baldwin County.
Record first, rebuild second.

What did Hurricane Sally do to bulkheads?

Sally came ashore at Gulf Shores around 4:45 a.m. on September 16, 2020 as a Category 2 hurricane. NHC Sally report Inundation along the Baldwin County coast reached 5 to 7 feet above ground. The highest stillwater mark in Orange Beach was 4.2 feet above ground. NHC Sally report

Surge and rain together

NWS Mobile found major flood damage to structures along the back-bay waters and little to none along the Gulf front. NWS Mobile Sally report Rain made it worse. Orange Beach logged 30.0 inches, the highest total anywhere in the storm. NHC Sally report

That pattern matters for bulkheads on Cotton Bayou and Terry Cove, Ono Island and Perdido Beach. Surge and rain together load a wall from the water side and the soil side.

What did Hurricane Ivan do in 2004?

Ivan came ashore just west of Gulf Shores on September 16, 2004 as a Category 3 hurricane. NHC Ivan report Storm surge was 10 to 15 feet from the Florida line west to Mobile Bay. Waves and wind caused extensive damage in Orange Beach. NHC Ivan report

A Corps tide-gauge table lists a peak of 8.8 feet at Perdido Pass in Ivan, the highest of the storms it compares. Corps Mobile District gauge table

Frederic in 1979 came ashore at Dauphin Island as a Category 4. NWS Mobile Frederic report It holds Dauphin Island's highest water mark of record, 8.0 feet above mean higher high water (the average of each day's higher high tide). NOAA CO-OPS top ten

How did Katrina, Nate and Zeta hit the Eastern Shore?

Storms that come ashore west of Mobile Bay push water up the bay. Katrina's high water marks exceeded 13 feet above sea level (NAVD88) north of Fairhope. FEMA Katrina study Hurricane Nate in October 2017 pushed 3 to 6 feet of surge across coastal Baldwin County and damaged just under 200 piers. NWS Mobile Nate report

Zeta in October 2020 brought 3 to 6 feet of inundation along Mobile Bay and destroyed several Eastern Shore piers. NHC Zeta report NHC Zeta damage Baldwin County was not on the major disaster list for Zeta, so owners paid for that storm themselves. OpenFEMA Zeta counties

See Fairhope, Point Clear and Daphne and Montrose.

How did storms hit Fort Morgan and the Gulf side?

Storms that pass near the mouth of Mobile Bay hit the peninsula hardest. Hurricane Danny in July 1997 stalled over southern Mobile Bay. Surge reached 6.5 feet on Highway 182 between Fort Morgan and Gulf Shores, and 6 feet of salt water stood inside Fort Morgan. NWS Mobile Danny report

• Georges, 1998: surge estimated at 7 to 12 feet in Baldwin County, with 11.9 feet at Fort Morgan. NHC Georges report
• Dennis, 2005: a storm tide of 7.1 feet at Fort Morgan and minor beach erosion from Dauphin Island to Orange Beach. NWS Mobile Dennis report

OpenFEMA lists 39 declarations covering Baldwin County from 1969 to October 2026. OpenFEMA declarations See Fort Morgan and Gulf-front armoring.

Which water gauge should I watch?

No NOAA gauge currently operates on the Baldwin County shore. NOAA CO-OPS station list The Weeks Bay gauge was removed in April 2022. NOAA Weeks Bay history Use these instead.

• Gulf and Fort Morgan side: Dauphin Island, station 8735180.
• Upper Mobile Bay and the Causeway: Mobile State Docks, station 8737048, or Coast Guard Sector Mobile.
• Perdido Bay as a rough guide: Pensacola, station 8729840. NOAA CO-OPS station list

Daily tides are small. Orange Beach's back bays range about 0.8 to 0.9 feet. NOAA Wolf Bay and Arnica Bay Eastern Shore stations range about 1.5 to 1.7 feet. NOAA Eastern Shore stations A few feet of surge is many times a normal tide.

What should I do right after damage?

1. Keep people, pets and vehicles away from the wall edge and any sinkholes.
2. Photograph the whole wall, close-ups of cracks and gaps, the cap line and the yard. Include a tape measure or other scale.
3. Note the date, time and water level. Save weather alerts and any gauge readings.
4. Shut off power to docks, lifts and pedestals before you go near them.
5. Put a tarp or sandbags only where it is safe, and keep receipts.
6. Call your insurer and your HOA or condo manager the same day.

Then hire an engineer or marine contractor for a written assessment. A seawall assessment gives you a dated record for insurance and permits. The insurance guide explains what a policy may and may not pay.

How should I write down wall heights?

Ask every surveyor and engineer to state the datum next to each elevation. NAVD88 is the common reference. Normal high tide, mean higher high water, sits about 0.7 feet above NAVD88 at Arnica Bay. NOAA Arnica Bay datums On the open Gulf at the Gulf State Park Pier it is also about 0.7 feet. NOAA Gulf State Park Pier datums

With heights in one datum, a cap can be compared with the tide, a storm mark or a flood elevation. A cap that sits 2 feet above normal high tide is covered by water in a decade-level event at Dauphin Island. NOAA CO-OPS exceedance levels

Why build a record before a storm?

The Corps maintenance permit only covers structures that were legally authorized. 2026 Nationwide Permit 3 Gather these now.

• The original bulkhead permit number, from the Orange Beach portal for permits after 2018 Orange Beach permit portal or Baldwin County CitizenServe for permits after November 1, 2020 Baldwin County permit search.
• Any Corps, ADEM or State Lands approval letters.
• A survey showing the wall and mean high tide.
• Dated photos of the wall at low water, taken each year.

Pre-storm photos also help prove sudden land loss, which State Lands treats differently from slow erosion. State Lands reviews imagery from the prior five years. State Lands reclamation rule

What paper trail do claims and permits need?

Write down every call, name and promise. Ask the insurer for decisions in writing. Keep invoices, engineer letters and contractor proposals together in one folder.

A named-storm deductible applies only when a named storm caused the damage, and it is separate from your regular deductible. It is usually a percentage of insured value. Alabama Department of Insurance Check your own policy before storm season. The Department's consumer line is (334) 241-4141. Alabama Department of Insurance contacts

Does storm aid pay for my wall?

• Standard flood policies do not cover seawalls, bulkheads, docks or piers. SFIP Dwelling Form
• FEMA home repair aid may cover safe access such as a private dock, but not second homes. FEMA Individual Assistance
• An SBA disaster home loan can add up to 20 percent of verified damage for protection such as seawalls. SBA disaster loans

Sally was a declared major disaster, DR-4563. OpenFEMA Sally declaration Plan to repair a private wall through insurance or your own money. See seawall insurance.

Can I do emergency work, and for how long?

Three rules decide how fast you can act.

• Corps emergency permit. ALGP-15 covers an unacceptable hazard to life, significant property loss or immediate hardship. The Corps may authorize work on first contact, and a notice follows within 60 days after the work. ALGP-15
• ADEM emergency approval. ADEM can approve emergency actions without prior notice, effective for no more than 120 days. ADEM rule 335-8-1-.07(5)
• Maintenance permit window. Work under NWP 3 must start or be under contract within two years of the damage. 2026 NWP 3

After a big storm, contractors are scarce. Orange Beach awarded its Perdido Pass Seawall Park repairs in March 2023, about two and a half years after Sally. Orange Beach Resolution 23-051 Keep a contract date in writing to protect the two-year window. See the repair or replace guide.

What is a blowout after a storm?

North winds behind a storm can empty Mobile Bay. On Sally's back side, the water at Coast Guard Sector Mobile dropped about 10.6 feet in roughly 20 hours to 7.0 feet below chart datum. NHC Sally report Isaias in October 2026 pulled the Port of Mobile about 3 feet below normal high tide. NWS Isaias report

Those are the days you can see the toe of a wall and the base of pilings. Photograph them. Boat lifts and docks can ground. Isaias itself caused no reported surge damage in Baldwin County, though about 45 percent of customers lost power. NWS Mobile county report

How often does high water come?

At Dauphin Island, water 1.5 feet above normal high tide happens in an average year. About 3 feet happens roughly once a decade, and about 4.3 feet about once in 20 years. NOAA CO-OPS exceedance levels

Sea level at Dauphin Island is rising about 1.7 inches per decade, or about 1.4 feet per century if the trend holds. NOAA sea level trend That does not forecast a storm. It does mean a wall cap set years ago has less margin today. Flood maps have been in effect since April 19, 2019. FEMA Community Status Book

What the water does in each area

The same storm hits a canal, an open bay and the Gulf beach differently. Start with the water your wall faces.

• Cotton Bayou, Terry Cove & Perdido Pass: Perdido Pass federal channel, 12 feet deep and 150 feet wide at the entrance.
• Bayou St. John, Old River & Robinson Island: Bayou St. John, 62% hard armoring in 2012; Old River under a 24-foot fixed bridge.
• Ono Island: Bayou St. John on the north and Old River, the state line, on the south.
• Wolf Bay, Bear Point & Arnica Bay: Wolf Bay, an Outstanding Alabama Water since April 2007.
• Gulf-front Orange Beach: Open Gulf beach, with Little Lake and Middle River behind the dunes.
• Perdido Beach & Josephine: West shore of middle Perdido Bay, 6 to 20 feet deep, with Soldier and Palmetto creeks.
• Lillian, Elberta & upper Perdido Bay: Upper Perdido Bay, 6 to 20 feet deep, with the Perdido River as the state line.
• Little Lagoon & West Beach, Gulf Shores: Little Lagoon, a brackish dune lake about 8 miles long, linked to the Gulf by a dredged pass.
• Intracoastal Waterway & Oyster Bay, Gulf Shores: The Intracoastal Waterway, kept at 12 feet deep and 150 feet wide, and Oyster Bay.
• Fort Morgan Peninsula: The Gulf on the south, and Mobile and Bon Secour Bays on the north.
• Bon Secour & the Bon Secour River: The Bon Secour River, with a federal channel 10 feet deep to Day Marker 30, and Bon Secour Bay.
• Magnolia Springs & the Magnolia River: Magnolia River, an Outstanding Alabama Water from Weeks Bay to 10 feet above mean sea level.
• Weeks Bay, Fish River & Marlow: Weeks Bay, an Outstanding National Resource Water, 2 to 5 feet deep on average.
• Point Clear, Battles Wharf & Mullet Point: Open Mobile Bay east shore, with shoals running west from Great Point Clear.
• Fairhope bayfront & Fly Creek: Open Mobile Bay below the bluff, the 1,448-foot municipal pier and Fly Creek.
• Daphne & Montrose: Mobile Bay's east shore from Red Bluff and Ragged Point north to Village Point and D'Olive Bay.
• Spanish Fort, D'Olive Bay & the Causeway: D'Olive Bay, the Blakeley River and the delta north of the Causeway, upper Mobile Bay to the south.

Each area guide cites the record behind its summary.

Storm questions owners ask

What should I do first when a storm damages my bulkhead?

Stay clear, photograph everything with dates, and call your insurer. Then get a written assessment before permanent repairs.

Will FEMA repair my private seawall?

No, Public Assistance went to public waterfront property after Sally. FEMA Public Assistance records FEMA home aid may cover a dock only as safe access to a primary home. FEMA Individual Assistance

Does flood insurance cover a bulkhead?

No. The standard policy excludes seawalls, bulkheads, piers and docks. SFIP Dwelling Form

How long do I have to rebuild under the Corps maintenance permit?

Work must start or be under contract within two years of the damage, and the Corps can extend that after hurricanes. 2026 NWP 3

Can I make emergency repairs before I get a permit?

Only through an emergency process. The Corps can authorize work on first contact for an unacceptable hazard. ALGP-15 ADEM emergency approvals last no more than 120 days. ADEM rule 335-8-1-.07(5)

Which gauge shows my canal level?

None does directly. Baldwin County has no operating NOAA gauge, so watch Dauphin Island, Mobile or Pensacola. NOAA CO-OPS station list