Roads on Verge of Collapsing as Tropical Storm Nicole Batters Florida

Winds and high waves from Tropical Storm Nicole's outer edge battered Florida's east coast Wednesday. Nicole hasn't been elevated to hurricane status but is already crumbling roads in coastal areas left vulnerable after Hurricane Ian.

Ian arrived on Florida's Gulf Coast as a Category 4 storm in late September, moved inland and exited into the Atlantic Ocean. The storm left coastal areas severely damaged. As Nicole moves in, experts have warned that unrepaired beaches could be especially susceptible. Nicole will likely be elevated to a hurricane Wednesday night, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC).

Warnings proved correct as early Wednesday morning, pictures of crumbling roads and breached sea walls flooded Twitter. Orlando meteorologist Rusty McCranie tweeted two photos of Daytona Beach Shores.

"Concrete wall and parking spaces crumbling as wave action pummels the coast at high tide this morning," McCranie tweeted. "And onshore winds will continue the next 48 hours. Coast left vulnerable after Ian."

Roughly two hours south in Vero Beach, Ocean Drive faces similar threats. Police closed the road as waves began eroding sand. CBS reporter Dylan Huberman said in a video on Twitter that if the sand line falls beneath the road, police fear the road will collapse.

Boston University Department of Earth and Environment professor Duncan FitzGerald told Newsweek in an email that the storm's projection will generate onshore winds Wednesday and Thursday.

"Coastal damage resulting from Hurricane Ian in late September was much greater in southwest Florida than elsewhere but beaches still eroded in Central Florida (East coast)," FitzGerald said. "These beaches have had a month to rebuild following Hurricane Ian erosion and [these] processes will not be complete.

"Depending on the previous state of the beaches prior to Ian and the degree of erosion and shoreline recession, these beaches will be susceptible to further erosion. In some instances where the beach is already narrow, I would expect to see dune erosion and perhaps damage to structures where the sacrificial sand is completely gone."

The storm coincides with maximum spring high tides, adding elevation to storm surge levels. The boost could allow waves to break further onshore.

National Weather Service (NWS) Melbourne tweeted images of hazardous beach conditions on Wednesday morning.

"The public is strongly advised to stay off the beach & not to enter the water under any circumstance," NWS Melbourne tweeted.

NWS meteorologist Kip Bricker previously told Newsweek that if a beach or dune is already eroded, storm surge more easily can breach the barrier and affect nearby roadways and infrastructure.