VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla-- Crews in Daytona Beach Shores said they are working to repair damaged Tiger Dams on the beach that were vandalized overnight Wednesday.

These dams protect residential homes, condos and businesses — the project is handled by the state and officials said these dams which prevent flooding had been working up until they were vandalized.

Florida Division of Emergency Management Director Kevin Guthrie said officials are currently reviewing surveillance footage in an attempt to identify the person, or persons, responsible for the damage.

The Daytona Beach Shores Police Department and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement are investigating the incident.

“We had vandalism,” Guthrie said. “We had knife cuts to straps, knife cuts to the tubing itself.”

Hundreds of feet of the Tiger Dam were cut, resulting in anywhere from $1 million to $1.5 million worth of damage, he said.

Ralph Schoenherr, who lives in south Daytona but watches over his friend's property in Daytona Beach Shores, said he heard about the damage Thursday morning — a portion of the damaged dam is located right behind his friend's home. He immediately went over to the property to take a look at the vandalism, and said it was heartbreaking to see what happened.

“Pretty devastating to see all of the money that the state has been putting into this project to try and protect these properties, and someone comes along and just vandalizes it,” Schoenherr said.

His friends who own the home were on their way to Florida when he broke the news to them.

“They said, ‘Oh my god, you gotta be kidding me. We’ve gone through all of this and all these trials and tribulations, we got protection and now all of a sudden somebody comes and does that, it’s pretty bad,’” said Schoenherr.

Hours after surveying the damage, he said he was happy to see officials jumping in to work on the dams.

“I think it is commendable,” Schoenherr said. “I think it is a commitment from the state to try and do something.”

Guthrie said that while the dams aren’t sea walls, the flood-prevention measure was working up until the moment it was destroyed.

“Everywhere we have that Tiger Dam or that flood control system up, it is working perfectly and we have no further damage,” he said.

Guthrie said that because of the tide cycles, he believes it will take a couple of days to repair the damage.