FLAGLER BEACH, Fla. — The Flagler Beach Police Department is warning people to stay off the sand dunes following an incident over the holiday weekend that resulted in extensive damage to some area dunes.

What You Need To Know

  • The Flagler Beach Police Department is warning people to stay off the sand dunes following an incident over the holiday weekend

  • Police say the dunes were trampled in the area of A1A and N. 22 Street, near the Java Joint Beachside Grill

  • Flagler Beach resident LeighAnn Koch said she noticed the damage — which included some peoople carving pictures and names into them — and notified police

  • Police say they will be monitoring the 6+ miles of sea dunes in Flagler Beach and warned that violators can be punished with a fine of up to $500 and up to 60 days in jail, or both

Police say the dunes were trampled on the northern portion of the city, in the area of A1A and North 22 Street, near the Java Joint Beachside Grill.

Flagler Beach resident LeighAnn Koch, who has been living in the area for more than 35 years, said she has never seen dunes damaged this way before.

“This is our home," she said. "And we’ve seen people walk over the dunes before. We’ve seen a little bit of playing on the dunes before, but nothing like this."

She said she noticed the damage during her daily walk along the beach and let the police know about it.

“This damage was not done by the nor’easter that we recently had," Koch said. "The sad thing is, is this is caused by humans. And both Flagler Beach police and citizens want to let people know that these dunes protect us. They protect A1A, they protect our businesses, our homes. And that’s why they’re so heavily protected by local, state and federal law."

In response to the incident, the Flagler Beach Police Department made a post on Facebook, saying officers were shocked to see this kind of damage.

“It’s absolutely unbelievable that it’s almost 2024 and the trampling of the sea dunes still occurs," the post said.

“We’ve never seen people carve into the dunes like this or to tear down," Koch said. "If you look all along here, there are claw marks. This was pulled down by humans. This is all footprints. There are digging out, you know, on the top here. This is all human damage."

On the sides of the dunes, there are several areas where it is visible that people carved their names, and footprints are also visible on the top of some dunes.

“It really upsets me. It saddens me," Koch said. "But it makes me more determined to get a word out there that we’ve got to protect these dunes."

According to the Flagler Beach Code of Ordinances, it is illegal for anyone to walk on the dunes. Instead, people must use the designated beach walkovers.

Koch said she hopes people learn about the importance of protecting the dunes, as they provide the first line of defense, and human action should not play a role in their destruction.

“It’s just such a waste," she said. "I mean, we expect it to happen over a decade or more from the ocean. We don’t expect it to be exacerbated by human, I don’t want to say ignorance, but there’s no other word."

Police say they will be monitoring the 6+ miles of sea dunes in Flagler Beach. Violators can be punished with a fine of up to $500 and up to 60 days in jail, or both.