Hurricane Isaac: Observations and Analysis of Coastal Change

By Kristy K. Guy, Hilary F. Stockdon, Nathaniel G. Plant, Kara S. Doran, and Karen L.M. Morgan

Open-File Report 2013–1270

U.S. Department of the Interior 

U.S. Geological Survey 
ii

U.S. Department of the Interior

SALLY JEWELL, Secretary

U.S. Geological Survey

Suzette M. Kimball, Acting Director

U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia: 2013

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secured from the copyright owner.

Cover photograph: Oblique aerial photographs of Dauphin Island, Alabama, from August 8, 2012 (top) and 

September 2, 2012 (bottom), 5 days after Hurricane Isaac made landfall (Photo credit: USGS).

Suggested citation:

Guy, K.K., Stockdon, H.F., Plant, N.G., Doran, K.S.,and Morgan, K.L.M., 2013, Hurricane Isaac: 

Observations and Analysis of Coastal Change: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2013–1270, 21 p., 

http://dx.doi.org/10.3133/ofr20131270.

ISSN 2331-1258 (online)
iii

Acknowledgments 

The USGS National Assessment of Coastal Change Hazards Project thanks James (Jamie) Young 

and others at Aerometric Inc. for conducting the lidar survey.

Many USGS scientists and support staff invested long hours toward analyzing the impact of Hurricane Isaac. We thank Mark Hansen, B.J. Reynolds, Nancy DeWitt, and Kyle Kelso who conducted the 

Chandeleur Islands ground survey; Dustin Kimbrow, Athena Clark, and Justin T. Minear who provided 

terrestrial lidar control data at Dauphin Island; Kristin Sopkin and Dave Thompson who processed data; 

James M. (Mike) Duncan and Timothy W. Saultz for lidar contracting; Felipe Dones-Cardona and Patti 

Hartsing for administrative support with lidar contracting; and Jolene Shirley who developed the Web page. 
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Contents

Acknowledgments ...................................................................................................................................................iii

1. Introduction .......................................................................................................................................................... 1

2. Storm Overview.................................................................................................................................................... 2

2.1 Storm History ................................................................................................................................................. 2

2.2 Extent of Hurricane-Force Winds ................................................................................................................... 2

2.3 Offshore Wave Climate .................................................................................................................................. 3

2.4 Storm Surge and Water Level ........................................................................................................................ 3

3. USGS Coastal-Change Observations ................................................................................................................. 5

3.1 Oblique Aerial Photography Observations ..................................................................................................... 5

3.2 Lidar Topographic Survey Techniques ............................................................................................................ 6

3.2.1 Lidar Flight Information ............................................................................................................................... 6

3.2.2 Lidar Control ............................................................................................................................................... 7

4. Coastal-Change Analysis ..................................................................................................................................... 7

4.1 Photo Comparison Analysis ........................................................................................................................... 8

4.1.1 Dauphin Island, Alabama ......................................................................................................................... 8

4.1.2 Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana................................................................................................................. 9

4.2 Pre-Storm and Post-Storm Lidar Topography............................................................................................... 10

4.3 Coastal Change Analysis ............................................................................................................................. 11

4.3.1 Barrier Island Coast of Central Louisiana .............................................................................................. 13

4.3.2 Mississippi Barrier Island Coast............................................................................................................. 14

4.3.3 Dauphin Island, Alabama ....................................................................................................................... 19

5. References ......................................................................................................................................................... 20

Figures

1. Track of Hurricane Isaac, locations of operating buoys 42001, 42012, and 42360, and Shell Beach tide gage, 

August 21-September 1, 2012. ....................................................................................................................... 2

2. Extent of Hurricane Isaac’s maximum sustained winds categorized by tropical storm (yellow) and Category 1 

hurricane (pink) strengths. The data were derived from estimates made by NOAA AOML. ........................... 3

3. Significant wave heights during the passage of Hurricane Isaac at buoys 42001, 42012, and 42360. .......... 4

4. Locations of post-Hurricane Isaac oblique aerial photography and lidar topography missions, ground-based 

control surveys, and GPS base stations. ........................................................................................................ 5

5. Relation between Dauphin Island, Alabama, terrestrial lidar survey and September 2012 last-return airborne 

lidar survey. ..................................................................................................................................................... 8

6. Relation between Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana, ground survey and September 2012 last-return airborne 

lidar survey. ..................................................................................................................................................... 8

7. Map showing locations of photo-pair and lidar topography figures found in sections 

4.1.1, 4.1.2, and 4.2. ....................................................................................................................................... 9

8. Oblique aerial photographs of Dauphin Island, Alabama, from August 8, 2012 (top) and September 2, 2012 

(bottom), 5 days after Hurricane Isaac made landfall.................................................................................... 10
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Tables

1. Approximate locations of the National Geodetic Survey (NGS) Continuously Operating Reference Stations 

(CORS) and a temporary base station used for global positioning system (GPS) control during the 

September 5–10, 2012, lidar mission. ............................................................................................................ 7

9. Oblique aerial photographs of Dauphin Island, Alabama, from August 8, 2012 (top) and 

September 2, 2012 (bottom), 5 days after Hurricane Isaac made landfall.................................................... 11

10. Oblique aerial photographs of Dauphin Island, Alabama, from August 8, 2012 (top) and 

September 2, 2012 (bottom), 5 days after Hurricane Isaac made landfall.................................................... 12

11. Oblique aerial photographs of a remnant of Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana, from August 8, 2012 (top) and 

September 2, 2012 (bottom), five days after Hurricane Isaac made landfall. ............................................... 13

12. Oblique aerial photographs of Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana, from August 8, 2012 (top) and 

September 2, 2012 (bottom), five days after Hurricane Isaac made landfall. ............................................... 14

13. Elevation of Dauphin Island, Alabama, before (top) and after (middle) Hurricane Isaac and 

elevation change (bottom)............................................................................................................................. 15

14. Elevation of Dauphin Island, Alabama, west of Katrina Cut, before (top) and after (middle) 

Hurricane Isaac and elevation change (bottom). .......................................................................................... 16

15. Elevation of Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana, before (top) and after (middle) Hurricane Isaac and elevation 

change (bottom). ........................................................................................................................................... 17

16. Hurricane Isaac (A) dune elevation change, (B) shoreline change, and (C) beach volume change between 

September 2008 and September 2012 for the central Louisiana barrier island coast. ................................. 18

17. Hurricane Isaac (A) dune elevation change, (B) shoreline change, and (C) beach volume change between 

September 2008 and September 2012 for the state of Mississippi barrier island coast. .............................. 18

18. Hurricane Isaac (A) dune elevation change, (B) shoreline change, and (C) beach volume change between 

September 2008 and September 2012 for Dauphin Island........................................................................... 19
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Multiply By To obtain

Length

centimeter (cm) 0.394 inch (in.)

millimeter (mm) 0.039 inch (in.)

meter (m) 3.281 foot (ft)

kilometer (km) 0.621 mile (mi)

meter (m) 1.094 yard (yd)

Area

square centimeter (cm2) 0.001 square foot (ft2)

square meter (m2) 10.76 square foot (ft2)

square centimeter (cm2) 0.155 square inch (ft2)

Volume

liter (L) 33.82 ounce, fluid (fl. oz)

liter (L) 2.113 pint (pt)

liter (L) 1.057 quart (qt)

liter (L) 0.264 gallon (gal)

cubic meter (m3) 264.2 gallon (gal)

cubic meter (m3) 35.31 cubic foot (ft3)

cubic meter (m3) 1.308 cubic yard (yd3)

Mass

gram (g) 0.035 ounce, avoirdupois (oz)

kilogram (kg) 2.205 pound avoirdupois (lb)

Pressure

kilopascal (kPa) 0.010 atmosphere, standard (atm)

Energy

joule (J) 0.000 kilowatthour (kWh)

Radioactivity

becquerel per liter (Bq/L) 27.027 picocurie per liter (pCi/L)

Temperature in degrees Celsius (°C) may be converted to degrees Fahrenheit (°F) as follows: 

°F=(1.8×°C)+32

Temperature in degrees Fahrenheit (°F) may be converted to degrees Celsius (°C) as follows: 

°C=(°F-32)/1.8

Conversion Factors
1

Hurricane Isaac: Observations and Analysis of Coastal Change 

By Kristy K. Guy, Hilary F. Stockdon, Nathaniel G. Plant, Kara S. Doran, and Karen L.M. Morgan

1. Introduction 

Understanding storm-induced coastal change and forecasting these changes require knowledge of 

the physical processes associated with a storm and the geomorphology of the impacted coastline. The 

primary physical process of interest is sediment transport that is driven by waves, currents, and storm 

surge associated with storms. Storm surge, which is the rise in water level due to the wind, barometric 

pressure, and other factors, allows both waves and currents to impact parts of the coast not normally 

exposed to these processes. 

Coastal geomorphology reflects the coastal changes associated with extreme-storm processes. 

Relevant geomorphic variables that are observable before and after storms include sand dune elevation, 

beach width, shoreline position, sediment grain size, and foreshore beach slope. These variables, in addition to hydrodynamic processes, can be used to quantify coastal change and are used to predict coastal 

vulnerability to storms (Stockdon and others, 2007). 

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Assessment of Coastal Change Hazards (NACCH) 

project (http://coastal.er.usgs.gov/national-assessment/) provides hazard information to those concerned 

about the Nation’s coastlines, including residents of coastal areas, government agencies responsible for 

coastal management, and coastal researchers. Extreme-storm research is a component of the NACCH 

project (http://coastal.er.usgs.gov/hurricanes/) that includes development of predictive understanding, 

vulnerability assessments using models, and updated observations in response to specific storm events. 

In particular, observations were made to determine morphological changes associated with Hurricane 

Isaac, which made landfall in the United States first at Southwest Pass, at the mouth of the Mississippi 

River, at 0000 August 29, 2012 UTC (Coordinated Universal Time) and again, 8 hours later, west of 

Port Fourchon, Louisiana (Berg, 2013). Methods of observation included oblique aerial photography, 

airborne light detection and ranging (lidar) topographic surveys, and ground-based topographic surveys. 

This report documents data-collection efforts and presents qualitative and quantitative descriptions of 

hurricane-induced changes to the shoreline, beaches, dunes, and infrastructure in the region that was 

heavily impacted by Hurricane Isaac. 

The report is divided into the following sections: 

• Section 1: Introduction

• Section 2: Storm Overview, presents a synopsis of the storm, including meteorological evolution, wind speed impact area, wind-wave generation, and storm-surge extent and magnitudes. 

• Section 3: Coastal-Change Observations, describes data-collection missions, including acquisition of oblique aerial photography and airborne lidar topographic surveys, in response to 

Hurricane Isaac. 

• Section 4: Coastal-Change Analysis, describes data-analysis methods and observations of 

coastal change. 
2

2. Storm Overview

2.1 Storm History 

Isaac was an active tropical weather system in the central tropical Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean 

Sea and Gulf of Mexico from August 21 to September 1, 2012 UTC (fig. 1). It became the ninth named 

storm of the 2012 hurricane season on August 21 at 1800 UTC about 835 kilometers (km) east of the 

Lesser Antilles. Isaac crossed the eastern Caribbean Sea, Haiti, Cuba, and the Gulf of Mexico as a 

tropical storm before strengthening to a Category 1 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind 

Scale (Schott and others, 2012) on August 28 at 1200 UTC, about 140 km southeast of the mouth of 

the Mississippi River. It made landfall in Louisiana as a Category 1 hurricane at Southwest Pass, on 

the mouth of the Mississippi River, around 0000 UTC, August 29, with maximum sustained winds of 

120–130 kilometers per hour (km/h) (Berg, 2013).

Figure 1. Track of Hurricane Isaac, locations of operating buoys 42001, 42012, and 42360, and Shell Beach tide gage, August 21-September 1, 2012.

2.2 Extent of Hurricane-Force Winds 

Isaac’s maximum sustained winds were measured at 120–130 km/h at the Mississippi River with 

wind gusts of 139–152 km/h (Berg, 2013). Using methods described by Powell and others (1998), the 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML) Hurricane Research Division estimated sustained hurricane-force winds 

(119 km/h or greater) along approximately 215 km of the Mississippi River delta shoreline but did not 

extend inland (fig. 2). Tropical storm-force winds impacted the coastline from Marsh Island, on the central Louisiana coast, eastward to the Alabama/Florida border, extending inland into much of southeast 

Louisiana and parts of Mississippi.
3

Figure 2. Extent of Hurricane Isaac’s maximum sustained winds categorized by tropical storm (yellow) and Category 1 hurricane (pink) 

strengths. The data were derived from estimates made by NOAA AOML. 

2.3 Offshore Wave Climate 

Several moored buoys measured heights and periods of waves generated by Hurricane Isaac. 

Hurricane Isaac passed near three buoys in the Gulf of Mexico as it approached landfall in Louisiana (fig. 1). NOAA National Data Buoy Center (NDBC) buoy 42012 is located approximately 80 km 

southeast of Mobile, Alabama, in 27.7 meters (m) of water. NOAA NDBC buoy 42001 is located approximately 335 km south of Southwest Pass (Mississippi River) in deep water (>2,500 m). PetrobrasU.S.A. operated buoy 42360, which is located approximately 260 km south of Timbalier Island, Louisiana, in deep water (>2,500 m). The maximum significant wave heights recorded by these buoys was 

5.9 m at buoy 42360 approximately 9 hours before first landfall, 4.7 m at buoy 42001 approximately 

5 hours before first landfall, and 5.8 m at buoy 42012 approximately 3 hours before first landfall (National Data Buoy Center, undated) (fig. 3). All three buoys were outside the extent of hurricane force 

winds. 

2.4 Storm Surge and Water Level 

Measurements of maximum storm surge during Hurricane Isaac were made by coastal tide gages 

operated by NOAA. Storm surge elevations were observed from southeastern Florida to Louisiana. In 

Florida, the highest storm surge (observed water level minus predicted astronomical tide) was 1.049 m 

relative to mean lower low water and occurred in Apalachicola (station 8728690). In Alabama, the maximum storm surge was 1.411 m, measured at Coast Guard Sector Mobile (station 8736897). As Isaac approached the Louisiana coast it slowed considerably, extending the time the coast was exposed to strong 
4

winds and storm surge. The highest storm surge measured along the entire Gulf coast was 3.364 m 

at Shell Beach, Louisiana, located on the south shore of Lake Borgne near the Louisiana-Mississippi 

border (station 8761305). Prevailing offshore winds west of the storm track resulted in negative storm 

surge measurements as the storm made landfall. A negative storm surge of –0.362 m was observed at 

LAWMA, Amerada Pass (station 8764227) and –0.626 m at Freshwater Canal Locks (station 8766072) 

in Louisiana (Fanelli and Wolcott, 2012).

The USGS deployed temporary water-level sensors at 109 locations in Louisiana, Mississippi, 

and Alabama on August 27–28, 2012, immediately prior to landfall. Most were recovered within 7 days 

of landfall. The sensors recorded peak water-level elevations (astronomical tide plus storm surge) above 

North American Vertical Datum (NAVD 88). Example peak water-level elevations along the Mississippi 

and Alabama coast were 2.89 m at Mississippi Sound at Pass Christian Yacht Club (SSS-MS-HAR026WV), 2.04 m at the west side of Pascagoula Bay (SSS-MS-JAC-039WV), 2.26 m at Dauphin Island/

Bienville Boulevard (SSS-AL-MOB-002WV), and 1.79 m at Alabama Port (SSS-AL-MOB-006WV) 

(McCallum and others, 2012).

Figure 3. Significant wave heights during the passage of Hurricane Isaac at buoys 42001, 42012, and 42360. 
5

3. USGS Coastal-Change Observations 

The USGS NACCH project responded to Hurricane Isaac with the following data-collection missions (fig. 4): 

• Post-storm oblique aerial photography (September 2–3, 2012) 

• Post-storm airborne lidar topographic survey (September 5–10, 2012) 

• Ground-based control surveys (September 3 and September 6, 2012) 

The near-real-time responses of these efforts are documented at http://coastal.er.usgs.gov/

hurricanes/isaac/. 

Figure 4. Locations of post-Hurricane Isaac oblique aerial photography and lidar topography missions, ground-based control surveys, and 

GPS base stations. 

3.1 Oblique Aerial Photography Observations 

Whenever possible, the USGS collects oblique aerial photography of the coastline immediately 

before and after a storm makes landfall. The pre- and post-storm photographs are then compared to 

document where and how the storm impacted the coastline. When pre-storm missions are not flown immediately preceding landfall, photographs from earlier missions are used for comparison. These data are 

made available to emergency and coastal managers and others concerned with the storm’s impact on the 

coast.

Post-Isaac oblique aerial photographs of the coastal areas near landfall were collected on September 2–3, 2012, starting 5 days after landfall. The photographs were shot with a Canon EOS Rebel T2i 

camera onboard a Cessna 172 aircraft. Every attempt was made to capture the entire targeted shoreline 
6

by overlapping the camera’s range of view from one frame to the next. Approximately 270 km of shoreline was covered—from Isles Dernieres to Pelican Island in south-central Louisiana, the Chandeleur 

Islands in eastern Louisiana, and all of the Mississippi and Alabama barrier islands (fig. 4). 

A pre-storm mission was not flown for Hurricane Isaac; however, a baseline (not storm related) 

mission was flown over the Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana, and all of the Mississippi and Alabama 

barrier islands on August 8, 2012, twenty days prior to landfall. Examples of pre- and post-storm photopairs for Dauphin Island, Alabama, and Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana, are found in Section 4.1.1 and 

4.1.2, respectively.

3.2 Lidar Topographic Survey Techniques

High-resolution airborne lidar systems can map hundreds of kilometers of coast in a day with the 

density of elevation recordings exceeding one point per square meter. High point densities combined 

with sufficient horizontal and vertical accuracies allow for the creation of topographic and bathymetric 

digital elevation models (DEM) that show details of the coastal environment. 

Lidar systems emit pulses of light that reflect off the Earth’s surface, allowing the computation of 

elevation from the two-way transmission time. The high-frequency pulses are emitted from a laser that 

is mounted on a small aircraft. Aircraft movement is monitored by an inertial navigation unit, a global 

positioning system (GPS) unit, and tilt sensors. More complete descriptions of coastal lidar instruments 

and methods can be found in Brock and others (2002). 

Lidar surveys receive positioning control using differential GPS, which requires a base-station receiver on the ground. The USGS sets up base stations near the area of hurricane impact, often augmenting NOAA’s National Geodetic Survey (NGS) Continuously Operating Reference Stations (CORS). 

Additionally, because slowly varying positioning errors can corrupt the data (Sallenger and others, 

2003), control points are surveyed for use in identifying and correcting these errors. Control points on 

surfaces that do not vary, such as roads or parking lots, can be obtained using ground-based surveying 

methods or by utilizing previous lidar surveys. Ground-based surveys performed on the beach surface 

are required to be synchronous with the lidar survey because of the likelihood for rapid and significant 

beach changes associated with the storm and the post-storm recovery period. Vertical accuracy of the 

lidar survey data is expected to be on the order of 10–20 centimeters (cm) (Sallenger and others, 2003), 

whereas the horizontal-position accuracy is on the order of 1 m (Nayegandhi and others, 2009).

After collection, the lidar data are processed to remove spurious data points and separate points 

into first- and last-return lidar products (Bonisteel and others, 2009), which are selected from the first 

and last backscatter to return to the sensor from the laser pulse. First-returns can be used to estimate 

canopy height in vegetated areas or rooftop height in developed areas, while last-returns can be used to 

estimate elevation of the bare-Earth surface under vegetation. 

3.2.1 Lidar Flight Information 

The USGS contracted a post-Isaac airborne lidar topographic survey of the Alabama, Mississippi, 

and Louisiana coastlines most affected by the storm (fig. 4). The mission was flown from September 

5–10, 2012, and was completed 13 days after Isaac made landfall in Louisiana. An additional survey 

mission was conducted on October 11, 2012, to obtain additional data where the initial acquisition was 

insufficient. A total of 12 flights were made. Approximately 230 km of coastline was flown, including 
7

the islands of Dauphin, Petit Bois, Horn, Ship, Cat, Chandleur, Breton, Pelican, Gilmore, Lanaux, Bastian, Grand Terre, Grand Isle, Elmers, East Timbalier, Timbalier, and Isles Dernieres and the mainland 

coast near Port Fourchon. More than 620 million data points were collected.

3.2.2 Lidar Control 

Airborne positioning during the lidar mission was based on two CORS located on Dauphin Island, Alabama, and Grand Island, Louisiana, plus a temporary base station set up on Chandeleur Islands, 

Louisiana (fig. 4; table 1). Geodetic control points were collected in a small area on Chandeleur Islands 

and used to assess the vertical accuracy of the lidar data. 

Table 1. Approximate locations of the National Geodetic Survey (NGS) Continuously Operating Reference Stations (CORS) and a temporary base station used for global positioning system (GPS) control during the September 5–10, 2012, lidar mission. 

3.2.3 Lidar Quality 

Vertical accuracy of the post-storm lidar was evaluated against ground-based surveys (fig. 4) conducted by the USGS on Dauphin Island, Alabama, September 3, 2012, and Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana, September 6, 2012.

Quality-control grids were interpolated from last-return lidar data collected at these ground-survey locations. Interpolation to the 2x2-m grid domain included applying a smoothing filter that removed 

short-scale variability and determined the degree to which residual noise had been removed (Plant and 

others, 2002). Elevations at grid points that received too few observations were removed to reduce system noise. 

The Dauphin Island ground survey used a terrestrial lidar instrument mounted to a truck. The 

survey points were interpolated to a 2x2-m grid to match the airborne lidar grid resolution. The offset between the gridded ground survey and the September 5–10, 2012, last-return gridded lidar data 

is 0.27 m (± 0.32 m) (fig. 5). The lidar data for Mississippi and Alabama were adjusted by subtracting 

0.27 m before extracting morphologic features. 

The Chandeleur Islands ground survey was conducted simultaneously with the lidar flight. A kinematic GPS mounted on a buggy was used to survey 90,000 square meters (m2

) of the low-lying beach 

and marsh. The survey points were interpolated to a 2x2-m grid to match the lidar grid resolution. The 

offset between the gridded ground survey and the last-return gridded lidar data is 0.007 m (± 0.072 m), 

well within the expected vertical error of the lidar data (fig. 6).

4. Coastal-Change Analysis

Pre-storm and post-storm photographs were compared to identify examples of coastal changes 

that span the range of responses to the hurricane conditions. Pre-storm and post-storm lidar topographic 

surveys were compared to quantify the spatial extent and magnitude of these coastal changes including 

estimates of changes in dune height, shoreline position, and subaerial sediment volume. 

Station ID Location Latitude Longitude 

CORS ALDI Dauphin Island, AL 30° 14’ 57” -88° 04’ 04”

CORS GRIS Grand Island, LA 29° 15’ 56” -89° 57’ 26”

TMRK (temporary) Chandeleur Islands, LA 29° 57’ 02” -88° 49’ 33”
8

4.1 Photo Comparison Analysis 

4.1.1 Dauphin Island, Alabama

Dauphin Island, Alabama, has suffered repeated impacts from hurricanes and tropical storms over 

the last decade. In September 2004, Hurricane Ivan came ashore near Gulf Shores, Alabama, as a Category 3 storm. The hurricane overwashed much of the island, transporting large amounts of sand landward, and cut breaches across the central part of the island. In August 2005, Hurricane Katrina made 

landfall as a Category 3 storm west of Dauphin Island near the Louisiana-Mississippi border. During 

Katrina, Dauphin Island suffered extensive overwashing and erosion. The breach caused by Ivan the 

year before widened and has since become known as Katrina Cut. In 2008, Hurricanes Gustav and Ike 

eroded the shoreline and, although not impacting the height of the natural dunes, destroyed a 3-m tall, 

5.6-km long emergency berm that had been constructed on the beach in early 2007. In November 2009, 

Hurricane Ida made landfall on Dauphin Island as an extratropical storm (Saint Petersburg Coastal and 

Marine Science Center, 2013). In addition to the emergency berm built in 2007, a second major structure, a rock wall across Katrina Cut, was built in 2010 in response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

Dauphin Island lay in the path of Isaac’s right-front quadrant where the winds were the strongest 

and directed onshore. The storm surge and superimposed waves overwashed and inundated the island, 

depositing sand on and landward of the island. The storm caused extensive overwashing near both ends 

of the rock wall and cut a new breach near the west end of the rock wall. 

Figure 7 shows the camera location of pre-storm and post-storm photo-pairs (figs. 8-10) that show 

some of Isaac’s impact on Dauphin Island. The photographs were taken August 8, 2012, 20 days prior to 

the storm, and September 2, 2012, 5 days after the storm. Additional photo-pairs can be found online at 

http://coastal.er.usgs.gov/hurricanes/isaac/photo-comparisons/.

Figure 6. Relation between Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana, ground 

survey and September 2012 last-return airborne lidar survey.

Figure 5. Relation between Dauphin Island, Alabama, terrestrial 

lidar survey and September 2012 last-return airborne lidar survey.
9

4.1.2 Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana

The Chandeleur Islands form the eastern flank of Louisiana and have historically eroded landward at an average of about 9 meters per year (m/yr) (Penland and others, 2003). The islands have been 

breached by past hurricanes, such as Camille in 1969, and then recovered to some extent after each 

storm, with breaches closing naturally. During Hurricane Katrina (August 2005), however, the island 

lost most of its surface area in just a few hours. Although some natural recovery has been evident in the 

8 years since Katrina, a succession of storm activity has eroded the islands at a rapid rate. 

In September 2008, waves from Hurricane Gustav overwashed the beaches and dunes, depositing 

sand on and landward of the islands and eroding the marsh platforms that serve as the islands’ foundations. In November 2009, Hurricane Ida passed over the islands as a tropical storm (Saint Petersburg 

Coastal and Marine Science Center, 2013). In 2010, a large sand berm was constructed, partly on and 

partly seaward of the islands, in response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. A portion of the berm can 

be seen in the pre-storm photograph in figure 11. Tropical Storm Lee tracked north of the Chandeleur 

Islands in September 2011, causing a large portion of the oil-protection berm to disintegrate (Plant and 

Guy, 2013a,b). 

Hurricane Isaac’s large size and slow speed as it approached the coast allowed it to impact the 

coast over many hours. Like Dauphin Island, the Chandeleur Islands lay in the path of the storm’s rightfront quadrant where the winds were the strongest and onshore. Storm surge and superimposed waves 

once again inundated and overwashed the beaches. Sand was deposited on and landward of the islands, 

and the marsh platforms were eroded.

Figure 7. Map showing locations of photo-pair and lidar topography figures found in sections 4.1.1, 4.1.2, and 4.2.
10

Figures 11–12 are pre-storm and post-storm photo-pairs that show some of the effects of Isaac on the 

islands. The photographs were taken August 8, 2012, 20 days prior to the storm, and September 2, 2012, 

5 days after the storm. The point-of-view locations of the photo-pairs are shown in figure 7. Additional 

photo-pairs can be found online at http://coastal.er.usgs.gov/hurricanes/isaac/photo-comparisons/.

4.2 Pre-Storm and Post-Storm Lidar Topography

The post-Isaac lidar survey of the Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama barrier islands was flown 

September 5–10, 2012, to measure coastal topography. To determine the change in elevation caused by 

Hurricane Isaac, a January 2010 lidar survey was used for the pre-Isaac elevations in Dauphin Island, 

Alabama, and a February 2012 lidar survey was used for the Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana. Comparing 

pre- and post-storm elevations reveals areas of beach erosion, overwash deposition, and island breaching 

and allows characterization of the nature, magnitude, and spatial variability of hurricane-induced 

coastal change. 

Figure 8. Oblique aerial photographs of 

Dauphin Island, Alabama, from August 8, 

2012 (top) and September 2, 2012 (bottom), 

5 days after Hurricane Isaac made landfall. 

The view is looking west along the island with 

the Gulf of Mexico on the left and the Mississippi Sound on the right. The yellow arrows in 

each photograph point to the same feature. 

Overwash from the Gulf (left) deposited sand 

onto the road and beyond. It appears that the 

overwash funneled through breaks in dunes 

that were constructed in 2010 in response to 

the Deepwater Horizon oil spill as illustrated by the red arrow. The inlet seen in the 

distance (Katrina Cut) started as an island 

breach made by Hurricane Ivan in 2004. 

Hurricane Katrina widened the breach into an 

inlet in 2005. The linear rock structure spanning the inlet was built in 2010 in response to 

the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. 
11

Figures 13–15 show some of the coastal changes that occurred on Dauphin Island, Alabama, and 

Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana, during Hurricane Isaac. Each figure includes pre-storm and post-storm 

elevation maps and an elevation change map. In the elevation maps, yellow and green colors indicate 

lower elevations, and orange and red colors indicate higher elevations. In the elevation change maps, the 

yellow to red colors indicate erosion (such as shoreline retreat), and blue to green colors indicate accretion (such as overwash deposits where waves and surge have moved sand landward). The locations of 

the figures are shown in figure 7.

4.3 Coastal Change Analysis 

A pre-Isaac lidar survey conducted September 5–8, 2008 covered the entire extent of the study 

area and was used with the post-Isaac survey to quantify the changes Hurricane Isaac made to beach and 

dune morphology. Although there are more-recent lidar data in some regions, using the 2008 pre-storm 

data allows a consistent treatment of changes occurring over a common time interval. The last-return 

lidar data were gridded to quantify change in the height and elevation of the frontal sand dune or berm 

Figure 9. Oblique aerial photographs of 

Dauphin Island, Alabama, from August 8, 2012 

(top) and September 2, 2012 (bottom), 5 days 

after Hurricane Isaac made landfall. The view is 

looking from Katrina Cut east along the island 

with the Gulf of Mexico on the right and the Mississippi Sound on the left. The yellow arrows 

in each photograph point to the same feature. 

Overwash crossed the width of the island, filling 

water bodies with sand and depositing more 

sand into the sound.
12

system, change in shoreline position, and change in beach volume. A resolution of 10 m in the alongshore direction and 2.5 m in the cross-shore direction was used. The data were spatially filtered using a 

Hanning window twice the grid resolution (Plant and others, 2002), and the grids were rotated to parallel the shoreline. 

The cross-shore peak elevations of the most seaward sand dune (or berm if there was no dune) 

were found and their locations extracted from the grids at 10 m intervals in the alongshore direction. 

The pre-storm to post-storm difference in elevation at those locations was defined as hurricane-induced 

change (figs. 16A–18A) (Stockdon and others, 2009). 

The shoreline position was extracted from the grids at 10 m intervals in the alongshore direction 

by locating the cross-shore position of the mean high water (MHW) elevation. The MHW elevation was 

based on regional tidal records (Weber and others, 2005). A MHW elevation of 0.37 m NAVD 88 was 

used for the region from Isles Dernieres to Pelican Island, Louisiana, and 0.23 m was used for the Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana, and the Mississippi and Alabama barrier islands region. Shoreline change 

was calculated by measuring the cross-shore distance between the pre-storm and post-storm shoreline 

position (figs. 16B–18B). Shoreline position errors are typically on the order of 1 to 2 m (Stockdon and 

others, 2002) with varying uncertainty due to data noise and beach slope. 

Beach volume changes were calculated at 10 m intervals in the alongshore direction by differencing the pre-storm and post-storm elevation grids and integrating the differenced values in the crossshore direction that fell between the pre-storm shoreline and pre-storm dune base, yielding the volume 

change per meter length of coastline (figs. 16C–18C).

Figure 10. Oblique aerial photographs of 

Dauphin Island, Alabama, from August 8, 2012 

(top) and September 2, 2012 (bottom), 5 days 

after Hurricane Isaac made landfall. The view 

is looking northward from the Gulf of Mexico to 

the island immediately west of Katrina Cut and 

beyond to the Mississippi Sound. The yellow 

arrows in each photograph point to the same 

feature. Storm surge and wave setup and runup 

cut through the island, creating a new breach 

and depositing sand into the sound in the form 

of an overwash fan.
13

4.3.1 Barrier Island Coast of Central Louisiana

A reduction in dune height ranging from 0 to 3 m was observed in the Isles Dernieres, Louisiana, 

and near Port Fourchon, Louisiana, where Hurricane Isaac made landfall. Dune-height changes were 

positive at Grand Isle, Louisiana, about 20 km to the east of landfall, due to construction of a manmade 

line of dunes in 2009 (Cardno, 2009) (U. S. Army Corps of Engineers, 2012) (fig. 16A). Shoreline 

change was variable on the central Louisiana coast from Trinity Island (part of the Isles Dernieres) to 

Grand Isle, Louisiana. Shoreline accretion eastward of the Grand Isle line is likely due to beach nourishment projects (Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority, 2013) evident in aerial photography 

(GoogleEarth, 2013) (fig. 16B). On the eastern and western ends of the Isles Dernieres, where currents 

flowing through inlets rapidly move sand, more extreme shoreline erosion and accretion of 100 to 200 m 

was observed. Volume changes largely follow the same pattern as the shoreline changes for the central 

Louisiana barrier islands (fig. 16C). The large volume gain to the west of Port Fourchon was the result 

of a restoration project in July 2012 (Scofield, 2012). 

Figure 11. Oblique aerial photographs of a 

remnant of Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana, 

from August 8, 2012 (top) and September 2, 

2012 (bottom), 5 days after Hurricane Isaac 

made landfall. The view is looking west from 

the Gulf of Mexico to Chandeleur Sound. The 

yellow arrows in each photograph point to 

the same feature. The sand in the pre-storm 

photograph is part of an oil-protection berm 

that was constructed in response to the 2010 

Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The berm was 

completely eroded away by Isaac and the sand 

was distributed into the surrounding waters. 
14

4.3.2 Mississippi Barrier Island Coast

Along the Mississippi barrier island coast, 150 to 200 km to the east of where Hurricane Isaac 

made landfall, dune-height erosion ranged from 0 to 3 m (fig. 17A). The eastern ends of West Ship, 

Horn, and Petit Bois Islands all experienced dune erosion of 2 to 3 m, while the western ends of the 

islands had little change, possibly due to the long-term westward migration of the islands. Shoreline 

erosion of 40 to 50 m was observed across the region, with the exception of an accretion of about 100 m 

near the center of Horn Island where there is an inflection point in the shoreline orientation (fig. 17B). 

Similar to the Louisiana sandy barriers, volume losses here follow the same pattern as shoreline changes 

(fig. 17C). Because the pre-storm survey is from September 2008, changes in shoreline position and 

beach volume presented here may be a combination of long-term and storm-induced change.

Figure 12. Oblique aerial photographs of 

Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana, from August 8, 

2012 (top) and September 2, 2012 (bottom), 

5 days after Hurricane Isaac made landfall. The 

view is looking west from the Gulf of Mexico, 

across the island and beyond to Chandeleur 

Sound. The yellow arrows in each photograph 

point to the same feature. The island was severely eroded by waves and storm surge. Sand 

was deposited on the island remnants and into 

the sound.
15

Figure 13. Elevation of Dauphin Island, 

Alabama, before (top) and after (middle) Hurricane Isaac and elevation change (bottom). 

The western extent of the inhabited portion of 

Dauphin Island (east of Katrina Cut) experienced shoreline erosion and overwash. In 

the post-storm elevation map, a line of berms 

running west-east along the road form higher 

elevation features that were not present in the 

pre-storm elevation map and appear as regions 

of deposition in the elevation difference map. 

These berms were constructed in response to 

the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill after the 

pre-storm lidar data were collected and prior to 

Isaac’s landfall. Overwash deposition appears 

north of the main access road. The deposition 

at the western end of the map documents the 

construction of the rock structure placed across 

Katrina Cut. Houses were removed from the lidar data and are not represented in these maps.
16

Figure 14. Elevation of Dauphin Island, 

Alabama, west of Katrina Cut, before (top) and 

after (middle) Hurricane Isaac and elevation 

change (bottom). The inlet that formed during 

Hurricane Katrina was closed with a rock 

structure (figs. 8–10) after collection of the prestorm lidar data and prior to Isaac’s landfall and 

appears as a depositional feature in the bottom 

map. During Isaac, the island to the west of the 

rock structure was breached and experienced 

shoreline erosion and overwash. The spit 

feature behind the rock structure formed prior to 

Hurricane Isaac. 
17

Figure 15. Elevation of Chandeleur Islands, 

Louisiana, before (top) and after (middle) Hurricane Isaac and elevation change (bottom). In 

2010, a sand berm was constructed seaward of 

a small, remnant island at the north end of the 

islands. Prior to Hurricane Isaac, the berm had 

been eroded, but some sections still remained. 

Storm surge and waves from Isaac eroded 

away what remained of the berm. The remnant 

island experienced erosion along its outer edge 

and some deposition occurred in the island 

center. In the post-Isaac (middle) map, the prestorm berm and island footprints are indicated 

in light blue.
18

Figure 16. Hurricane Isaac (A) dune elevation change, (B) shoreline change, and (C) beach volume change between September 2008 

and September 2012 for the central Louisiana barrier island coast. Vertical dashed lines indicate the center of Trinity Island (the easternmost of the three islands composing the Isles Dernieres), and the towns of Port Fourchon and Grand Isle, Louisiana. In the x-axis label, 

“right” refers to the right side of the forward path of the hurricane, or “east” here.

Figure 17. Hurricane Isaac (A) dune elevation change, (B) shoreline change, and (C) beach volume change between September 2008 and 

September 2012 for the state of Mississippi barrier island coast. Vertical dashed lines indicate the centers of West and East Ship Islands, Horn 

Island, and Petit Bois Island. In the x-axis label, “right” refers to the right side of the forward path of the hurricane, or “east” here.
19

4.3.3 Dauphin Island, Alabama

Dauphin Island, Alabama, 220 km to the east of where Hurricane Isaac made landfall, experienced very little change from the pre-storm dune height (fig. 18A). Some dunes to the west of the 

Katrina Cut were overwashed during Hurricane Isaac, resulting in 2 to 3 m of dune erosion. Shoreline 

change was variable, particularly on the west side of the island where 1 km-long oscillations were apparent (fig. 18B). The beach on the western edge of Katrina Cut experienced 100–150 m of shoreline 

loss and corresponding volume loss. The area of shoreline accretion on the eastern side of the island corresponds to the continued northeast migration of Pelican Island shoal. Volume changes mirror the same 

pattern as the shoreline changes for the Dauphin Island coast, with losses greatest to the west of Katrina 

Cut and the largest gain near the pier (approximately 225 km to the east of where Isaac made landfall) 

(fig. 18C). 

Figure 18. Hurricane Isaac (A) dune elevation change, (B) shoreline change, and (C) beach volume change between September 2008 and 

September 2012 for Dauphin Island. In the x-axis label, “right” refers to the right side of the forward path of the hurricane, or “east” here.
20

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http://dx.doi.org/10.3133/ofr20131270

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