Complex sentence: Many houses near the water were compromised or destroyed by the storm surge, and shoreline structures such as docks, causeways, bridges, low-lying roads, and seawalls sustained substantial damage.
Split into simpler sentences: Many houses near the water were compromised or destroyed by the storm surge. Bearing the brunt of the active seas were shoreline structures such as docks, causeways, bridges, low-lying roads, and seawalls, many of them sustaining substantial damage.