Some of the only remnants of Hurricane Erin the morning after a new moon, an overnight high tide and the swells from the storm met off the coast – were orange and water traffic barriers lining a portion of the Boulevard heading north into what was once one of the most flood-prone areas of Ship Bottom. Before that, on Aug. 21, it was a whole different story.

The Boulevard was closed in both directions in Long Beach Township from 31st Street south to the Beach Haven border, where Police Chief…