Storm-battered NJ coast bracing for more potential damage With federal money unlikely, a number of Jersey Shore towns are hoping Mother Nature keeps calm for a bit to allow for their battered beaches to recover from the three-day storm that rocked the Garden State late January into February. Despite post-storm surveys by the Department of Environmental Protection that show major beach or dune erosion in nine towns, and moderate damage in another 18, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers believes the nor'easter won't qualify as an "extraordinary storm event" that can free up emergency aid for repairs. "Certainly some towns do have the capacity to put some small amounts of sand on the beach — typically, that's more of a band-aid solution," said Jon Miller, research associate professor at Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken.