"All neighborhoods ... and possibly entire coastal communities ... will be inundated during the peak storm tide, " the weather service warned.

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The earth bank aims to protect homes against a one-in-100-year tide and storm surge.

BBC: Ipswich flood defence work aims to protect dockside homes

Emergency management officials said the evening tide brought fewer problems, but they worried about getting through Friday morning's high tide before the storm was expected to wind down.

NPR: Late-Winter Storm Sweeps Into New England

Others were simply overwhelmed by the amount of water pushed ashore by the giant storm, which hit at high tide during a full moon.

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Coastal storm surge flooding of 3 to 5 feet above normal tide levels and rainfall of 6 to 12 inches were possible in Cuba, the hurricane center said.

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Ernesto will cause a surge when it reaches the coast, increasing water levels by as much as 2 to 4 feet above normal tide levels in the area near and north of where the storm makes landfall, the hurricane center said.

CNN: Hurricane Ernesto nears Yucatan Peninsula

Ernesto will cause a surge when it reaches the coast, increasing water levels by as much as 1 to 3 feet above normal tide levels in the area near and north of where the storm makes landfall, the hurricane center said.

CNN: Ernesto weakens, but new strength forecast

As dunes build up absent a storm to knock them down they shift closer to the high-tide line, and nesting space shrinks.

WSJ: Wrecked Beaches Could Aid Plovers

The National Weather Service updated its storm-surge model to take into account larger and slower-moving storms and include better elevation and high tide data last year.

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