June 27, 1957 - Hurricane Audrey roared ashore in Southwest Louisiana, devastating lower Cameron Parish and claiming an estimated 500 lives. Much has been written about Hurricane Audrey, and rightfully so. My intent here is to describe the impact of Hurricane Audrey on "the Rutherford beach" (not yet "Rutherford Beach").
In 1957 the Rutherford beach was inaccessible to the general public, as Rutherford Beach Road wasn't built until 1963. Stories abound of people riding horseback from the Front Ridge through the marsh to spend time on the beach. However, it is very unlikely any type of structures existed.
Given the remoteness and inaccessibility of the Rutherford beach, very little (if any) specific information about the impact of Hurricane Audrey on that particular stretch of coast line is known. However, there is enough general information available that we can piece together with certainty the devastation that occurred that June morning.
In the illustration below from the National Weather Service, the mouth of the Mermentau River (i.e., the Rutherford beach) received the highest storm surge in the parish at 13.9 feet. Later reports from survivors further inland indicated waves of 10 - 12 feet on top of the storm surge. There was utter destruction. The following from Wikipedia (not specific to the Rutherford beach): "Beach erosion caused by rough surf stripped away as much as 90 m (300 ft) of beach. Wildlife along the coast was impacted heavily, with marshes stripped entirely of vegetation."
Although the Louisiana Department of Public Works took many aerial photos in the aftermath of Hurricane Audrey, I have located none specific to the Rutherford beach. The closest picture I have found is the Oak Grove corner, which is 2 miles north of the beach as the crow flies.
Located at the Oak Grove corner.
Located a short distance north of the Oak Grove corner.
Following are 2 aerial photos - one east and one west of the Rutherford beach. It is an absolute certainty that the Rutherford beach suffered similar destruction.
April 24, 1959
Story continues in The 1960s - Journey Through Rutherford Beach History.
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