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Ind. Dunes Decimated By Waves

PORTER, Ind. (CBS) -- They're watching and waiting.

Residents along Indiana's lakefront are on edge after miles of dunes were destroyed in weekend storms.

From high in the air it looks like a normal wintry shoreline. But a closer look reveals miles of Indiana sand dunes eaten away, CBS 2's Pamela Jones reports.

Porter resident Franklin Firestone looked at the aerial video of the damage for the first time. He estimates waves washed away 40 feet of sand.

Remaining are 12- to 15-foot sandy cliffs.

Lakefront resident Rob Carstens of Dune Acres, who manages part of the beach, estimates the surge probably cut a swath from Michigan to Gary, Ind.

"The sound of the waves was something like a freight train going by," he said.

The Porter Town Council is considering building a sea wall to hold back the waves from future storms. But Michele Bollinger, Porter Town Council president, says that might be dependent on getting federal aid.

"We've been through this before," Firestone said. "I've been here 25 years. You just have to brace yourself and take what the lake's going to give out."

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