Beach renourishment project leaves behind hidden treasure

PANAMA CITY, Fla. (WJHG/WECP) -Shells by the dozen are being dumped across Panama City Beaches. This is because of the beach renourishment project that started back in September.

Officials with Visit Panama City Beach say that sand is dredged from the gulf and then dumped onto the beach.

Over the weekend, Facebook posts by shell hunters caught the attention of many. People traveled from all over to pick from the giant pile of seashells on the beach.

“We’ve been coming down here because we have seen so many shells. But one night about two weeks ago, they had left a dumpster out full of shells that you could dumpster dive but this is unreal,” Barbara Jacobs, a snowbird from Freeport Illinois, said.

Visit Panama City Beach officials tell NewsChannel 7, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is the managing contractor for the renourishment project. The shell pile is a result of a lack of vehicle availability to remove the shells from the beach.

Leading locals and visitors alike to take advantage of the hidden treasure being brought to the surface.

“I thought maybe God just sat it down there for me, a pile of heaven for me, and then all these people came. It is just amazing I love finding shells on the beach but this makes it so that we don’t have to bend over. I sit down, I dig, I stand up, and I go home,” Marion Raybuck, a visitor from New York, said.

Even the young ones got in on the action.

A few kids told Newschannel 7, the olive shells were the favorite of the day.

“Well, I like how they can be very very big like mine. The one that I found is bigger than my finger they can be huge,” Abby, visiting from Arkansas, said.

For the adults, who went home with bags of shells, many already have plans in mind for what they will do with the shells.

“I decorate my whole house, I have shells everywhere jars everywhere, and make crafts with them,” Rebecca Roach, a local, said.

“I am going to put them in a jar and put them on my dining room table and remember this day for a long time, another local said.

Visit Panama City Beach officials say the western portion of the renourishment project is expected to be completed in mid-February.

However, the eastern portion of the project has been paused for the time being due to equipment delays.

To follow along with the progress of the project click here.

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