St. Johns County homeowners in a race against time, sea turtle nesting and hurricane season

It’s a race against time for St. Johns County homeowners to protect their properties from washing away into the ocean.

Construction is in process to protect homes with a sea wall, but it must stop Thursday.

More than a dozen homes are nearly hanging off cliffs because of eroded beaches and now their only hope is a sea wall.

After Hurricane Irma and a nor’easter caused erosion and even toppled some homes into the ocean, homeowners started applying for permits to build a wall.

“It’s a nightmare condition, you had two hurricanes in a row, a super nor’easter that wiped out neighbors left and right of me and threatened me as well,” homeowner Bill Smith said.

By mid-April, a group of homeowners started moving forward with a 1,600-foot wall to protect their homes.

“It takes a very long time to build and we needed more than six weeks,” Smith said.

A short time later, they received a notice from Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

It said the permits only allow work until May 31 because of turtle nesting season.

And a notice to the State Department of Environmental Protection states that no further extensions of work will be considered.

“Freaked out is an understatement. We absolutely need help,” Smith said.

A homeowner sent an email Governor Rick Scott that reads in part:

"We have been racing furiously to complete this 18-property seawall, but are currently in a state of disarray with respect to property-by-property progress due to late permitting because we followed the rules."

The DEP said it will continue to work with neighbors and FWC to take measures to protect homes during turtle nesting season.

Construction is allowed to resume again Nov. 1.

Cox Media Group