Iconic fishing shacks in Portland, Maine, destroyed as coast sees historic water levels

Iconic fishing shacks in Portland, Maine, were washed away on Saturday when the coast saw record water levels, as storms sweep across the country.

Water levels at the Portland tide gauge set a new record just after noon, surpassing the previous record set in 1978. The gauge registered 14.57 feet MLLW (mean lower low water), breaking the record of 14.17 feet MLLW set at that location on Feb. 7, 1978. Records at the Portland gauge extend back to 1912.

Amid the flooding threat, all three fishing shacks at Willard Beach were "completely destroyed" in the storm, the city of South Portland said in a Facebook post Saturday afternoon.

Work had been ongoing in recent years to preserve the historic shacks, which were the only three remaining from the region's fishing heyday during the 1800s.

"Sad day for our community," the South Portland Historical Society said in a Facebook post while sharing photos of the destroyed shacks.

Crews were assessing "significant damage due to flooding" in South Portland, the city said.

Among the areas impacted, Bug Light Park will be closed until at least Tuesday due to "major damage" to the path leading to the lighthouse, the city said.

Flooding was also seen in other coastal towns, including the streets of Boothbay, Maine, north of Portland, during peak high tide Saturday.

Coastal flooding has been inundating many communities along the Northeast coast in the wake of a major storm, with much of New England seeing significant coastal flood impacts due to the high tide.

The National Weather Service in Gray, Maine, had earlier issued a rare flash flood warning related to coastal flooding, saying: "We have taken the extra step of issuing a Flash Flood Warning for our vulnerable coastal communities to highlight the increasing threat for major impacts around the noon high tide."

Almost every single U.S. state was under some form of weather alert Saturday morning -- from flood watches in the east to blizzard warnings in Iowa to wind chill warnings for over a dozen states in the central U.S.

ABC News' Daniel Peck contributed to this report.