Several homes in a coastal North Carolina community are in danger of being swept away into the ocean by rapid beach erosion that has destroyed more than a half-dozen homes in the past few years. And recent drone footage shows just how dangerous the situation is.
Video taken by WRAL 5 News Last week, a row of homes that were once beach houses in Rodanthe, North Carolina, now sit right in the middle of the ocean, were shown. But that wasn’t always the case. The homes are located on the Outer Banks, a series of barrier islands that separate the coasts of North Carolina and southeastern Virginia from what was once a popular tourist destination.
The images show a deck on one of the homes beginning to collapse, septic systems beginning to crack and sewage spilling into the ocean. The homes once fronted a street that is now just a sandbar. And in the past four years alone, seven homes have eroded into the water, according to a National Park Service spokesperson.
One of the homeowners, Sharon Troy, told a local news outlet that she and her family have owned their Rodanthe home for 16 years, and that in that time there was a “football field-sized beach” behind it.
“Too many people say hateful things [and] “Ask me why we built our house in the middle of the ocean. It wasn't like this when we bought it,” Troy explained. “It wasn't like this a few years ago. And we're not rich people. We're hard-working, normal people. We can't afford to move it. We can't find a place to move it. The insurance company won't pay until it falls apart.”
“This is incredibly sad. All we can do is hope and pray,” Troy added.
When Troy's house finally collapses, park officials and contractors worry it could set off a domino effect: The beach is already littered with wooden planks and rusty nails.
Dave Hallac, director of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, said climate change is accelerating the natural erosion rates of barrier islands. As time goes on, more homes will face the same fate.
“It's really unfortunate because that debris can be dispersed long distances along the coast,” Hallac explained. “When you add a foot or two of water, it just makes things worse.”