Terrifying Moment an Elevated Beachfront Home on the Outer Banks of North Carolina Collapses, Washes Out to Sea in Giants Hurricane Ernesto Waves

An elevated beachfront home on the Outer Banks of North Carolina recently collapsed and was washed out into the sea as a result of crashing waves caused by Hurricane Ernesto.

Knewz.com has learned that the incident occurred in the town of Rodanthe in the Cape Hatteras region of Dare County, North Carolina.

It has been reported that the single-family house on the Rodanthe shoreline was unoccupied when it collapsed on Friday, August 16.

There have been no reports of injuries from the incident.

The National Park Service has issued an alert for the residents of the area in the aftermath of the collapse of the beachfront home, asking the public to avoid the beaches and stay out of the water.

“Following the collapse of an unoccupied beach house this evening, Cape Hatteras National Seashore (Seashore) and the Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge strongly urges all visitors to avoid the beaches and stay out of the water around all areas of the beaches and surf in Rodanthe,” the alert read.

“Additionally, all public entry from the northern boundary of Rodanthe up to the northern end of the Jug Handle Bridge is closed. Many other homes appear to have sustained damages in the Rodanthe area.”

The news release published by the service also mentioned that “dangerous debris ” might be present on the beaches and in the water “for more than a dozen miles.”

“Prevailing currents appear to be rapidly transporting home debris to the north; however, if the wave swell and winds shift over the coming days, debris may also impact visitor safety in the villages of Waves and Salvo,” the alert added.

The owner of the unoccupied beachfront residence has already been informed of the damage caused, according to reports.

However, the National Park Service added that cleanup and debris removal efforts will not be possible until the rough sea conditions subside.

The National Weather Service has reported that the weather conditions are expected to get better over the week, although thunderstorms and showers are expected on Monday, August, 19.

“We’re looking at one last afternoon and evening of showers and thunderstorms, a few of which may produce damaging wind gusts. Once this round passes, cooler and drier weather settles over the region for the rest of the work week,” the Service wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.

While the trajectory of Hurricane Ernesto does not pose a threat to the mainland United States , officials believe other beachfront properties on the East Coast are at risk of collapsing similarly as a result of surging waves.

The National Park Service published a separate article recently where it mentioned that beachfront houses in North Carolina are almost always at risk of abrupt collapse due to the year-round “severe weather events” experienced by the state.

It is worth noting that the property that collapsed on August 16 is the seventh beachfront home to have washed out by the sea in four years.

According to Robert Outten, the manager of Dare County, the sand around the pilings that used to support the home was slowly eroded by seawater, which presumably caused the collapse.

“The pilings were washed out from under [the home]… The house just sat down in the surf and floated off,” Outten was quoted as saying.

According to officials, owners of beachfront properties in the region can either move their homes to drier ground – a move that might not be feasible in all cases – or pay to have their homes demolished.

A third option, according to reports , is to wait until the house collapses as a result of waves and seek reimbursement from their insurance company.

Notably, beachfront properties also have a detrimental effect on their surroundings, as pointed out by the National Park Service:

“… Reduced beach access and safety for visitors, a loss of habitat for shorebirds and sea turtles, and, sometimes, structure collapses on Seashore beaches, resulting in many miles of beach debris.”