Aurora Starchild
A video of a house collapsing into the ocean on Tuesday has gone viral. It was one of two in Rodanthe, North Carolina, that fell that day. Rodanthe is part of the Outer Banks, located on Hatteras Island. Luckily, neither house was inhabited at the time.
Videos by Rare
The video of the house collapsing first shows the posts break. Next, the house falls onto the waves as a series of stairs snaps off the side. The house then bobbles uncontrollably on the surface of the ocean.
The National Park Service released a statement that the entire beach on Ocean Drive was immediately closed off after the house collapsed due to the hazard. The house was expected to tear apart, leaving debris along the water and beach.
The National Park Service also says to stay alert for other houses which may collapse into the ocean due to climate change.
Another house collapsed in early February and continues to cause debris hazards despite a cleanup effort.
Climate change is taking its toll everywhere and it comes in different forms. For some states, drought is causing wildfires. For others, the ocean is rising.
Obviously, climate change is especially visible on the east coast as houses keep getting sucked out to sea. Recent floods and erosion continue to threaten structures in the Outer Banks. What’s more, increasing destruction is likely in the near future.
Superintendent David Hallac of the National Parks of Eastern North Carolina released the following statement:
“Unfortunately, there may be more houses that collapse onto Seashore beaches in the near future… We proactively reached out to homeowners along Ocean Drive in Rodanthe after the first house collapse and recommended that actions be taken to prevent collapse and impacts to Cape Hatteras National Seashore.”
Let’s just hope that the owners had insurance.
