RODANTHE, N.C. (WITN) – A volunteer clean-up is set for Wednesday after another house fell victim to the ocean at Rodanthe early this morning.
The Cape Hatteras National Seashore says the unoccupied two-story house on Ocean Drive collapsed around 2:30 a.m.
A couch, furniture, and pieces of home were scattered along the shoreline.
This morning’s collapse is the sixth house on Seashore beaches to fall victim to the ocean over the past four years.
During severe weather events like the storms Eastern North Carolina faced on Memorial Day, the National Park Service says oceanfront houses are vulnerable to strong winds and large waves.
According to the National Park Service, six privately owned houses have fallen. Park Service officials say four out of the six houses fell within a 13-month period. The fifth house fell in March 2023.
While Seashore employees and a contractor hired by the property owner removed 31 pickup truck loads of debris today, a volunteer beach clean-up will be held on Wednesday.
The debris extends to just south of the house to more than two miles to the north. Volunteers should meet at the Roadanthe Pier between 8:00 a.m. and 11:30 a.m.
People should wear thick-soled shoes as much of the wood that was washed up has exposed nails, according to the National Seashore.
To ensure safety, officials say a one-mile section of the beach from Sea Haven Drive to South Shore Drive is closed and warn visitors to avoid beaches north of Sea Haven Drive into the southern portion of Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge due to the direction the debris is expected to drift.
They warn additional beach closures may be necessary.