A beach house was swept up and carried out to sea Friday as Hurricane Ernesto ripped along the North Carolina coast.
The home collapsed at Cape Hatteras National Seashore beach in Rodanthe, the northernmost village of the Outer Banks that has been vulnerable to intense beach erosion over the years, the National Parks Service said.
Wild video shows the brown two-story house being dragged into the surf as the water was whipped up by Ernesto.
“Oh, my God. Oh, my God!’ someone is heard exclaiming in the footage.
The house was an elevated beach-style home situated on pilings, but collapsed when the aggressive tide rushed past the property line.
Debris ripped from the home was seen floating along next to it, most of which was spat back out onto the shore.
Wooden planks and other sections of the destroyed abode spanned hundreds of feet across the sand following the collapse, but experts suspect most of the debris was swept out more than a dozen miles to sea.
But with Ernesto expected to grow stronger over the weekend, officials believe the lost home won’t be the only one to collapse into the Atlantic.
“There are a number of other homes throughout Rodanthe at risk of collapse over the next few days. Swell from Ernesto is expected to peak Saturday and Sunday,” Chicamacomico Banks Fire & Rescue officials said.
“We’re in for a rough weekend. Please heed warnings and do not enter the ocean.”
Fortunately, no one was inside the home, and there were no reported injuries.
The lost home is the seventh to collapse on Seashore beaches over the past four years, including two on the same day in May 2022.
The accelerated shore loss is attributed to winds, waves, and tides, along with rising seas and storms, according to the NPS.
Severe weather events like Ernesto, which are normal in the Outer Banks throughout the year, batter the already vulnerable houses, leading to collapse.
Beach access has been shut down as officials wait for the rest of the debris — and possibly that of homes that have not yet collapsed to wash back up, and also because of the strong currents Ernesto will bring.
