Additional Coverage:
- Watch: Drone video shows homes along North Carolina’s Outer Banks collapsing into Atlantic (foxweather.com)
BUXTON, N.C. – Powerful ocean waves, stirred by Hurricanes Humberto and Imelda, have caused at least six homes along North Carolina’s Outer Banks to collapse into the Atlantic Ocean. The dramatic events, captured in drone footage, unfolded on Tuesday in Buxton.
Officials with the Cape Hatteras National Seashore reported that at least five homes in Buxton collapsed within a 45-minute span, beginning around 2 p.m. Tuesday.
A sixth home on Tower Circle Road subsequently fell late Tuesday night. Fortunately, no injuries have been reported.
Drone video, recorded by Jenni Koontz of Epic Shutter Photography, depicted the moment two of these homes succumbed to the relentless surf, crashing into adjacent properties and scattering debris across the beach.
Local resident Hunter Hicks described the scene to FOX Weather, stating, “It was insane. It sounded like bombs going off.
Windows were cracking. Pylons were cracking.
Houses were just washing all the way down the ocean. It’s pretty bad here right now.”
Three of the collapsed homes were located on Cottage Avenue, while three others, including the one that fell late Tuesday night, were on nearby Tower Circle Road.
Koontz expressed concern about the aftermath and future impacts. “I don’t know how this is going to be cleaned up very quickly.
There’s a lot of debris,” she noted, adding, “I think we’re just getting started. I think the rest of the week is going to be just as intense, if not more.
We’re going to have more houses falling in for sure.”
Hurricanes Humberto and Imelda have been generating significant swells across the Atlantic, impacting coastal communities from the Bahamas and Bermuda to the entire U.S. East Coast over recent days, leading to severe erosion and property damage in vulnerable areas like the Outer Banks.