DARE COUNTY, N.C. — Part of a mile-long beach closure — put into effect after an oceanfront Rodanthe house collapsed into the water on Tuesday — has reopened, according to Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
The beach from Sea Haven Drive to South Shore Drive was closed due to debris from the collapse, Seashore officials say.
As of Thursday morning, most of the beach has reopened. A quarter-mile-long portion from South Holiday Boulevard to the north end of Ocean Drive remains closed, officials added.
Although part of the beach has reopened, Seashore officials are warning people to use caution to the north and south of the house collapse site. Since there could be some remaining debris, visitors should wear hard-soled shoes, officials recommended.
The house that collapsed was located at 24131 Ocean Drive, just south of the Rodanthe Pier. Officials say the house likely collapsed around 2:30 a.m. on Tuesday, May 28.
The house was unoccupied at the time.
News 3 has reported on numerous oceanfront homes collapsing in the Outer Banks in the past few years.
There have been efforts to mitigate the risk, including a recent opportunity that allowed Rodanthe property owners to move their homes further away from the water.
Watch: New approaches seek to deal with erosion's impact on the OBX
In addition to concerns about losing vulnerable homes, Seashore officials are also worried about the long-term impacts of the collapses.
"By deploying a large group of employees soon after the house collapse, the Seashore hopes that this particular house collapse creates fewer long-term impacts to the beach than collapses in prior years," the Seashore said in a release.
The clean-up effort is still underway. Seashore officials say they're planning to use a piece of heavy equipment Thursday to collect smaller pieces of debris north of the house collapse site.
We'll provide updates on when the beach closure is lifted.
