RODANTHE, N.C. — “Even though it was summertime at the beach, I would have hot cocoa every morning that grandma would make, and she had these little Crayola crayon mugs that still are embedded in my memory," said Russell Thurston.
That is one of the many memories that Thurston has of the Rodanthe beach house that his grandparents Donald and Joan Richards built in 1992—a time when there were at least a hundred yards of beach before you could step into the water.
“You're probably talking about at least 100 to 150 yards. There were two layers of sand dunes that existed back then and so you had to go up a tall dune and then down," said Thurston.
Watch previous coverage: Discussions continue over threatened oceanfront structures on Cape Hatteras National Seashore
Now, the house sits in the water, with the shore break washing up against the base every day. The family sold the house in the early 2000s and though they haven't owned it in 20 years, they have kept a close eye each year to see if it still stands.
“That's kind of been the game for the past couple years, is, you know, is it there? Although it's not ours, it is still sentimental," said Thurston.
How to approach the potential collapse of a home into the ocean remains a daily conversation for Dare County staff, especially as the Outer Banks heads into the fall and winter storm season. In August, the seventh house since 2020 was taken by the ocean on the Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
“We've had high seas and some wind, but we haven't really had storms, and we're having these problems," said Bobby Outten, Dare County manager.
For the county staff, they have had conversations with homeowners about the threatened structures, but challenges remain.
“I haven't been directly in contact with them. My staff has done that, or the Park Service has done that. From what I understand, though, is that the homeowners, for the most part, have been amenable. They understand the situation. I know this last one that fell, they were aware. They had a contractor lined up ready to go when it fell to get cleaned up. They cleaned it up expeditiously. They funded it expeditiously. So, from that perspective, yes. From the perspective of trying to get them to move ahead of them falling, that hasn't been as productive, but the conversations have been had," said Outten.
Watch related coverage: New report outlines ideas to address threatened oceanfront homes on North Carolina's coast
Dare County and the National Park Service continue to look for solutions, including a funding source to help in prevention.
"What we're really looking for is funding sources. We have two options: one is to get the houses out of there, and two is to do beach nourishment. I guess three is to do both. And all of that takes money," said Outten. "So, we're looking for sources of funding because it takes a fairly significant amount of money to do those things."
Thurston and his family named the house “Vista Del Mar” and though one day it might fall, the mornings of hot cocoa and sitting on the deck will never be forgotten.
“She would have those ready for us when we walked up the stairs in the morning and we just go sit on the deck and look out at the ocean and just smell the salty air, hear the waves and watch the seagulls go by. It was really a dream," Thurston reflected.
Dare County and the Cape Hatteras National Seashore have been monitoring this string of houses off America Drive for months. Not much has changed until recently when the house saw its deck begin to teeter. The status of the homes will continue to be monitored by both organizations.
