Pricey home falls into ocean on NC’s Outer Banks, creating debris trail, park says
The $550,000 beach home at 46000 Ocean Drive in Buxton is no more, having collapsed into the Atlantic Ocean overnight, according to the National Park Service.
Popular beaches are being closed in the surrounding areas, due to concerns tourists may be injured by the rusty nails, jagged metal and broken glass, officials said.
“Cape Hatteras National Seashore is strongly urging its visitors to avoid the beach and stay out of the water from the Village of Buxton south to the Cape Point area, due to last night’s collapse of an unoccupied house,” the National Park Service said in a June 3 news release.
“Varying amounts of hazardous large and small debris litter the beach to the south of the collapse site. Due to public safety concerns, all beach access from the north end of Buxton through the lifeguarded beach is temporarily closed until park rangers can assess the area.”
The area deemed dangerous covers about three miles and includes some of the most popular beaches in the park.
The 2,066-square-foot home that collapsed is one of 32 privately owned houses that have fallen into the Atlantic at Cape Hatteras National Seashore since 2020, the park says. Five have fallen in the past six months.
“The daily effects of winds, waves, and tides, along with rising seas and storms, have played a part in contributing to coastal erosion impacts at Cape Hatteras National Seashore, particularly adjacent to the villages of Rodanthe and Buxton,” the NPS says.
“The effects of erosion in these villages have resulted in structures being present on the open beachfront or in the intertidal area which may result in reduced beach access and safety for visitors, a loss of habitat for shorebirds and sea turtles, and, sometimes, structure collapses on Seashore beaches, resulting in many miles of beach debris.”
Buxton is a 240-mile drive southeast from downtown Raleigh.
This story was originally published June 3, 2026 at 7:07 AM with the headline "Pricey home falls into ocean on NC’s Outer Banks, creating debris trail, park says."