Tale of two coasts: Erosion threatens homes from California to North Carolina
Impacts are especially striking in North Carolina and California, where erosion is threatening homes, roads and other coastal infrastructure.
Coastal erosion causes sinkhole to swallow driveway of Nicolas Cage's Malibu home
The home of Hollywood blockbuster star Nicolas Cage was damaged after a massive sinkhole swallowed the driveway. Authorities said severe coastal erosion caused the collapse, with the sinkhole estimated to be about 30 feet by 30 feet in size. Drone footage shows the extent of the damage with the entire driveway in the in the hole as the ocean crashes under the house and over the debris. Officials confirmed the home was unoccupied at the time and no injuries were reported.
THE TAKEAWAY
- In North Carolina, 31 beach homes in Rodanthe and Buxton have collapsed into the ocean as beach erosion and extreme weather events continue to reshape the shoreline.
- In Southern California, rough surf and erosion has threatened oceanfront homes in Long Beach.
- The situation could become even more challenging if a strong El Niño develops this winter, bringing the potential for increased coastal impacts along California.
Communities along America's shorelines are confronting a problem that is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore: coastal erosion.
From Maine to Virginia and Michigan, communities are watching their shorelines change.
an unoccupied home collapsed into the Atlantic Ocean Tuesday afternoon, the latest chapter in a relentless battle against the waves of the Atlantic. This is the 12th house to collapse along the seashore in the past five years, according to the NPS, a result of ongoing beach erosion.
(Jenni Koontz/Epic Shutter Photography via Storyful / FOX Weather)
But the impacts are especially striking in North Carolina and California, where erosion is threatening homes, roads and other coastal infrastructure.
The two regions have vastly different landscapes, but both are seeing the ocean move closer inland.
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In North Carolina, the effects are especially dramatic. Since 2020, 31 beach homes in Rodanthe and Buxton have collapsed into the ocean as beach erosion and extreme weather events continue to reshape the shoreline.
An aerial view of the incoming tide and swell at Aliso Beach in Laguna Beach, where recent storm surges caused damage to the parking lot area and erosion, on Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2026, ahead of the impacts of Hurricane Marie.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Officials say a combination of wind and waves, storms and rising sea levels has contributed to coastal erosion along the Outer Banks.
Homes that once stood hundreds of feet from the ocean have been left dangerously close to the water.
Now, residents are left watching and wondering what will happen to their once-picture-perfect beach homes as the coastline continues to change.
About 2,500 miles away in Southern California, coastal communities are facing their own battle with erosion.
North Carolina Outer Banks communities race to remove homes vulnerable to coastal erosion
People along North Carolina's Outer Banks are racing against time — and the Atlantic hurricane season — to move homes off one of America's most vulnerable coastlines. As FOX Weather Senior Correspondent Robert Ray shows, many of the homes were once hundreds of yards from the oceanfront.
The impacts have been seen in recent weeks, with rough surf threatening oceanfront homes in Long Beach, and erosion creating dangerous conditions along other parts of the California coast.
WHAT IS COASTAL EROSION AND WHY IS IT DANGEROUS?
Earlier in September, roughly 20 at-risk homes in Long Beach were evacuated after rough waves slammed the coast and compromised a seawall.
The damage extended beyond the seawall. Officials reported damage to the boardwalk and cracked concrete between several at-risk oceanfront homes, while sand driven inland by pounding surf clogged storm drains and triggered localized street flooding.
Carlsbad declared a local emergency as officials work to stabilize coastal bluffs threatened by ongoing erosion.
(City of Carlsbad / FOX Weather)
Farther north in Carlsbad, coastal erosion is threatening the bluffs along South Carlsbad Boulevard.
During an inspection, a geotechnical expert found that the bluff was experiencing erosion and recommended emergency stabilization measures.
The city declared a local emergency Sept. 9, warning that additional erosion could threaten the stability of the bluff and nearby roadway.
Home collapses in Buxton, North Carolina amid powerful nor'easter.
(Daniel Pullen via Storyful / FOX Weather)
The situation could become even more challenging if a strong El Niño develops this winter, bringing the potential for increased coastal impacts along California.
WATCH: SAND PUMPING UNDERWAY AS BUXTON’S MAJOR BEACH NOURISHMENT PROJECT FIGHTS COSTAL EROSION
Southern California and North Carolina may look different, but erosion is threatening both communities.
This is true for all residents living along America's coastlines. As sea levels rise from climate change, coastlines will remain in jeopardy.