About sixteen years ago Richard Gere, Diane Lane, Viola Davis and James Franco starred in a movie called "Nights in Rodanthe." It was largely set in a house on the Outerbanks island of Rodanthe, which was set way too close to the ocean. It eventually had to be moved further inland.
The reason as to why can be found in the following CBS News headline: "6th house in 4 years collapses into Atlantic Ocean along North Carolina's Outer Banks."The first two paragraphs tell the story.
"Another house has collapsed into the Atlantic Ocean along North Carolina's coast, the sixth to fall along the Cape Hatteras National Seashore's beaches in the past four years, according to U.S. National Park Service officials.
About one mile of the beach along Ocean Drive in Rodanthe on the Outer Banks was closed after Tuesday's collapse. The national seashore urged visitors to avoid beaches north of Sea Haven Drive into the southern portion of Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge, since dangerous debris could be on the beach and in the water as the cleanup continued."
Building along any seashore has become a fool's errand. It is worse on outer islands that have little protection. If you own property, you may want to consider selling it. If you are looking to buy, buy further inland or someplace that has natural buffers. Or just don't buy.
Rising sea levels are hastening normal beach erosion that has been occurring for decades. Plus, hurricane systems are fed by ocean water, so with higher sea levels the power is greater. A scientist said it is like dunking a basketball off an elevated court.
Finally, it is getting harder to find full value and affordable insurance on the property. The actuaries are recognizing the greater risk of loss. On Bald Head Island insurers are covering only 1/2 the value of the house and several insurers have abandoned the state of Florida and its heightened risk. In fact, Georgia State University, a prominent risk management school, teaches courses on assessing additional risk due to climate change.
So, this is real risk that exists today. This heightened risk exposes the largest asset for the vast majority of people. I encourage people to find the most efficacious way to manage it. And, note just being off the coast does not make the risk go away. These bigger hurricanes are slower moving, so the flood risk may be higher than the wind risk as rivers crest as they flow to the sea.
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