Wild scenes on Oahu’s North Shore as beachfront house collapses into the ocean in the middle of the night, “Today the first house on the North Shore fell in. This is one of many; in the next couple of years all of these might fall in!”

“Brings new meaning to the world beachfront.”

One of those pretty clapboard houses built on the sand at Rocky Point on Oahu’s North Shore has collapsed into the Pacific after heavy winter swells gobbled up all the sand.

At one am, the Honolulu Fire Department responded to reports of a downed power line and “that a house was falling into the ocean.”

Neighbours are freaking out, natch, ‘cause they figure their multi-million dollar joints could be next.

“It makes me emotional because I’m hoping that all these agencies are here to be helpful and maybe they have solutions,” neighbour Jeannie Martinson told KITV4.

Department of Land and Natural Resources Chairperson Suzanne Case says the only long-term solution is gonna be for those houses to move back from the beachfront.

“It is a terrible situation and we are very sympathetic with it and at the same time we don’t have all the answers, you know, we can’t solve everything,” Case told KITV4.

Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi told a press conference they were gonna look into the usual short-term solutions, sand bags etc, but added, “I think we have to be in favor regrettably of what’s happening in the world, and I say regrettably because climate change is real, sea level rise is definitely real.”

Case agreed and called the situation “a long time coming. We knew it was going to happen eventually. It’s a dangerous situation, as debris is falling into the ocean. This is sad … climate change, sea level rise, and wave energy in new powerful patterns. This is a beach that’s important to everyone. The houses are built on sand berms and there’s just no way they can last long-term. We continue to encourage the homeowners here to seek other alternatives.”

Three-time NSSA champ and runner-up to Zeke Lau’s Ultimate Surfer, Koa Smith, said, “Today the first house on the North Shore fell in. It sucks, man. The ocean takes what it wants. We’re just living here temporarily. It sucks for the family. This is one of many, be really interesting, in the next couple of years all these might fall in, over at Pupukea and all that. Brings new meaning to beachfront.”

 

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A post shared by Koa Smith (@koasmith)

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Mullet
Mullet
4 years ago

Pump sand on eroding beaches. There, fixed it.

Mike
Mike
4 years ago

If it was a freeway or a railway it would have been mitigated a couple of generations ago

Derek Hynd's Missing Fins
Derek Hynd's Missing Fins
4 years ago

I’m not in Waikiki. The picture I shared is of a salt water marsh estuary that is tidal–i.e. it’s the Atlantic ocean, that comes inland. There is a bridge, over the marsh. Built 50 or 60 years ago, when the road there was bone dry. The road there was bone dry until high tides about 10 years ago. Now, well, you can see what it looks like in 2022. The marsh now floods the road, as there is 1 foot more of water at high tide here, than 100 years ago. Science is clear there will be a minimum of another 1 foot rise in the next 30 years.

Mike
Mike
4 years ago

Stoked now you have an estuary for the birds… think of the birds brother

Derek Hynd's Missing Fins
Derek Hynd's Missing Fins
4 years ago
Reply to  Mike

I do. They have to cohabit a planet with primates like you. No wonder they migrate.

Derek Hynd's Missing Fins
Derek Hynd's Missing Fins
4 years ago

Sure thing LGR.

Sit down to pee
Sit down to pee
4 years ago

JOB could pull some wild stunts sliding down that roof.

Uneducated
Uneducated
4 years ago

I really enjoy a good climate change debate

I imagine in the last few hours aboard the titanic…a bunch of beings of high intelligence running about trying to convince everyone everything was fine…nothing to see…its all a hoax…just extremist loonies trying to alarm and decieve you

“Its all a lie, its all a lie, its all…glue, glue, glug”

Mike
Mike
4 years ago
Reply to  Uneducated

Just like the evangelist thumping about armageddon.

notsurfingtoday
notsurfingtoday
4 years ago

Meanwhile in portugal
https://youtu.be/DfeYVed4IP4

RS
RS
4 years ago

Hopefully this event is mobile this year so I don’t have to hear about how epic a nearby spot is while watching garbage Supertubos.

notsurfingtoday
notsurfingtoday
4 years ago
Reply to  RS

Its gonna be a clear cut classic example of the old adage, ‘ should’ve seen it last week! ‘

Derek Hynd's Missing Fins
Derek Hynd's Missing Fins
4 years ago
Derek Hynd's Missing Fins
Derek Hynd's Missing Fins
4 years ago

If this were “normal,” and not triggered by sea level rise from anthropogenic use of fossil fuels, then this road would never have been built here…but this road used to be dry at all times. Now it floods 1x a month at high tides. That will only get worse. i.e. this is the driest this road will ever be, from here on out, in days per year.

Mike
Mike
4 years ago

There used to be this epic surf spot called Stanleys in the 805. I was to young to surf it, but the story goes they built a freeway off ramp right over the top of it. No more Stanley’s. But we can blame the oil company because they probably payed off a politician so the off ramp wasn’t on their land. Hey we need to get over there… well the easiest way is to throw some dirt in this marshland and build a road😃

Mike
Mike
4 years ago

Your right there’s a puddle there… Shit the earth is dying

Derek Hynd's Missing Fins
Derek Hynd's Missing Fins
4 years ago
Reply to  Mike

Shit the county is going to have to raise billions in taxes to raise roads and build bridges and raise houses. That tax bill and flood insurance going up aint no lefty hoax.

Derek Hynd's Missing Fins
Derek Hynd's Missing Fins
4 years ago

Yep, all a hoax. So much so that the racist, science denying daily of my town (Jotto would have loved reading it!) finally had to accept reality and now runs things like this:
https://www.postandcourier….

Saw a school bus drive through 6 inches of tidal water this morning, on a road that was dry at similar high tides just 10 years ago.

For free marketers like you, you realize this is going to collapse most markets, right?
https://www.usnews.com/news…

https://www.theworldcounts….

I know you’re pro-life and love your kids. I don’t understand the disconnect between that position, and the needless deaths that climate change is going to cause (and already causes).

But I digress…this is BG, and the core 10 Trumpers of you will now jump down my throat.

Party on, Wayne! #DontLookDown

Mike
Mike
4 years ago

Maybe in a 100 years you might have to move that road 10 ft. Wank wank. I don’t think the marginalized have beach front properties.
https://m.youtube.com/watch…

Mike
Mike
4 years ago

Caissons are effective for these situations.

channelbottom
channelbottom
4 years ago
Reply to  Mike

“‘K, son.
Whatever you say.”

… does that help?

Mike
Mike
4 years ago
Reply to  channelbottom

Absolutely.

Mike
Mike
4 years ago

So big surf on a high tide now equals climate change… Yawn. The shoreline is always going to erode except where it’s mostly stone or lava.

J H
J H
4 years ago
Reply to  Mike

Fact check: TRUE!

J H
J H
4 years ago

Speaking of property on the North Shore.

Looks like Nick Woodman put a “tiny house” on his sprawling Rocky Point property.

Very cute and understated.

J H
J H
4 years ago

Can we find one politician with a (D) next to their name who understands the difference between erosion and “rising sea levels?”

I saw that house last week and it looked very precarious.

Having lost a house to a hurricane I definitely feel for them. At least I was able to rebuild…their land is just gone.

But that’s the chance we take living by the ocean.

Otto
Otto
4 years ago
Reply to  J H

They refuse to understand the difference between a man and a woman, so I seriously doubt it.

NEGATRON
NEGATRON
4 years ago

Can we blame the WSL?

channelbottom
channelbottom
4 years ago
Reply to  NEGATRON

Elo-sion?

Stick man
Stick man
4 years ago
Reply to  NEGATRON

World Sand Loss

Stroki Makoki
Stroki Makoki
4 years ago

Soon Pipe will be Waikiki.

NEGATRON
NEGATRON
4 years ago

We had a 7.8 earthquake in my hometown 5 years ago. Sea-bed uplifted to 2 metres in some parts, so fuck you climate change!!

RQ.
RQ.
4 years ago
Reply to  NEGATRON

that was fucking mental.

AI (for ever) .
AI (for ever) .
4 years ago

the erosion was made worse by Kellys burrito

Gil Gunderson
Gil Gunderson
4 years ago

Or not enough burritos?

channelbottom
channelbottom
4 years ago
Reply to  Gil Gunderson

That mess looks far more like nachos, IMHO.

Stick man
Stick man
4 years ago
Reply to  channelbottom

It’s the Casa’dilla nachos…

Gil Gunderson
Gil Gunderson
4 years ago
Reply to  channelbottom

Mmmmmmmmmm…. Nachos 🤤

Otto
Otto
4 years ago

Koa should donate his front teeth to be used as a seawall .

Stick man
Stick man
4 years ago
Reply to  Otto

Instead he fishes for Likes…Didn’t Bradshaw’s or Freddy P’s pool topple in like over a decade ago?

John Non John
John Non John
4 years ago

NonJohn likes your common sense. It’s rum ration time.

John Non John
John Non John
4 years ago

NonJohn is super stoked! He owns property in the other side of the highway. #FKelly


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