ANAHOLA — Those heading down South ‘Aliomanu Road will no longer see the familiar site of a collapsing one-story home on the shoreline. The Anahola house, which has been crumbling onto the beach and drifting out into the ocean for
ANAHOLA — Those heading down South ‘Aliomanu Road will no longer see the familiar site of a collapsing one-story home on the shoreline.
The Anahola house, which has been crumbling onto the beach and drifting out into the ocean for years, took its final bow last month after high surf battered the coast.
The lingering pile of rubble consisting of rotten wood, rusted nails and other debris has been cleared away.
The house, reportedly owned by a Kaua‘i family since the 1930s, has been decomposing into the ocean for many years due to rapid erosion.
Coastal geologist Jim O’Connell said it is possible the adjacent sea wall, not designed with proper specifications, could have been the cause. But he adds it is also likely natural erosion played a significant part in the house’s plight.
“There’s a high probability that it was a combination of the two,” he said in an interview Sunday.
Between 1975 and 2007, the shoreline in front of the property had eroded 135 feet based on data from the University of Hawai‘i, according to O’Connell.
Meanwhile, between 1927 and 1975, the shoreline had gained 40 feet of sand.
Why this occurred, O’Connell said he could not entirely explain. But his expertise pointed him in a direction to prevent similar situations from happening.
“Vertical walls, generally speaking, have a significant adverse impact to adjacent properties,” he said. “How do we allow people to protect their valuable waterfront properties, but how do we build these walls so that they don’t have these adverse impacts?”
Vertical concrete walls, such as the concrete-and-rock structure built in 1981 by Albert Morgan Sr. and neighbors to protect their properties against erosion, are a “thing of the past,” O’Connell said.
“For years, we’ve been exploring erosion control alternatives that would at least minimize impacts.”
He explains that they have already been able to come up with some techniques.
Attempts to reach out to the owners of the home were unsuccessful at press time.
County Planning Director Ian Costa did not return messages seeking comment last week.
Deborah Ward, information specialist for the state Department of Land and Natural Resources, did not respond to inquires made early last week to confirm whether the owners took part in the final demolition.
