Homes toppled into the Atlantic after coastal erosion and storms blasted their foundations at a rate of 13 feet a year.

Five homes in the picturesque community of Rodanthe in North Carolina have been swallowed by the relentless force of the sea since September 15.

Jenni Koontz, a 40-year-old video journalist has documented the devastation caused by rising sea levels and accelerating coastal erosion.

Over the past few weeks, Koontz has returned to the same area near Rodanthe almost daily.

Since September 15, she has watched five homes become swallowed by the relentless force of the sea.

Koontz, said the rate of coastal erosion in the area has reached alarming levels — about 13 feet per year.

"There used to be at least a hundred yards of beach and a dune protecting them from the ocean many, many years ago when they were built," she recalls. "

"Now, these houses are sitting in water that they were never meant to be in."

She documented the collapse of three homes in quick succession in recent days, describing the process as a "domino effect." "

"On September 15, there were five houses on GA Kohler Court. Now, there are two," she said."

"Three have fallen in less than a week."

One particular night stands out vividly in her mind.

After receiving a call from a homeowner at around 9.30pm, Koontz rushed to the area to capture footage of a house which was expected to collapse.

"I drove all the way up there and sat until 3am watching the high tide pound the house","

she said.

It wasn't long before the structure finally gave in.

For some homeowners, the experience of losing their property to the ocean has been emotionally exhausting.

One told Koontz they were almost relieved their ordeal was over after months of legal battles with county and state officials.

"It's a devastating situation for people who put their whole life savings into these homes. It's their investment property, their memories with family and friends, and many vacationers have memories there as well."

While the homes continue to fall, Koontz is baffled by the lack of action.

"In my opinion, I don't know why we do not have equipment like dredging equipment to do our own beach nourishment," she said."

"We have plenty of sand between the inlets that are clogging the channels for boats."

"We could pump in our own sand and do an annual beach nourishment to keep these beaches alive and large and make it so these houses aren't falling in."

She added: "Anytime there's a certain weather pattern coming, high tides, I go to specific areas where the coastal erosion is pretty bad."

"This year we haven't had too many severe storms, and actually the erosion and these houses falling in are not caused by major storms."

"They're actually either offshore or tropical storms that are causing this crazy erosion and flooding storm surge that's happening right now."