Man sued by Hawaii government after ocean rips apart his home

A homeowner whose property was washed into the ocean during severe weather is being sued by his state government.

The attorney general in the US state of Hawaii is chasing the owner over glass, timber and other debris that broke off his house and now litters the dunes, after a terrible inundation. 

The same resident was last year slapped with $110,000 penalty for “erosion control violations” at the beachfront residence, relating to sandbags he put in place.

Neighbours have expressed anger at authorities for acting faster to clear the mess. Local man Kevin Emery posted a video of a property that had been obliterated by the swell, sand still shifting and trickling as the water rolls in. It is not made known who owns this house.

In an Instagram post, Emery, accused local cleaning crews of not doing enough and said nails, broken glass and metal is strewn across the sand where his daughter plays. 

Attorney General of Hawaii documents, seen by Nine’s property team, explain that on September 24, an ocean swell impacted the house and “solid material” was seen falling off the property.

Environmental enforcement officers were called and watched as “large parts” the house were swept into the sea.

They observed “cement, wood, glass, electrical components, rebar, geotextile fabric, and other unidentified solid materials” littered between the edge of the home and the water, across the “sandy beach”.

They allege the homeowner, who Nine has elected not to name, did not clean up after the destruction and this has threatened public safety, health, welfare and natural resources.

Last year, he was hit with a fine of $US77,000 ($AU111,302) for placing “unauthorised” sandbags, with concrete poured over them, as a temporary anti-erosion measure, on the beach in front of his house, in documents seen by Nine’s property team.

Lawyers told the Hawaii Board of Land and Natural Resources their client had hired laborers at great cost to remove the concrete and structural remains, and filed for a contested case hearing.

They said in documents lodged with the board that similar measures by other residents along the beach would result in many future contested hearings.