New Island Forms Off U.S. Coast

Weather in your inbox

Forecast Location

Sign Up

By signing up you agree to the Terms & Privacy Policy. Unsubscribe at any time.

Visitors to North Carolina's Cape Hatteras National Seashore will have a new island to explore.

The new isle sprang up from the sea along the state's famed Outer Banks practically overnight, according to the Virginian-Pilot.

What began as a small sandbank in April soon grew to a legitimate island that is now a mile long and three football fields wide, the Pilot notes. The island is off the tip of Cape Point,  a renowned site for surf-fishing near Cape Hatteras Lighthouse. The island has drawn explorers willing to brave the strong currents to the new land mass to collect seashells.

One of those visitors is Chad Koczera, who was in the area with his fiancée when he spotted the island and captured stunning photos with his drone. 

"My fiancée and I were driving to the point after a storm to collect shells when we spotted an area we couldn't get to by car," Koczera told weather.com. "I sent the drone up to check it out and noticed this beautiful island. We didn't get a chance to make it onto the island because of the strong current."

Locals have nicknamed the new destination Shelly Island, the Pilot reports.

Officials are warning people about the dangers of attempting to swim to the island because of strong currents, Dave Hallac, superintendent of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, told CNN Travel.

He also noted that the shoreline along the cape is constantly changing and the island may disappear as quickly as it appeared. 

MORE ON WEATHER.COM: World's Best Islands - Travel and Leisure  2016