Editing Sunset Beach, North Carolina (section)

==History==
The seaside town of Sunset Beach got its start in 1955 when the land it occupies was bought by Mannon C. Gore. Impressed by the sunsets the southeast-facing island offered, he renamed 'Bald Beach,' as it had been called previously, to 'Sunset Beach.' Development began in earnest with the completion of a bridge connecting the beach island to the mainland in 1958,<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.sunsetbeachnc.gov/index.asp?Type=B_BASIC&SEC=%7B34D376C5-4F01-4946-8AC0-495A24C6C560%7D | title=The History of Sunset Beach | publisher=Sunset Beach, North Carolina | access-date=May 27, 2014}}</ref> modeled by Gore and operated by him until 1961 when it was taken over by the North Carolina Department of Transportation. With the help of his son, Edward, Gore began selling property on the island in 1958. Additionally, Gore built the original pier on the island, named the 'Vesta Pier' for the beached civil war blockade-runner which sat beneath the structure, though is now completely covered by sand.<ref name="Town of Sunset Beach, NC 2010 t166">{{cite web | title=Sunset Beach History | website=Town of Sunset Beach, NC | date=October 1, 2010 | url=https://sunsetbeachnc.gov/history | access-date=December 29, 2023}}</ref> Sunset Beach was later incorporated as a town in 1963.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=lNpOAAAAIBAJ&sjid=oh4EAAAAIBAJ&pg=2920%2C5053305 | title=Sunset Beach | work=Star-News | date=May 24, 1998 | access-date=November 1, 2015 | pages=28}}</ref>

On February 15, 2021, an [[February 13–17, 2021 North American winter storm#Sunset Beach–Delco, North Carolina|EF3 tornado]] hit the north side of town around midnight, damaging multiple homes in several neighborhoods, including some that were completely destroyed. Three people were killed and 10 others were injured.<ref>{{cite report|title=Storm Events Database February 15, 2021|url=https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=945569|publisher=National Centers for Environmental Information|access-date=May 28, 2021}}</ref><ref name="deadly tornado">{{cite news|url=https://www.newsobserver.com/news/weather-news/article249338225.html|title=Deadly tornado carved 22-mile path of destruction in NC.|author=Hayley Fowler|work=The News & Observer|date=February 19, 2021|accessdate=March 7, 2022}}</ref>