MEARS, Mich. (AP) — Sand dunes that make a western Michigan tourist destination so popular are threatening to take over multiple cottages.

The Muskegon Chronicle reports that an 80-foot-tall (24 meters) dune in the Silver Lake area has already moved close and cast a shadow on a landmark cottage along Lake Michigan. The dune is part of nearly 2,000 acres (809 hectares) of sand dunes in the area.

The dune still contains pieces of a separate cottage that it consumed in April.

Cottage owners have teamed up in hopes of halting the dune before it swallows up any more cottages. Financial- and service-based resources are pooled to remove the leading edge of the dune now on one of the owner’s property.

Dune expert Alan Arbogast says wind direction contributes to sand dune movements.