Fire Devastates NC Island Community

Nov. 21, 2021
The only way for firefighters to access the wind-driven fire that gutted several homes on Bald Head Island was by ferry.

Multiple homes were destroyed in a massive fire on Bald Head Island in North Carolina.

The Village of Bald Head Island said crews were dispatched around 8:56 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 20, to a structure fire in the Lighthouse Landing area. A “strong north wind” caused the fire to spread quickly to nearby structures.

At least five homes were “fully involved” as of Saturday night, the Southport Fire Department, which also responded to the scene, wrote on Facebook. The department said it had 14 firefighters on the scene.

”In total, there was a loss of three units in Lighthouse Landing and one home and crofter on North Bald Head Wynd,” the Village of Bald Head Island wrote in an update the morning of Sunday, Nov. 21.

The village said no deaths or injuries have been reported.

The fire was partially contained by 9:45 p.m. and fully contained around 1 a.m., the village said. A fireguard has stayed on the scene through the morning “to monitor the area to quickly suppress rekindling.”

Officials have not said what caused the fire.

“The fire marshal is expected to begin the investigation into the cause of the fire later this morning,” they said.

No other information had been released as of the morning of Sunday, Nov. 21.

Bald Head Island is off the coast of Southport, which is in southeastern North Carolina, about 160 miles from Raleigh.

©2021 The Charlotte Observer. Visit charlotteobserver.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

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