A fire caused unknown internal damage to the Cape Hatteras National Seashore’s Bodie Island Double Keepers’ Quarters in Nags Head on Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. That building is pictured next to the fire engine from Roanoke Island Volunteer Fire Department. (Photo courtesy National Parks Service)
By Corinne Saunders
NAGS HEAD — No injuries were reported in a Tuesday afternoon fire that took place around noon at the Cape Hatteras National Seashore’s Bodie Island Double Keepers’ Quarters in Nags Head.
The building will remain closed indefinitely to allow for the investigation and for any needed repairs to occur, according to a National Parks Service press release sent around 2 p.m.
Built in 1872 and located next to Bodie Island Lighthouse, the building once housed the lighthouse’s keepers, or caretakers, according to online National Park Service information.
Staff from Eastern National—the building’s retail store operator—observed smoke and called 911 around 12 p.m., and all occupants safely exited the building, the release said.
The building did not burn to the ground, but it suffered an unknown amount of internal damage.
“Cape Hatteras National Seashore is evaluating the internal damage to the structure,” the release said. “Cape Hatteras National Seashore is working with the Nags Head Fire Department to
investigate the incident.”
The Nags Head Fire Department, upon its arrival, reported seeing smoke coming from the building’s four chimneys, according to the release.
The Roanoke Island Volunteer Fire Department, Kill Devil Hills Fire Department, Colington Fire Department and Dare County Emergency Medical Services also responded to the incident, the release said.
“Cape Hatteras National Seashore is grateful for the timely response to this afternoon’s fire by
multiple local fire departments,” David Hallac, National Parks of Eastern North Carolina superintendent, said in the release. “Their efforts minimized damages to this historic structure.”
When asked by email if there was a preliminary idea of what caused the fire, a National Parks Service spokesperson told Outer Banks Insider, “We do not want to get out in front of the investigation.”
This was the third fire in Dare County in less than a week.
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