Photos from the north end of Ocracoke are disheartening. The area that was damaged in Hurricane Dorian was almost repaired, with an expected road opening date on November 22nd.
Ocracoke's county commissioner, Tom Pahl, confirmed there was overwash. He texted the Current's staff writer Crystal Canterbury:
"I do not have the technical expertise to assess the damage. There are four places where the dune was knocked down and those areas will likely have to be repaired before the paving work can go forward. I expect that there will be meetings on site with DOT Engineers and the contractor doing the work. We can’t know the impact of this event until they meet and assess the situation."
The breaches are located in the same area that was being repaired. The part of 12 that was being used as a 4WD-only detour access route to the Ocracoke-Hatteras ferry is currently underwater.
Via Twitter, Monday morning: This a.m., NCDOT resumes operations on 4 ferry routes: Ocracoke-Swan Quarter, Ocracoke-Cedar Island, Aurora-Bayview, & Cherry Branch-Minnesott Beach. Ops still suspended on Currituck-Knotts Island and Hatteras-Ocracoke-Silver Lake ferries. Southport-to-Fort Fisher resumed Sunday.
Meanwhile, in other parts of NC: (Sunday afternoon):
UPDATE: Monday, November 18Th:
N.C. 12 Remains Closed Due to Unsafe Travel ConditionsOfficials are working hard, but are not sure when the road will be safe to reopen<
RALEIGH – N.C. 12 is still closed as sections of the Outer Banks road are covered with sand and water due to dune breaches and ocean overwash.
Conditions remain poor on N.C. 12 and ocean overwash is continuing to inundate the road with water. N.C. Department of Transportation crews are assessing impacts and continuing to clear the road of sand caused by dune breaches between Rodanthe and Oregon Inlet.
Officials are not sure when it will be safe to reopen N.C. 12. The last winds from this weekend’s strong storm are forecast to exit the coast later today.
NCDOT will continue to provide updates on N.C. 12 as new information is available.
For real-time travel information, visit DriveNC.gov or follow NCDOT on social media.
Sunday, Nove,ber 17th: N.C. 12 Still Closed on Hatteras Island Due to Poor Travel Conditions
State transportation officials will announce when it’s safe to reopen
RALEIGH – N.C. 12 is still closed between the Marc Basnight Bridge and Rodanthe and will only be reopened when state transportation officials determine it is safe to do so.
The N.C. Department of Transportation officials closed the road on Hatteras Island at 5 p.m. Saturday.
NCDOT officials have been assessing N.C. 12 Sunday morning and have not seen any structural damage to the road, but say N.C. 12 experienced some flooding overwash and wind-blown sand overnight. Sand is covering the road at several locations between Oregon Inlet and Rodanthe, with additional overwash experienced at Avon and Buxton. Conditions remain poor and additional overwash is expected at high tide later this morning and tonight.
A strong storm bringing heavy rain and sustained winds up to 45 mph has made travel unsafe on parts of the Outer Banks and coastal North Carolina. Some sound-side areas of North Carolina, including Cedar Island, have experienced flooding overnight. The storm is expected to exit this coast later Sunday into Monday.
For real-time travel information, visit DriveNC.gov or follow NCDOT on social media.