Ocracoke non-resident property owners, workers will need to apply for access to island

On March 23, 2020 the Hyde County Board of Commissioners amended the State of Emergency Order restricting access to Ocracoke. To limit the spread of COVID-19 as much as possible, while still allowing for rebuilding efforts to continue, non-resident property owners that are not actively working on critical repairs of their homes or businesses are no longer being permitted entry to Ocracoke. If you are a contractor working on Ocracoke properties, you will still be permitted to access. If you can wait to work on your property, please do!

Moving forward, these two classes of people, workers and non-resident property owners, will need to submit an online application to be issued a temporary permit to access the island.  If you are a non-resident property owner and are not actively working on rebuilding efforts, you will be denied a permit. If you meet the above criteria, you can fill out an application here http://www.hydecountync.gov/ocracoke-covid. You can also visit this page for updated information on Ocracoke entry throughout the COVID-19 crisis.

Ocracoke entry will be restricted to the following priorities:

PRIORITY I

• Hyde County/State Requested Resources
• Hyde County Emergency Personnel
• Medical/Clinic
• National Park Service
• Hyde County Employees
• Hyde County School System Employees/Staff
• Code Enforcement Officers/Inspectors
• Department of Transportation
• Power Company
• Hyde County Debris Removal Contractors or Subcontractors
• Hyde County Debris Monitoring Contractor
• Sanitation/Garbage Disposal
• Mail and Parcel Delivery

PRIORITY II

• Insurance Adjusters
• Contractors
• Distributors/Suppliers/Vendors
• Volunteers

PRIORITY III

• Ocracoke Residents
• Ocracoke Business Owners and Employees
• Ocracoke Temporary Entry Certificate Holders

All contractors, insurance adjusters, and state missions will be validated by Hyde County and a temporary pass will be issued. A list of passes issued will be provided to NCDOT Ferry Division on a continual basis.

Individuals seeking entry must have the appropriate Hyde County issued re-entry tag or a valid North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) Ferry Division issued priority pass.  Expired Hyde County re-entry tags will be honored as an acceptable means of establishing priority for this event. The Hyde County re-entry tag colors now allowed access are as follows:

1. Emergency Personnel (Red)
2. Infrastructure (Yellow)
3. Resident (Green)

If a commuter fails to produce the aforementioned credentials, they will be required to show evidence of residency in Hyde County or hold a temporary re-entry pass issued by Hyde County.