KILL DEVIL HILLS, N.C. — A large fire left several townhomes in the Colington area of the Outer Banks damaged Thursday afternoon, but no one was hurt.
The fire happened in the 100 block of Colington Pointe Drive. Fire crews from Colington, Kill Devil Hills and Nags Head fire departments responded shortly after 4 p.m. after dispatchers got several calls reporting heavy smoke, seen as far away as Kitty Hawk.
Colington Volunteer Fire Department Chief Glenn Rainey said no one was home at the unit where the fire is believed to have started.
He and his crews, along with members of other first-responding agencies, hustled to battle the flames. Firefighters quickly attacked as the fire spread to a neighboring unit. Crews stopped the fire from reaching the opposite end unit and limited damage to another.
Two of the townhome units suffered major damage, another had moderate damage and one other had "very minor" damage, a news release stated Friday.
Six people safely evacuated the building on their own. Seven people have been displaced due to the fire, five of which were permanent residents, Chief Rainey said. Neighbors and the Red Cross were able to offer assistance to those affected by the fire.
Crews cleared the scene around 9:30 p.m. The incident and cause remain under investigation.
Authorities from the state fire marshal's office are also stepping in to help with the ongoing investigation, Rainey said.
Rainey added he was very thankful everyone was able to escape the rapidly growing fire unharmed.
“Buildings and most belongings can be replaced," Rainey said. “The way our departments work together on every incident, especially this one, always makes me proud."
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The fire comes just weeks after a large fire on North Virginia Dare Trail in Kill Devil Hills left three people dead and three more hurt.
That incident stayed top of mind for Rainey.
“We’ve had a recent tragedy in town in Kill Devil Hills and certainly, that weighs on every firefighter’s mind. Even the general public when they see smoke, I think they will think back of that," the chief said during an exclusive interview with 13News Now on Friday.
Colington neighbors, too, thought about the fire in Kill Devil Hills. “And how there was loss of life at that fire, so I was really relieved it happened during the day when people are aware and awake," Mallori Boyce told 13News Now.
Boyce described the area on Colington Pointe Drive as a new, yet tight-knit community. She said construction on the townhomes just finished last year.
“I mean, they haven’t even been there that long. To lose your home like that is devastating," Boyce said.
“Buildings can be rebuilt. The lives were the most precious thing there," said Tracy Smith, who spoke with us virtually from his other home in Northern Virginia.
He said he especially feels for the people affected, as two condo units he owned caught fire in 2013 at Seven C's on the Outer Banks.
Boyce and Smith said they are eager to support their neighbors, in any way possible.
"If I need to be down there to move something, I will bring the truck down — if they need my place," Smith told 13News Now.
