From our news services
The North Carolina Department of Transportation’s Ferry Division will soon begin emergency ferry service between Stumpy Point and Rodanthe, providing a transportation link between Hatteras Island and the North Carolina mainland while a section of N.C. 12 remains closed.
N.C. 12 is currently closed between the Basnight Bridge and Rodanthe due to road damage caused by this week’s nor’easter. State transportation crews have assessed damage to N.C. 12 and will begin to construct a temporary road as soon as conditions allow.
The emergency ferry route will help move people, essential goods and services to and from Hatteras Island until the highway can be repaired and reopened. A schedule of departure times will be announced by a news release and on NCDOT’s N.C. 12 Facebook page on Sunday.
Ferries traveling from Stumpy Point to Rodanthe will operate under a priority reentry system established by Dare County’s Emergency Declaration issued on Saturday. (see below).
The declaration allows Dare County to implement access and reentry restrictions and take other measures necessary to protect public health and safety while N.C. 12 remains closed. For details on reentry stages, visit DareNC.gov/Reentry.
Visitors will not be permitted aboard ferries bound for Rodanthe at this time.
Departures from Rodanthe to Stumpy Point will operate on a first-come, first-served basis.
Travelers should not go to the Stumpy Point or Rodanthe emergency ferry terminals until NCDOT announces that service will begin.
A one-way trip between Stumpy Point and Rodanthe takes approximately two hours.
This will mark the first time the Stumpy Point-Rodanthe emergency ferry route has been placed into service since December 2013 when scour around the old Bonner Bridge forced the bridge to close for 10 days. The emergency ferry route was used during that closure to maintain a transportation connection between Hatteras Island and the mainland.
Travelers should continue to monitor official NCDOT and Dare County information for updates on ferry operations and the status of N.C. 12.
NC12 Repairs
NCDOT continues to assess the damage to N.C. Highway 12 at Pea Island and, if conditions allow, plans to begin work tomorrow (Sunday, September 27, 2026), to construct a temporary roadway.
There is currently no timeline for when road access will be restored. Until then, there remains no road access to or from Hatteras Island.
Ocracoke Update
N.C. 12 on the north end of Ocracoke remains closed. On Saturday, NCDOT began using ferries to carry heavy equipment onto Ocracoke to start clearing sand so the road can be reopened as soon as possible.
The Hatteras-Ocracoke ferry route will resume service once N.C. 12 is reopened. NCDOT also resumed ferry service on the routes between Ocracoke Village and the mainland (Cedar Island and Swan Quarter) Saturday morning.
National Park Service – Cape Hatteras National Seashore:
At Cape Hatteras National Seashore, all off-road vehicle (ORV) ramps are temporarily closed, and both Cape Point and Frisco campgrounds are closed until further notice. Additionally, swimming in the ocean is not recommended, and the beach from the northern boundary of Rodanthe to the Rodanthe Pier is closed to all public access due to multiple threatened oceanfront structures that pose safety risks. Updates on ORV access, campground operations and beach conditions will be posted at www.nps.gov/caha.
Dare Couny under state of emergency
Effective at 7 p.m. Saturday, September 26, 2026, Hatteras Island is under a State of Emergency due the loss of N.C. Highway 12 roadway access and the need to manage the movement of people, emergency personnel and essential supplies to and from the island.
The declaration allows Dare County to implement access and entry restrictions and to take other measures necessary to protect public health and safety while N.C. Highway 12 remains closed on Hatteras Island between the Marc Basnight Bridge and Rodanthe.
Under the State of Emergency, entry to Hatteras Island is restricted to Priority One and Priority Two individuals. Visitors and non-resident property owners are not permitted to enter Hatteras Island at this time. The declaration also authorizes residents of Ocracoke Island in Hyde County to travel through Hatteras Island to return to Ocracoke when ferry service resumes.
