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At 8 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2022, multiple 911 calls to Dare Central sent the Chicamacomico Banks volunteer firefighters to Duck Village Outfitters on NC 12 in Salvo.

When the first ladder truck arrived, firefighters encountered heavy fire at the back of the building at 26889 NC 12. The fire extended into the interior of the building.

Firefighters searched the building but found no people. A cat was later found alive and uninjured. Some 15 firefighters from both Chicamacomico stations responded to the fire call. No firefighter injuries were reported.

Avon volunteer firefighters responded with mutual aid.

Dare County Sheriff’s Office deputies handled traffic control and an Emergency Medical Services crew carefully watched firefighters.

At the time of the fire, the temperature was 84 degrees with a southwest wind at 28 miles per hour. That wind sent embers flying into stored kayaks.

The volunteer firefighters left the scene around 1 a.m.

The four people who lived at the store and two employees were not harmed. However, “the residents have lost everything they had, and have nowhere to live, and the employees who have families to support need help,” states a GoFundMe account.

The account set up by Emily Masters is titled “Please help! Locals lost everything in fire.”

A donation box has also been placed in the Rodanthe-Waves-Salvo Post Office.

Duck Village Outfitters is owned by Robert E. Hovey and Tanya Leigh Hovey. The interior of the building sustained smoke and water damage.

The cause of the fire was not available as of Friday morning; the investigation is ongoing.

The volunteers at Chicamacomico Banks Volunteer Fire and Rescue Department meet on Monday nights at 7 p.m. for training at either the Rodanthe or the Salvo Stations. The volunteers at Avon Volunteer Fire Department also meet on Monday nights at 7 p.m. The Avon station is on Harbor Road.

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