CHARLOTTE, N.C. _ Emergency crews were bringing food and fresh water to Ocracoke on Saturday, after Hurricane Dorian left the island isolated, without safe drinking water, electricity or ferry service.
Hyde County, which includes Ocracoke, was using a ferry to bring generators, water and enough food for 1,100 people, according to a Facebook post.
The N.C. 12 highway, which links most of the Outer Banks barrier islands, was heavily damaged during when the storm made landfall Friday at Cape Hatteras, state officials said. NCDOT posted photos on Facebook showing the pavement was warped and crumbled on Ocracoke.
"There are two 500-foot sections of road (on Ocracoke) in this condition," NCDOT said. "Obviously, these will take some serious repair work."
Repairs to N.C. 12 were to begin Saturday, according to transportation officials. Ferry travel to the islands was also scheduled to restart Saturday, NCDOT said in a tweet.
State officials did not say when the highway would reopen on the island, telling The Weather Channel it was "a work in progress."
Hurricane Dorian made landfall at 8:35 a.m. Friday, with 90 mph sustained winds and storm surge 7 feet above normal.
The storm trapped hundreds of people on Ocracoke, which saw "severe sound side flooding." Such flooding occurs when water pulled from the sound during a storm rushes back as the storm passes, experts say.
In addition to Ocracoke Island (which relies on ferries to reach nearby islands), access to Hatteras Island "remains closed until further notice," Dare County officials said Saturday. "This includes all areas south of Oregon Inlet including the villages of Rodanthe, Waves, Salvo, Avon, Buxton, Frisco, and Hatteras Village," county officials said in a press release.
Dare County officials reported Saturday that standing water, tree limbs, debris and dangling power lines remain hazards on the northern sections of the Outer Banks and other coastal areas within the county.
Several dunes were reportedly breached along N.C. 12 during the storm, allowing water and sand to cover areas of the highway between the Basnight Bridge and Hatteras Island, NCDOT said on Facebook.
Although Hurricane Dorian wreaked less havoc on Hatteras, officials said travel on N.C. 12 on the island "is hazardous."
Much of the Outer Banks' chain of barrier islands remained without power on Saturday, including 4,000 sites on Ocracoke, 16,000 at Hatteras and 16,000 at Kitty Hawk.
North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper called for a mandatory evacuation of the barrier islands before the storm, but some people stayed behind. An estimated 800 people were on Ocracoke when flooding began, state officials said.
On Saturday, search and rescue teams went house to house to check on people on Ocracoke, according to a statement released by Cooper's office.
On Friday, Hyde County officials said they were sending "air transportation units to help evacuate residents that need to leave" Ocracoke Island, including seniors and people with medical needs. Air evacuation service was to remain available until a ferry was up and running again to the island, officials said.
As of Saturday morning, first responders evacuated 32 people from the Outer Banks by ground, Cooper's statement said.
Dare County, which includes much of the Outer Banks, posted late Friday on Facebook that a mandatory evacuation "remains in place due to hazardous conditions, including downed power lines and trees, impassable roadways and widespread power outages."
"Water service to Hatteras Village has been turned off due to a leak that cannot be found and repaired due to flooding," Dare officials posted.
"Crews are standing by and once the water recedes, repairs will be made and a water pressure advisory will be issued with a recommendation to boil water."
Residents who live north of Oregon Inlet will be allowed back on the islands at noon Saturday, as will "essential personnel for critical businesses."
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