This Land, Your Land

Ocracoke Island, home to part of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore including its Ocracoke Campground, will reopen to visitors at 5 p.m. today, Hyde County officials have announced.

The island will be accessible via the Cedar Island and Swan Quarter ferries.

At last word, beaches were open but national park facilities on Ocracoke Island remain closed.

WITN reports that N.C. 12 is open and clear from the village on Ocracoke north to the Hatteras Ferry docks. Hatteras Island north to Oregon Inlet remains closed to visitors.

Hyde County officials warned that "big swells and deadly rip currents are expected Wednesday and Thursday from Hurricane Katia, though she will stay hundreds of miles offshore," WITN in Washington said. "Officials also ask people to be respectful of roadside crews working to clear debris from Hurricane Irene."

Authorities are looking for people who know about the death of a nesting female loggerhead turtle that was hit and killed by an vehicle on the beach at Ocracoke Island last Friday night. The National Park Service says it's the first time a nesting sea turtle has been killed by an ORV at Cape Hatteras National Seashore.

(Note: there's a photo of the dead turtle at the first link above. It's not pretty.)

The turtle had crawled out of the ocean and attempted to lay a nest between Ramps 70 and 72. The turtle was hit by an off-road vehicle and dragged approximately 12 feet, causing fatal injuries.

The vehicle that struck and killed the turtle is likely to have been a four-wheel drive sport utility vehicle or pick-up truck, the Park Service says.

Vehicles are prohibited on the beach from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. during turtle nesting season. Loggerhead turtles are protected under the Endangered Species Act.

If you know anything about this incident, call the Dare Community Crime Line at 252-473-3111.