Swansboro, North Carolina Bed & Breakfast Goes Up in Flames on Easter Sunday

At about 5 AM, Easter Sunday, April 11, 2004, the Swansboro, North Carolina Fire Department was called, along with Bear Creek, Hubert, and West Carteret Fire Departments, to a report of a house fire.

Don Askew, the first chief on the scene, reported fire though the roof. The structure was a 3000+ sq. ft. bed and breakfast. No guests occupied the building at the time of the fire.

Early in the battle with the blaze, the responding units discovered the facility contained a large quantity of ammunitions. The shells were exploding at a rate that sounded much like machine gun fire. Expired casings were found all over the scene. Several firefighters reported being struck.

The last fire department left the scene at about 1 PM.

The facility contained an entire collection of historical documents chronicling the local history. The house was a total loss. The cause is under investigation by the county fire marshal.