Cape Hatteras sees record-breaking cold temp Monday, Outer Banks has localized snow and ice, 1,700 Dominion customers lose power

Chunks and sheets of ice are seen in Kitty Hawk Bay, part of the Albemarle Sound, in Kitty Hawk the morning of Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025. (Photo by Corinne Saunders)

By Corinne Saunders

Editor’s Note: Strong local journalism directly impacts your quality of life. You’re busy, and attempting to stay on top of all the important issues that affect you and your community can be taxing. We are here to stand watch for you, making sure you stay informed about what’s happening in our area, all while providing an advertisement-free, easy-on-the-eyes platform, for less than the cost of a bag of chips a month.

Subscribe today!

Cape Hatteras recorded a record-breaking low temperature Monday as an Arctic front that prompted a cold weather advisory across all of eastern North Carolina from Sunday night through Monday morning brought localized snow and ice.

Cape Hatteras’ record low temperature of 23 degrees Fahrenheit on Monday broke the prior Dec. 15 record low of 25 degrees that was set in 1978, according to the U.S. National Weather Service at Newport/Morehead City.

Sunday night’s light snow over places including mainland Hyde County, Columbia, Ocracoke Island and Hatteras Island was caused by the disturbance moving through and was not sound-effect snow, according to the U.S. National Weather Service at Newport/Morehead City, which explained this analysis in a video.

Meanwhile, 1,700 Dominion Energy customers across the Outer Banks—most of whom were either in Carova or in Wanchese—lost power for various amounts of time, up to a day, according to a Dominion Energy spokesperson.

“An equipment failure caused outages for about 1,700 customers, and our crews are still assessing why the equipment failed,” spokesperson Cherise M. Newsome said in a Tuesday email.

“Outages began late Sunday night and into Monday morning,” Newsome continued. “Most were restored by Monday afternoon, with our crews working through the night to restore the remaining 300 customers in Carova around 8 a.m. today.”

At 10:40 a.m. Monday, 375 customers in Wanchese, four in Grandy, 26 in Kill Devil Hills and 526 in an area including Carova and across the Virginia state line were without power, according to Outer Banks Insider’s check of the Dominion outage map.

As of 1:40 p.m. Monday, customers without power included 380 in Wanchese, one in Manteo, four in Grandy, seven in Kill Devil Hills and 491 in Carova and Virginia, the outage map showed.

Around 10 p.m. Monday, the outage map showed 380 Wanchese customers without power, along with four in Grandy and 126 in Carova Beach.

“During winter months, we understand customers use heating systems more frequently to keep their families warm,” Newsome said; “So our crews work around the clock.”

Dominion Energy encourages customers to report any outage and track their restoration status through the Dominion Energy app or through the company’s online outage map, she said.

The Richmond, Virginia-based company’s service territory includes most of Currituck County and the northeastern part of Dare County, according to its service area map.

Dominion Energy serves over 127,000 electric customers in a territory covering about 2,600 square miles over 21 counties of northeastern North Carolina, Newsome previously told Outer Banks Insider.

“Adjusting your home’s thermostat a few degrees at a time can reduce your heating system’s workload,” Newsome added. “And if you experience an outage and use a generator, please ensure it is operating properly to prevent any safety hazards.”

Low temperatures remained below freezing across the area on Tuesday morning, with the U.S. National Weather Service at Newport/Morehead City recording 29 degrees in Rodanthe and 17 degrees at the Dare Bombing Range. Temperatures rose to the low 40s around midday Tuesday, and the forecast shows temperatures above freezing for the rest of the week.

Watch Outer Banks Insider’s video of waves rippling under ice chunks in Kitty Hawk Bay—part of the Albemarle Sound—on Tuesday morning.

--------

Editor’s Note: It takes significant time and effort to bring you this service of trustworthy local reporting. Please encourage others in your circle to subscribe to access all our in-depth, exclusive work, and to sustain independent local news in the area we love. News organizations interested in syndicating this or other Outer Banks Insider articles should contact us for details. 

Subscribe today!