Dare County opens EMS Station 9 in Kitty Hawk to boost northern emergency coverage

Dare County on Aug. 2025 held a ribbon‑cutting for the new Kitty Hawk EMS Station 9, a purpose‑built addition to the county’s emergency medical services intended to improve response times and expand coverage in the northern portion of the county.

Chief Janet Collins, chief of the Dare County EMS department, described Station 9 as “a new addition to the system,” and said the county divides its service area into three districts to position resources strategically. Collins said District 1, which covers the county’s northern boundary with Currituck County and runs south through the Kitty Hawk area, is the county’s busiest: she cited a figure that “47% of our total incident or 9‑1‑1 volume was in District 1,” and said the new station’s response zone would have covered about 29% of that call volume if it had been in place last year.

The station is part of a multi‑phase program to modernize and expand EMS facilities across Dare County. Bob Woodard, chairman of the Dare County Board of Commissioners, said the project sequence already has produced several reconstructed stations and the DARE Med flight hangar at Station 7, and that the board has committed substantial funding to complete remaining stations. “I said this board has stepped up to the plate to the tune of $90,000,000,” Woodard said, referring to the county’s planned investment to finish the planned station work.

County and town officials emphasized partnership on the project. Woodard thanked the Town of Kitty Hawk for providing the land and for working with the county to make the facility possible. The new Station 9 includes space designed for staff wellness and safety and an apparatus bay shared with the Kitty Hawk Fire Department to allow coordinated responses and asset relocation during storms and flooding, officials said. Collins said the station will be “ergonomic and comfortable” for staff and will support operational needs including deployment during severe weather.

Officials named contractors and design partners who worked on the project, including Barnhill Construction Company and Oakley Collier Architects. Woodard and Collins described the new facilities as improving recruitment and readiness for first responders and asked attendees to thank EMS personnel for their service.

No formal votes or policy actions were taken at the event; it was a ceremonial opening and remarks by county and town officials.