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Hyde County has extended its countywide stay-at-home order to May 22, two weeks beyond the date set for the statewide stay-at-home order to expire. County government has also set a date of May 11 for non-resident property owners to return to their properties on Ocracoke.

“After careful consideration of all the data available to the county and public health officials, Hyde County, in consultation with key stakeholders and local health providers, is beginning to implement plans to gradually relax the current restrictions while still protecting the safety of our community,” reads a press release from Hyde County. “The first step in this process is to begin allowing Ocracoke non-resident property owners back to the island. The success of this process will greatly depend on everyone continuing to adhere to the social distancing guidelines and stay-at-home order.”

In choosing May 22 as the date to lift the local stay-at-home order, Hyde County Public Information Office Donnie Shumate said Hyde County government officials consulted with other counties in the area and determined that May 8 was too early to lift local restrictions. Dare County has also set May 22 as the date when its local stay-at-home order will be lifted.

“We spoke with all our surrounding counties in trying to coordinate our mitigation efforts,” Shumate said. “The consensus was the governor’s date was too early.”

Hyde County initially implemented visitor restrictions to Ocracoke on March 19, limiting travel to the island to essential service providers, property owners and Dare County residents.

A week later, the Hyde County Board of Commissioners amended those guidelines, requiring a reentry application for workers and non-resident property owners, limiting entry to those who were working on repairs and rebuilding efforts. On March 30, the county began restricting entry to mainland Hyde County for non-resident property owners and visitors.

Shumate said a total of 284 people applied to reenter the county after that announcement was made, with 200 of those applications coming the first weekend.

“The applications have died down drastically,” Shumate said.

Starting May 11, non-resident property owners will be able to use their permanent Ocracoke re-entry tags to gain access to the island. There will be no additional application process to enter, but the county encourages non-resident property owners to bring their own supplies to sustain themselves in their homes as much as possible, including groceries, medication, paper products and other essentials.

The following restrictions will also remain in place for Hyde County:

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Hyde County’s stay-at-home order has been extended to May 22.

If you are sick, stay home.

Mass gatherings are limited to 10 or fewer individuals.

Travel should only be for essential needs.

Only have direct contact with members of your immediate household.

All essential retailers must adhere to the Governor’s Executive Order 131 and comply with restrictions on the number of individuals allowed entry based on square footage of space.

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Residents are also strongly encouraged to wear masks when in public.

“Decisions regarding visitor access to Hyde County will be addressed at a future date to allow for the monitoring of resource availability and the county’s ability to conduct testing and contact tracing as necessary,” the county release concluded. “County officials will continue to meet regularly to review the effectiveness of our mitigation efforts. The health and wellbeing of our community will continue to be the top priority as we move forward.”

For more information on Hyde County reentry guidelines, visit www.hydecountync.gov.