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Southern Bank customers who go to the Aurora branch for financial services will be re-directed to the New Bern branch this spring.

In a letter sent to customers of the Aurora branch last week, Southern Bank states that branch operations will close and consolidate into the New Bern office starting at noon on Friday April 18. The consolidation will have “no effect” on customers’ accounts with Southern Bank and account numbers will remain the same, the bank said.

Southern Bank was the only bank in Aurora. Customers will now have to travel approximately 30 miles, or 40 minutes for the nearest branch location.

Customers who placed items in a safe deposit box need to retrieve those items by Friday, April 4 by close of business. Those items, the bank said, can be placed in a box at their other branches in either Ayden, Belhaven, Greenville-Charles or Greenville-Medical Park.

Southern Bank will waive the Safe Deposit Box rental fee for the first year for customers who have safe deposit boxes at the Aurora location that wish to open a box at one of the other locations prior to Friday, April 25, 2025.