Ocean Isle Beach residents in disbelief over destruction caused by fire during hurricane

As they clean up after Hurricane Isaias, Ocean Isle Beach residents are still stunned at the damage caused by the Category 1 storm as it made landfall in their community.

Some of the worst damage was caused by a fire that started at the height of the storm. The wind-driven flames wound up destroying nine homes on the island.

"It's horrific. It's devastating," resident Lisa Westbrooks said Wednesday as she looked at the ruins of a house across the street from the home her parents have owned for three decades.

"I’ve never seen anything like it. One home is one and it's anybody’s home, but this many homes and so many special memories here," Westbrooks said.

Residents said a an electrical transformer exploded during the hurricane, sparking the fires.

As fast-moving flames ravaged one home after another early Tuesday, witnesses said, fire crews were unable make it through flood waters in time.

Some residents said they tried to fight the fires themselves, using garden hoses to spray embers and keep the fire from spreading.

By the time firefighters arrived, it was too late to save a cluster of homes on Driftwood Street, but they were able to save other nearby homes.

"You see a piece of furniture ... but its charred," Westbrooks said. "It's stuff that you can replace, but there's still some treasured stuff there, too."

On the eastern end of Ocean Isle Beach, the storm surge from Isaias caused the most damage to roads and homes.

"This is actually the worst flood that Ocean Isle has ever seen, I think, in history," resident Scott Hamilton said.

"Water’s usually the most damaging, the most dangerous [from hurricanes]," resident Ray Joyner said. "My neighbor said it was worse than [Hurricane] Matthew."

Despite the damage from flames, water and wind, there were no serious injuries on Ocean Isle Beach from the hurricane.

"We can rebuild," Westbrooks said. "Everybody's safe, so that's a great thing."

Residents and contractors are the only people being allowed onto the island right now to begin repairing the storm damage. A curfew that had been in place since the storm was lifted on Wednesday.