Originally, Colington Fire Department was a district of the Kitty Hawk Volunteer Fire Department, which at that time responded to fires in the villages of Duck, Southern Shores, Kitty Hawk and Colington. This was quite a broad geographical area to cover, so in 1971, a station was built to meet the needs of the growing number of residents in Colington. In 1981, due to tremendous growth in the community, the Colington Volunteer Fire Department was formed and a state charter was granted in 1982.
Since that time, what was once a small, dedicated group of individuals with minimal equipment is now a combination Fire Rescue agency employing 9 full time staff and over 25 volunteers with modern apparatus and equipment.
A Board of Directors protects the financial interests of the department, in cooperation with Dare County. The CVFD is quite busy. Our base is made up of a strong group of volunteer and career personnel protecting the most populated unincorporated area in the county. As of the 2014 census, Colington had a population of 4,179 residents.