Investigators are still working to determine what caused a Friday afternoon fire that gutted the popular Christmas Mouse shop in Nags Head, but the store’s owners say they will rebuild.
Fire marshals and insurance adjusters were still working at the scene Tuesday. Once that process is done, plans to rebuild and reopen will begin, said Rob Marshall, whose family owns eight Christmas Mouse locations in Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina.
“We’re definitely going to rebuild it,” he said Tuesday.
In the meantime, Marshall said he’s trying to keep employees from the Nags Head store working at the Duck location.
The fire, reported at 2:15 p.m. April 12, started at the back of the Christmas Mouse building at 2401 South Croatan Highway and quickly spread through much of the store, to a utility tower behind the shop, and a small thicket of mostly pine trees to the north. No one was hurt.
The Christmas Mouse is a family tradition for many locals and visitors, with families strolling through year after year, and buying ornaments for Christmas trees.
The two-story, 8,000-square-foot store featured nine rooms upstairs and four sections downstairs filled with Christmas trees, wreaths and other decor. Dare County tax database values the building at $513,400.
