Brunswick County, NC Outdoor Cooking: Smoker Rules (2026)

4, the 'Use of open flame cooking device' provision, as part of the county's adoption of the North Carolina State Building Code: Fire Prevention Code under Section 1-9-288. The penalty applies inside unincorporated Brunswick County, meaning smokers and open-flame cookers in Leland, Southport, Oak Island, Shallotte, Holden Beach, Ocean Isle Beach, Sunset Beach, Calabash or Boiling Spring Lakes fall under each town's own fire code instead. 4 is marked 'Immediate' on the penalty table, the fire code official can write the ticket on the spot and require the violation corrected immediately rather than waiting on a standard notice period.

Under Section 1-9-421's general civil-penalty procedure, an offender who does not pay within thirty days after the notice of violation is served can be pursued in a civil action for the debt, and each day a violation continues counts as a separate offense. 00 fine for failing to obtain a required fire permit, showing the open-flame charge sits on the low end of the county's fire penalty scale.