After the storm

Published 7:37 am Saturday, May 14, 2022

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It takes a team of four volunteers to move this beam. Cape Hatteras National Seashore appealed for volunteers to help in mornings and afternoons on May 12 and 13 to stack house debris in piles for pickup. The cleanup continues on Saturday, May 14 and Sunday, May 15 at 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. and 2 to 4 p.m. Pick up supplies and receive instructions at the Outer Banks KOA in Rodanthe. Mary Helen Goodloe-Murphy photo

Debris from two houses that crashed into the Atlantic Ocean on May 10 is picked up by volunteers on May 12. Some 40 volunteers showed up at 9:30 a.m. to begin the arduous task of collecting debris from the Cape Hatteras National Seashore beaches. The volunteers started north and south of the Outer Banks KOA in Rodanthe. Mary Helen Goodloe-Murphy photo

The wind was really blowing at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday afternoon. Dare County Water department workers were wrapping up a repair job on the water main break between Buxton and Avon. The water main broke about midnight. NCDOT helped distribution workers, contractor dewatering staff and equipment get through Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge early Wednesday morning. Next fiscal year, Dare’s water department will replace one mile of the water main at a cost of $1 million. Mary Helen Goodloe-Murphy photo

At 10 a.m. on Thursday morning, vehicles were in line for the opening of NC 12 between Rodanthe and Oregon Inlet Bridge. The line grew even longer as NCDOT announced a noontime opening around 11 a.m. The long line started moving around 12:15 p.m. and finished around 1 p.m. An ambulance came through with lights and siren. Traffic both coming and going shifted to the roadsides to allow the ambulance through. Mary Helen Goodloe-Murphy photo

On Tuesday, May 10, 2022 at around 1 p.m., a four bedroom house on this lot crashed into the Atlantic Ocean and floated a little while. On May 12, the beach was almost wiped clean. Mary Helen Goodloe-Murphy photo

Workers with W.M. Dunn Construction from Powells Point stacked debris in piles on South Shore Drive. The contractor also worked the February 9 debris cleanup. One house on South Shore Drive has been tagged as unlivable by Dare County. The house does not have a septic system. Mary Helen Goodloe-Murphy photo

Debris from two houses was washed far up the shoreline by the May’s nor’easter. Mary Helen Goodloe-Murphy photo

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A powerful low pressure system visited the Outer Banks area – with particular impact to Hatteras Island – over the course of several days beginning May 8. The storm sent two oceanfront houses in Rodanthe into the Atlantic Ocean and closed NC 12 between Rodanthe and Oregon Inlet.

Hatteras Island’s main street, NC 12, was shut down at 4 a.m. on Tuesday, May 10. NCDOT worked numerous high tides. The storm wiped out all the work done during the day Tuesday, May 10. Traveler safety could not be guaranteed so the road stayed closed. Wednesday’s nighttime high tide was less damaging. The road was reopened at noon Thursday, May 12.

But that’s not the end of the work for the crew from NCDOT’s Manteo shop.

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The dunes and berms need to be strengthened. A contractor will build a dune at the Pea Island Visitor Center. The still-standing dunes need to be pushed back away from the road to create a buffer. And the crew needs to push sand off the state’s secondary roads in Rodanthe, Waves, Salvo and Avon.

This storm sent two houses into the Atlantic Ocean. The powerful ocean pushed that house debris southward. Some is along the shoreline. Other has been pushed up onto private property.

Cape Hatteras National Seashore staff sounded an invitation for volunteers to help clear the beaches. Some 40 people showed up at 9:30 a.m. Thursday morning, the first of four session scheduled.

Contractor W.M. Dunn from Powells Point has been hired by both property owners for cleanup.

The beach cleanup sponsored by the national seashore is now extended to Saturday and Sunday, May 14 and May 15. Meet at the Outer Banks KOA in Rodanthe for supplies and instructions. The location within the campground is at the ramp to the beach. The sessions are 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. and 2 to 4 p.m. both days.

The National Weather Service extended a Coastal Flood Advisory to 8 a.m. on Friday, May 13, 2022.

The High Surf and Beach Hazard advisories rolled off at 8 p.m. May 12.

NC 12 and the state’s ferry service reopened on the same day.

Ferry service to Ocracoke from Hatteras was suspended Sunday, May 8 due to rough seas and high winds brought by the low pressure system. The schedule for announced for daytime Thursday, May 12 was leaving Hatteras at the top of the hour and leaving Ocracoke at the bottom of the hour.

On Thursday, Ocracoke’s baseball team made it on one of those ferries. The team is playing in the first round of the North Carolina High School Athletic Association state playoffs against Roxboro Community School.

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