It seems that all the media do it this time of year ? the top 10 news stories of the year, the top 10 singers, actors, or athletes of the year or the decade or whatever. So I thought I would close out the year with what I think were the top 10 stories on […]
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Merry Christmas from the weary and wet Island Free Press staff
?Twas the weekend before Christmas, and all though our land,The wind was blowing and kicking up sand. The ocean was frightful, and the waves surged to shore,Bringing sand and water on the highway once more. The wind, it shifted from the east to the west,And the tide started rising, ending many a fest. Sorry, Island […]
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Northeasters in north Rodanthe: A retrospective, starring Serendipity, WITH A SLIDE SHOW
Island Free Press photographer Don Bowers has been photographing the wrath of storms on Hatteras Island for a long time now. And he has a particularly large collection of photos from the last three years? worth of significant northeasters at Mirlo Beach in Rodanthe and the S-curves. In fact, he?s been photographing the storms since […]
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Are there any lessons for Cape Hatteras in a stakeholder clash at another national seashore?
Across the continent, on the Pacific Ocean, there is a national seashore that is grappling with issues similar to those that face the Cape Hatteras National Seashore. That would be the Point Reyes National Seashore on the California coast north of San Francisco. A friend and Free Press reader sent me an article last month […]
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Soundside Surprises: What’s with the no-advance-warning Pamlico Sound flooding?
Twice in November, Hatteras and Ocracoke islands had coastal flooding from the Pamlico Sound. And both events caught our local National Weather Service forecasters in Newport, N.C., by surprise. Now it seems possible that both of the flood tides might be connected to higher than normal tides that have been observed up and down the […]
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ORV rulemaking is falling further behind schedule
The National Park Service is not going to meet its self-imposed deadline of releasing a Draft Environmental Impact Statement and identifying a preferred alternative for managing off-road vehicle operation on the Cape Hatteras National Seashore this fall. ?It?s likely to be available no earlier than late December or early January,? Seashore Superintendent Mike Murray said […]
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SELC and friends jump on damaged highway to push again for long bridge
It didn?t take long for the environmental groups to weigh in on the coastal storm damage to Highway 12 at Rodanthe. Here are the headlines from yesterday?s media release from the Southern Environmental Law Center and five other groups: Groups Call on N.C. to Build Safer Route after Sea Reclaims Outer Banks HighwayLonger Bridge Option […]
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Yet another update on replacing the aging Bonner Bridge
The timetable for getting the construction of a new Bonner Bridge underway has slipped back in time again, though Jim Trogdon, North Carolina Department of Transportation chief operating officer, says the bridge is still scheduled to be completed in 2014. Two weeks ago, Trogdon said in an interview that he expected a Record of Decision […]
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Battered by the recession and beach closures, island businesses need your support this holiday season
If ever there was a year to do your holiday shopping on Hatteras and Ocracoke, this is it. It?s been a tough year for many ? but not all ? island businesses. And they sure could use your support as you shop for Christmas gifts for friends and family. A slowdown in construction, real estate, […]
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An update on the never-ending saga of replacing the Bonner Bridge
Dare County officials were expecting a record of decision ? the final step before contracts are put out for bid ? on the $300 million Bonner Bridge replacement by the end of October. That did not happen. And, according to Jim Trogdon, chief operating officer for the North Carolina Department of Transportation, the earliest that […]
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