Newspapers / The Brunswick Beacon (Shallotte, … / Dec. 8, 1994, edition 1 / Page 9
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Eye Ways To Boost Water Pressure ot SUSAN USHER While enjoying unprecedented growth in their popularity with vaca {-.oners und ycsr-round residents, South Brunswick Islands beach re sort towns are also sharing a grow ing concern about the vulnerability of their island communities to fire. During the past year, Ocean Isle Beach, Sunset Beach and Holden Beach leaders all began looking at the need to provide additional water pressure and water flow to the is lands by such means as adding wa ter storage, looping water lines for increased flow or constructing larger water mains. An early morning fire at Holden Beach on Oct. 21 that razed two oceanfront homes and scorched two others under a light northerly wind dramatically illustrated their reason for concern: What if there were a fire at mid-summer, when island population and water usage are at their peak and a strong breeze blowing along the oceanfront? Monday night at the Sunset Beach Town Council meeting at the Maples Clubhouse. Mayor Mason Barber confirmed what Town Ad ministrator Linda Fluegel said most of the town's island residents al ready suspected "We have a problem with water on the island." said Barber, appoint ing Commissioners Ed Gore and Herb Klinker and Fluegel as a com mittee to return to council with their recommendations "Especially dur ing peak times, the water pressure is not sufficient at all times." That problem "isn't disastrous, but is something that needs to be fixed before it becomes a bigger problem," consulting engineer Phil Norm of Andri* & Kuske said Tuesday After checking actual water flow this past July, the Wilmington engi neering firm ran a computer model to determine what kind of water pressure Sunset Beach would need to fight a fire when the system was at peak capacity use. "The average customer would not notice a problem." he said. "But our study has shown that during peak periods, like the Fourth of July, the pressure available is not what we would like to see. It would be mar ginal or inadequate " At Sunset Beach, as at other area beach towns, water demand increas es dramatically from winter to sum mer, as the seasonal population SGcuS. For iuSidiicc, fi out Nuvcuiuci 1993 through January 1994, Sunset Beach billed for 5.2 million gallons of water usage on the island, a quar terly calculation that jumped to 24.9 million gallons for May through July and 20.4 million for August through October. In an Oct. 31 letter Norns offered three options to consider: construct ing a new water line to the island, which is now served by a single 8 inch water main; constructing an el evated tank on the island, or con structing a ground storage tank with booster pumps. The first option could be an "environmental night mare," as well as very costly, Flue gel noted. Either of the latter two options would allow Sunset Beach to aban don its existing 200,000-gallon tank on the mainland, and would cost about the same to construct, about S 400,000 to $500,000 for the tank alone, said Fluegel. The ground-lev el tank would require more long term maintenance expense because of the pumps, but would be more aesthetically pleasing. What the added storage and pres sure would do. said Morris, "is really make that a Cadillac system." Norris said a lot of small towns would probably find problems with low water pressure if they checked. "Sunset Beach is progressive enough to want to know what they have and to bring it up to speed." Fluegel said Tuesday she's hesi tant about recommending that coun cil budget for the improvements next year, what with a majority of island residents purporicdiv express ing interest in separating from Sunset Beach and creating a town of their own If so. water pressure would become their concern, not that of Sunset Beach Ocean Is'e Beach and Holden Beach arc also in varying stages of addressing the need for better water pressure on their islands. Following the Oct. 21 fire, Tri Bcach VFD firefighters said that their equipment could have pumped more than 2,20(1 gallons of water per minute on the blaze, but could only pump 800 gallons per minute from town hydrants because pressure A Holiday of Taste! Lick Alikes Now Serving Homemade Chili! Express Stop 24 Hours A Dny-7 Days ? Shnllotte-Jct. Hwy^jt7 Ji Holder^Bch Rd. drops as the long, dead-end water line nears the west end of the island. "As close as those houses are, if iiic wind hau been coming uuin uic right direction, I don't know if they could have stopped it," Norris re flected, expressing a concern voiced before firefighters serving all three beach communities. Holden Beach commissioners, who were discussing the issue even before the fire, plan to apply for a state study grant to determine the is land's actual water pressure needs. At Ocean Isle Beach, commis sioners should hear early next year if the town will receive a $600,000 low-interest loan from the state to build a 500,000-gallon elevated stor age tank to supplement an existing 200,000-gallon elevated tank on the island. Their goal is to maintain one uay's Supply of water fur emergen cies and for fire suppression needs. That wouldn't be so difficult or costly to achieve, except that water usage at Ocean Isle runs as low as 100,000 gallons a day in winter, but rises dramatically during the prima ry rental season, when as many as 20.000 to 22,000 people are served. "We already need both tanks dur ing peak season. We have used one million gallons a day peak and at least 750,000 a day this past sum mer," town consulting engineer Finley Boney told commissioners in September. "With the r.?-v tank we Soles To Keep Powerful Senate Leadership Post State Sen. R.C. Soles of Tabor City will re main in the sec ond most pow erful post in the North Carolina Senate during the 1995-96 General As sembly. State Demo crats caucused in Raleigh, where Soles was nominated as deputy president pro tempore by Sen. David Parnell of Parkton. Parkton said Soles "has a high intel lect, strong character and great loy alty" to senators and has chaired powerful Senate committees. Sen. Marc Basnight of Manteo was re-elected president pro tem pore. Basnight and Soles both are Democrats. Democrats hold 26 of 50 N.C. Senate seats and, Soles said, "have a sufficient working majority to elect the top Senate officers." Soles is a graduate of Tabor City High School, Wake Forest Uni versity and the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Law. He served in the U.S. Army Reserve from 1957-67 and is currently an attorney in pri vate practice in Tabor City. OecvelenA, Find the Perfect Christmas Qift Here ? Incredible Savings Storewidelll t Store Location 4857-1 Long Beach Road (Mear Southport) (910) 457-4407 i ? ^ Dr. H.J. "Skip" Davis and Staff are pleased to announce the opening of their new office We invite you to stop by and visit us at 6657 Beach Dr., Ocean Isle (next to True Value on Hwy. 179) Chiropractic Center of Shallotte/Ocean Isle l\ Call for an appointment 579-3502 II ^ C9ft4 THE BRUNSWICK BEACON ^ f Great Rates Are As EasyAsUCB. 182-365 day CD 366 day -23 month CD 24-35 month CD 5.50% 5.75% 6.00% Annual Percentage Annual Ftercentage Annual fcrccntage Yield (APY) Yield (APY) Yield (APY) Minimum balance to obtain APY - - $ 1 ,000. The Personal Touch. Easy As UCB. carouSa , / . J_ BANtL For additional rates and terms or for more information, please visit any UCB office or call 1-800-395-3053. Text telephone for the hearing impaired, 1-800-876-6545. APY accurate as of December 6, 1994. Not available for brokered deposits. A penalty may be imposed for early withdrawal r. r ALL ( WANT For Christmas is a new home from Choicenter. ruAirciiTrD' VI lUItLll I Ll\ HOMES BY ANN Hwy. 17 N.. Shallotte, 754-5147 HO! HO! HO! The place to go to save your dough this Christmas is Ken's Pawn! Fantastic prices on new and out of pawn jewelry. f $ ?5 I ?? I $ I k 8 i r Quality name handguns. Prices to low to quote! Tools, antiques and many more savings for the season at... KEN'S PAWN Main St., next to Joe's BBQ ? Shallotte 754-5570 Ol9?4 THE BRUNSWICK BEACON $ I f your Christmas Jieadquarters ifif LADIES DEPT. Selected Groups of Ladies Wear 'Dresses By: Sabino, Amato 25% Off ?Chic Jeans: $24" ?Ladies Sweaters: *19" toMS)5* sale price fflfMEN'S DEPT. ?Large Group of Arrow Sport & Dress Shirts $16" & 24" ?Haggar wrinkle free cotton pants: '33" ?Large group of Irregular Sweatshirts, Pants: 4" Hooded: 8" Big Sizes: 6" ?Men's Basic Levis: *1 9s4 IfifSHOE SALE ?Large Group of Shoes by: Dexter, Nicole. Sperry Topsider, Madeline Stuart, Nunn Bush ^CHILDREN'S DEPT. ?All toys, games, books and puzzles 20% Off CANDY 15% OFF Come see all that we do have! is* ?- , . >? OPEN UNTIL 8 P.M. Main Street, Shallotte 754-4846 Ol9M THE BRUNSWICK BEACON I Why Wait! Drive Your Christmas Home! Spend Your Income Tax Refund -NOW Let Us Explain Our Income Tax Refund Down Payment Plan -T0DAY '94 Dodge Shadow 2 door, only 1 ,800 miles! '94 Hyundai Elantra 4 door, only 7,500 miles! '88 Hyundai Excel 4 door, only 57,250 miles! 1 '90 Ford F150 4x4, Cleanest in Town! '90 Ford Ranger Pick-up Like New! '90 Toyota Corolla 4 door, loaded, nice car! '87 Ford Aerostar Van local van, nice! '86 SAAB 9000 4 door, fine luxury car! '91 Chrysler 5th Avenue 4 door, loaded with luxury! '82 Volvo Station Wagon Extra Clean! Many More to Choose From! -We Finance Ask About Our Financing Plan To Fit Your Budget County auto retailers Resort Plaza, Shallotte, NC 28459 800-797-7475 91 0-754-2935 - ? ' t* mumnxx maoon
The Brunswick Beacon (Shallotte, N.C.)
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Dec. 8, 1994, edition 1
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