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Volume 62/ Number 30
Southport, N.C.
March 17,1993/ 50 cents
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INSIDE
Sports, page 14
* f \ i
High winds, tides storm coastal area
Damage is
estimated
in millions
By Terry Pope
County Editor
Overall damage is expected to ex
ceed $23 million locally from a win
ter storm that surprised Brunswick
County residents Saturday.
No one was injured during the cri
sis that left 80 percent of the county
without electricity for more than 24
hours while temperatures dipped into
the 20s overnight.
"From what I've seen, it was not
predicted," said Cecil Logan,
Brunswick County’s emergency man
agement coordinator. "If I had known
a day ahead of time. 1 would have
known to stay."
Logan was in California attending
a radiation protection conference
when the storm equalling category II
hurricane strength formed quickly and
swept along the North Carolina coast.
Holden Beach building inspector
Dwight Carroll unofficially clocked
wind gusts of up to 83 mph on his
personal weather gauge.
The National Weather Service in
Wilmington lost its data instruments
during the early part of the storm.
Gov. Jim Hunt included Brunswick
in a list of 40 North Carolina counties
declared state disaster areas Monday.
Logan hopes the state will also qualify
for federal assistance.
Area beaches sustained the most
structural damage, but fallen trees
See Damage, page 8
The miracle of Saturday’s surprising 100-miIe-per-hour storm was
that no one was killed locally or even seriously hurt. Adventures like
this ~ a videotaper seeking a better view of the tempest at Long
Beach’s 58th Street overwash -- were ill-advised, but common.
Clean -up
begins for
city, beach
By Holly Edwards
Municipal Editor
"It scared the hell out of me, but we
survived."
Southport police chief Bob Gray
summed up the feelings of many
people in the Southport-Oak Island
area after Saturday's powerful storm
pummeled the area with winds of up
to 110 miles per hour for over 12
hours.
"I could not believe the continuous
velocity of the wind." Gray said. "We
had a severe weather warning, but I
don’t think the intensity of this thing
was anticipated."
Several other local officials said
they were not expecting the storm to
be as violent as it was. and certainly
were not expecting damages in the
area to total more than S6.5 million.
"Certainly nothing like this was
indicated," said Long Beach mayor
Joan Altman. "Under the circum
stances. we would have advised people
on the beach to leave ahead of time.”
Long Beach town manager Tim
Johnson said the area in effect experi
enced the force of a Level 1 hurricane
without any warning.
"It was a sneaky one," he said.
"When I went to bed Friday night I
was told we would have 35-mile-per
hour winds."
Most houses lost power about noon
on Saturday and regained current
See Clean-up, page 9
'It was hurricane no-name, but hurricane it was*
By Marybeth Bianchi
Feature Editor
Some people say it may be the
worst storm with no name to hit
Brunswick County.
Winds gusting up to 110 miles per
hour were clocked at the Cape Fear
pilot tower in Southport where Boyce
Spencer rode out the storm Saturday
and Sunday. The anonometer mea
sured sustained winds of between 70
and 90 miles per hour, Spencer said.
"It was pretty miserable, but we
fared good," he said, noting that the
rocking of the tower wasn't any worse
than when someone's climbing the
stairs to the office. "It wasn't the worst,
but it was the longest one.
"There wasn't a lot to see except a
hell of a lot of water coming over the
bulkhead," Spencer observed. As the
tide rose the water level inched to
ward the top of the bulkhead in front
of the tower, but it was the wind
driven spray that flooded much of
Bay Street.
Down the street. Charlie and Karen
Perry spent Monday surveying dam
ages at American Fish Company.
The wooden building which rests
on pilings extends over the water and
was surrounded on the south and west
sides by about 300 feel of dock. Mon
day morning tall pilings stood alone
as sentinels aro,und the building.
"It did what the two hurricanes
didn't," Mrs. Perry said. "All the docks
are gone. Lines are busted."
"We prepared for high winds, but
we didn't prepare for no hurricane,"
Perry said.
Of the eight boats moored there,
"alt but one was damaged," Perry
said. The Warlock, which suffered
worst, sank completely. Perry's barge
also sank, and Raymond Jones and
Pat Thomas were injured when the
Tt was dramatic as hell. This desert was
three feet underwater. I’m standing here
at the side of my house and here comes
the ocean rolling right toward me*
T. D. Puckett
Long Beach
barge flipped as they were trying to
save it.
"Two of our own (boats) won't be
fishing for months," Mrs. Perry said.
They have no insurance to cover
their losses, which Perry estimated to
be about $230,000, but they were
starting the rebuilding process Mon
day, cleaning debris which collected
under the building and floated in the
water.
The owners of businesses and boats
around the old yacht basin have been
supporting each other, said the Perrys,
who weren't the only ones to suffer.
The wind curled back the roof of Pipe
Welders Marine metal building up
the street.
"Everyone was just trying to keep a
grip for everybody," Perry said.
Elwood Cheers was on the deck of
the Wahine pulling some loose boards
off the stem, which he said on Satur
day rose as high as the roof of the
See No-name, page 7
Charlie Perry has a big job ahead as he works to repair the docks
surrounding American Fish Company on the Southport waterfront.
Winds and high water from Saturday’s storm wiped out the docks and
damaged seven boats there.
Clegg resigns manager's post
CLEGG
By Terry Pope
County Editor
Those who packed the Brunswick County commission
jt' ers' chambers Monday were there to support parks and
K recreation director Bobby Jones, but they were stunned
K when told county manager David Clegg had suddenly
p resigned.
1 , "The citizens of Brunswick County are the real losers,"
said Cynthia Tart of Leland, whose comments sparked a
round of applause.
"I think we are losing a fantastic county manager,"
addedFrances Allen of Long Beach. "You’re going to have
a hard time finding anyone of his caliber. I really am sorry
to see David Clegg go."
Clerk to the board Kelly Barefoot wiped away tears as
I chairman Don Warren read Clegg's letter of resignation,
effective as of 5 p.m. Monday. Clegg, who said he reached
the decision last week, did not attend the meeting and had
apparently cleaned his office over the weekend.
Following the meeting, board members pointed fingers
at one another for events that had led to Clegg's departure.
Republicans Donald Shaw and Jerry Jones voted not to
accept the resignation, saying they did not want to see him
leave.
"He told me he had about all that he could stand," said
Shaw. "1 think some people wanted him todo some things
that were not exactly honest, and David Clegg is an honest
man. That's about the bottom line. Time will tell."
Warren said Democrats had placed no pressure on
Clegg to step down and that no one had asked him to do
anything unethical.
”1 don't know what they're talking about,” said Warren.
Clegg, a Democrat, was hired as county manager/
attorney by an all-Republican board in 1990. The Lee
County native joined county government as attorney in
1984 and had served as interim manager on several
occasions, acting county manager and assistant county
manager.
Democrats gained three seats on the board in Decem
ber. Party chairman Bill Stanley immediately called for
See Clegg, page 6
OUTSIDE
Forecast
The extended forecast
calls for partly cloudy
skies on Thursday and
Friday, followed by
showers on Saturday.
High temperatures during
the period are expected to
be in the SOs with lows
ranging in the 30s and
Tide table
HIGH LOW
THURSDAY, MARCH 18
4:31 am. 10:36 a.m.
4:48 p.m. 10:54 p.m.
FRIDAY, MARCH 19
5:22 a.m. 11:25 a.m.
5:36 p.m. 11:41p.m.
SATURDAY, MARCH 20
6:07 am. 12:07 a.m.
6:18 p.m. p.m.
SUNDAY, MARCH 21
6:45 am. 12:26 am.
6:58 p.m. 12:45 p.m.
MONDAY, MARCH 22
7:23 a.m. 1:08 a.m.
7:35 p.m. 1:24 pm.
TUESDAY, MARCH 23
7:59 a.m. 1:47 a.m.
8:10 p.m. 1:59pm.
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 24
8:32 am. 2:24 a.m.
8:43 p.m. 2:34 pm.
The following adjustment! should be made:
Bald Head Island, high -10, low -7; Caswell
Beach, high -5, low -1; Southport, high +7,
low +15, Yaupon Beach, high -32, low -45;
Lockwood Folly, high -22, low -8.