May 28,2003
THE NEWS-JOURNAL Raeforcl, N.C.
9A
Flooding
(Coniinued from page I A)
the dam eroded on Monday.
“There were a lot of wet areas
downstream, but no serious flood
ing.”
Massive amounts of water cas
caded across adjacent Rockfish Road
up to about 2 a.m. Tuesday. Earlier
erosion of its overflowing banks
crumbled portions of an interior ac
cess road on the backwaters of the
lake between a smaller pond next to
McLaughlin subdivision. It created
. gullies and potholes.
According to Schwarcbher, only
- 'about one-foot of water remained on
' the bottom of McLaughlin’s basin
after it emptied. The two lakes cover
. an area of approximately 25 acres.
. Accordingtothe National Weather
, Service in Raleigh, the southeastern
area of Hoke was hardest hit from
, Sunday through Monday until about
. 8 a.m. Approximately 4-5 inches of
•rain also fell in other areas of Hoke.
Lashing out in a west to easterly di
rection, the storm primarily affected
central areas of I loke, Scotland and
Cumberland counties, where the ma
jority of the rainfall was sustained, a
weather official said.
A spokesman from the N.C. High
way Patrol reported no fatalities oc
curred from accidentson Hoke's high-
• ways during the stormy weekend.
- ' Schwarcbher said the N.C. De
partment of Transportation closed
“ Phillipi Church Road because a cul
vert passed underneath the roadway
' which was flooded from waters from
McLaughlin Lake. Rockfish Road was
also closed due to flood precautions.
Detour signs were posted for both
roads. Phillipi was still closed to traf
fic Tuesday, he added.
“The Department of Transporta
tion reopened Rockfish Road at 5:30
Tuesday morning because it was de
termined it was safe for school buses
to pass through,” Schwarcbher said.
“At this point, Hoke has not been
'■’4
declared a disaster area by the state.”
Schwarcbher said residents down
stream in the eastern section of the
county such as those in the Country
Walk subdivision were notified that
the dam at McLaughlin would likely
fail. Rockfish Volunteer Fire Depart
ment and the Hoke Sheriffs Office
sent firefighters and deputies door-to-
door in the low-lying areas, calling for
a voluntary evacuation around 10:30-
11 p.m. on Sunday.
“We warned residents there would
be excessive water, but if the dam
broke that it should not be a threat to
life or property,” Schwarcbher said.
“It was their option whether to stay or
leave their homes. We did not want
them to become isolated without know
ing what could potentially occur.”
As water began overflowing
McLaughlin’s banks Sunday night at
several points, Schwarcbher steadily
monitored the situation along with
deputies. He periodically observed the
dam on Monday night prior to its even
tual destruction Tuesday morning.
“1 was satisfied that a sufficient
amount of water had already spilled
over the dam so it would not be a
threat," Schwarcbher said. “We did
have a six-inch water line burst from
the dam washing away, but I do not
think anybody was without water for
very long. Most of those affected were
in the McLaughlin subdivision.
“Right now there is no danger of
more flooding because of the low water
left in the lake. The road between the
two lakes is not a major problem be
cause residents have a back access
road to use.”
County Manager Mike Wood con-
fi rmed some complaints were received
from Eulon Loop of people being out
of water. He was updated on Tuesday
morning by Mike Dean, Hoke’s utili
ties director.
“I believe every body’s water is back
on, the repairs have been done, and the
crews have valved off everything,”
Wood said.
Schwarcbher said he also kept
Cumberland County officials apprised
of the status of potential flooding of
Rockfish Creek because there had
been a concern it might cause
Upchurch Pond to overflow on the
Cumberland side. He said Sunset Lake
near Arabia fared well because it was
five-feet below the normal level when
the rainstorms began.
“We still have some high areas of
water at bridge levels on some of the
roads down stream of Mcl^ughlin,”
Schwarcbher said. “People should just
be cautious.
“I do not know if McLaughlin dam
will be rebuilt because it is privately
owned. It would probably be up to the
owner to decide that.”
Schwarcbher said McLaughlin
Lake burst several years ago after
Hurricane Floyd, but was rebuilt. It
previously burst during Hurricane
Fran, and overflowed during Hurri
canes Bonnie and Irene, he added.
In February 1998, the dam, con
taining the waters of the two lakes,
burst shortly after repairs were com
pleted at the request of the N.C. De
partment of Environment and Natural
Resources.
The dam was left w ith a gaping
hole in its dike until it was later re
paired.
In Hope Mills just across the I loke
border, the watersof Hope Mills Lake
rose so rapidly that its dam broke on
Monday. The local fire department ^
evacuated 30 residents at Happy Val
ley Retirement Center prior to the
failure of the dam.
"1 want to thank all of the volun-
teersfrom Rockfish's fire department,
deputies, the N.C. Highway Patrol,
andemployeesof the DOT who helped
during this time of emergency,”
Schwarcbher said. “What a Memorial
Day!”
. V
1 T
♦ f 14 * in in
McLaughlin Lakes residents are stranded when the road between the twin lakes is eroded by flood waters.
Scene on Phlipi Church Road, which was closed due to flooding.
Government meetings are listed
Listed here are the regularly
scheduled Hoke and Raeford meet
ings. Meeting dates and times may
be changed due to hoi idays and other
• conflicts.
County
The board of commissioners
meets the first and third Mondays ot
.each month at 7:30p.m. Public input
.sessions are held immediately after
, busi ness is conducted du ring the fi rst-
■ of-the-month meetings.
■ The planning commission meets
the second Thursday at 7 p.m. The
board of adjustment meets the first
Wednesday at 7 p.m.
' County meetings are conducted
in the commissioners meeting room
of the Pratt Building at 227 North
Main Street.
: *; The board of elections meets the
! - second Tuesday of the month at 5
! -p.m. in the board of elections office
in the Pratt Building.
The Raeford/Hoke Economic De
velopment Board meets the second
Tuesday of each month at 8 a.m. in
the Depot (Chamber ot Commerce
1 - Building).
1: The Hoke County board of edu-
• ;cation meets the second Tuesday of
- .each month at 7 p.m.
' ; The phone number for county of
fices is 875-8751.
City
Listed here are the regularly
• '.scheduled City of Raeford govern
mental meetings.
Meeting dates and times may be
changed due to holidays and other
conflicts. (September’s meeting has
been rescheduled to September 10
due to the Labor Day holiday.)
City of Raeford council meetings
are held the first Monday of each
month at 7:30 p.m. However, this
month’s meeting will be held the
second Monday, September 12, at
the usual time.
Board of adjustment and planning
board meetings are held when there
are matters before the boards to be
addressed.
The planning board meets the third
Tuesday at 6 p.m., and the board of
adjustment meets the second Monday
at 6 p.m.
All meetings are held in the Coun
cil Chamber, City Hall, 315 Main
Street.
The phone number is 875-8161.
NOTICE
Call of Special Information Meeting
of Members
A special information meeting of Raeford-Hoke Museum,
Inc., a North Carolina nonprofit, is hereby called to be held
on Wednesday, June 11,2003, at 9:00 a.m. at Raeford-Hoke
Museum located at 111 South Highland Street. Raeford, State
of North Carolina, for the transaction of business of said non
profit, for the purpose of securing a loan from Rural Devel-
opmern of the United States Department of Agriculture, de
sired by the nonprofit and a resolution of the Board of Direc
tors, recommending that said loan be secured in order to ob
tain sufficient funds for the purchase of the facility. In order
to secure these funds to accomplish the purpose of the non
profit, all or substantially all the assets and property of the
nonprofit, whether presently owned or hereafter acquired, shall
be encumbered to secure any loan obtained.
Rural Development
P.O. Box 250 • Elizabethtown, NC 28337
(910) 864-3179, ext. 4
Check Us Out
On The Web
Moke's Top Stories
Are On The Web
uiuiui.theneuis-journaLcom
The INeWS
-Journal
910-875-2121