Sneak Preview Offered
The Ocean isle Museum Foundation unvelifid
Its new facility Saturday, giving visitors a
glimpse of several displays Including this fox.
For the story, see Page 11-A.
How Do You Spell...?
Saundra Dron of Southern Bell ponders
the spelling of another word In the
Brunswick County Literacy Council's
Spelling Bee. The story's on Page 5-B.
Trojans Are Home Again
The West Brunswick Trojans are looking
for their first league win against
Fairmont Friday night on the Trojans
home field. See the story on Page 9-B.
THE L..
>Ms gi')<">(?: B INOtRY
12/31/3S
BOX 162
R'i MI 4S<zy4
Twenty-eighth Year, Number 45 thebrunswickbeacon Shallotte, North Carolina, Thursday, September 27, 1990 25C Per Copy 40 Pages, 3 Sections
Civietown
Man Dies
In Early
Morning
Home Fire
BY TF.RRY POPE
Staff Writer
A Civietown man died from
smoke inhalation in an early-morn
ing fire Sunday that damaged a mo
bile home on Gray Bridge Road.
George Ford, 20, was pronounced
dead at the scene by Coroner Greg
White. Firefighters responded to the
call around 7:20 a.m. Sunday and
discovered Ford's body lying in a
doorway inside the mobile home at
the intersection of Gray Bridge
Road and Shell Point Road.
According to Detective Nancy
Simpson of the Brunswick County
Sheriff's Department, Ford appar
ently left a burner on in the kitchen
and fell asleep. He had been staying
at the home rented by Patrice Shaw,
who left Saturday for Tennessee.
Ms. Shaw's brother identified the
body, according to Sheriff's Deputy
R.L. McDonald's report.
A passer-by noticcd smoke com
ing from the home and called the
Civietown Fire Department. Chief
A1 Nord said when his men arrived
the fire was stili burning inside the
home but had not broken through to
the outside. It was extinguished
w ithjr; niir.utct.
Fire damage was contained to the
kitchen area and an adjaccnt bath
room, Nord said. The windows
were closed, making it hot inside
the home.
"It was a hot one," Nord said. "It
melted the blinds off the walls. The
Venetian blinds, it dripped them on
to the floor."
Nnrri tho body was discov
ered when fireman Kenny Smith
went into one of the end bedrooms
to open a window to ventilate the
mobile home.
The body wasn't burned, Del.
Simpson said.
"Evidently, he had cooked some
thing and forgot to tum the burner
off on the stove," Simpson said. De
tectives believe the victim awoke in
the back bedroom and tried to es
cape.
"He got as far as the door," Simp
son said. Smoke on the victim's
nostrils indicated he died from
smoke inhalation.
The body was taken to the Bruns
wick Hospital in Supply by the
Shallotte Volunteer Rescue Squad.
Shallottc and Tri-Beach volunteer
Firemen aiso responded to the cali.
Detectives believe the fire broke
out between 6:30 a.m. and 7:23 a.m.
STAfF rHOTO BY DOUG *UTTf?
STATE FISHERIES DIRECTOR WILLIAM HOGARTH, right, talks with local fishermen fol
lowing a public meeting last Thursday in Shallotte. Pictured, from left, are Terrence Calloway.
Alex Kuigre and Sherman Varnum.
OYSTER SEASON OPENS OCT 15
QU^II TV*
kji ictii i 01 icri 11 fci i ikj i ul6
Strict Harvest Limits
BY DOUG RUTTER aged 120,000 bushels of oysicrs per year over the last
Local commercial fishermen will be limited to 10 years, but they gathered only 52,(XK) bushels last
seven bushels of oysicrs per day and 14 bushels per season.
boat when the 1990-91 oyster season opens next 'The sampling we've done this year looks even
month in North Carolina. worse than that," Hogarth said. The small oyster har
Thc N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries slushed the vests have been biamcd on uvci iiai vesting, pollution
daily harvest limits from 50 bushels per boat to the and parasites that have killed oysters in past years and
new amounts after holding a scries of public meetings are still present this year in small to moderate
along the coast last week, including one in Brunswick amounts.
County. To protect the resource, the state closed oyster
State Fisheries Director William Hogarth said the season about a month early last season and lowered
new limits will apply Monday through Friday. Com- daily harvest limits near the end of the season to five
incrcial oyster harvesting will not be allowed on die bushels per person and 15 bushels per boat.
weekends. At a meeting last Thursday in Shallotte. Hogarth
Oyster season opens Oct. 15 in the southern part said the division wanted to put realistic limits on
of the state and Nov. 12 in areas where mechanical oysters at the start of this season so they don't have to
harvesting is permitted. Hogarth said mechanical har- be changed later.
vesters will be limited to 20 bushels per boat this sea- Hogarth said at the time the state was considering
son. imposing a five-bushel limit from the start of this oys
Thc state oyster season usually runs through the tcr season to protcct the oyster fishery.
middle of March, but Hogarth said officials will deter- 'The whole reason for these limits is trying to
mine when to close the 1990-91 season after the sea- keep the oysters going as long as we can," said Rich
son starts. He said it won't be closed before January. Carpenter, district manager with the Division of
In the past, the state has limited daily oyster har- Marine Fisheries.
vests to 50 bushels per boat. But Hogarth said poor Most local fishermen said last week they would
harvests the last few years prompted officials to lower support a seven-bushel daily limit, but five bushels
the daily limit. per day would not be enough to meet expenses sjch
North Carolina commercial fishermen have aver- (See OYSTKR, Page 2-A)
County Finds Some
Errors On Census
Housing Counts
BY TERRY POPE
Thirty homes had been ignored
along Turnpike Road near Supply
and an entire nursing home near
Lcland had gone uncounted in the
1990 U.S. Census Bureau's popula
tion and housing counts, county of
ficials have discovered.
Those were the only housing
count errors the Brunswick County
Planning Department protested in a
letter mailed to the Regional Census
Center in Charlotte last week. The
letter was signed by Gene Pinker
ton, chairman of the Board of Com
missioners.
County officials believe the Cen
sus Bureau's preliminary population
count for Brunswick County is short
by about 4,(XX) residents. However,
couniics and municipalities have
only been given the right to protest
housing counts and not population
figures.
The county's letter docs present
its concerns that the population
count also appears to be in error.
The county and some towns stand
to hurt in tax revenue distribution if
the preliminary population Figures
released in August arc not changed.
"We are convinced there is an un
der count of persons by more than
10 percent of the total permanent
resident population," the county's
response sidles.
According to the Census Bur
cau's preliminary figures, about
50,681 persons live in Brunswick
County, but Planning Director John
Harvey believes the actual count
should be closcr to 55,000 residents.
In 1980, about 35,777 people lived
in the county.
The town of Shallot'/' also plans
to protest the population count. Ac
cording to the census, Shallottc in
creased in population from 680 per
sons in 1980 to 828 residents this
year. However, town officials be
lieve the actual population stands
closcr to 1,400.
The county's letter gives two ex
amples ot how the Planning Depart
ment was made aware of residents'
concerns that they were either left
out of the population count or not
allowed to continue their job of
counting residents.
It states that Edward G. Dobson,
who lives in Bricklanding Planta
tion, contacted the Planning Depart
ment to complain that no one in his
condominium unit had an opportu
nity to respond to the census counts.
Dobson told the Planning Depart
ment that "none of the occupants of
the 40 condos received a form or
has had a call or visit from an enu
merator," the letter slates. "These
housing units show in counts, but
may not have received other scruti
ny. for whatever reason."
(See COUNTY, Page 2-A)
Manager List Narrows
Brunswick County Commission
ers will interview three applicants
for the county manager's position,
apparently at their Oct 1 meeting.
Board members had stated that
they would set a date at Friday's
workshop to begin interviewing
candidates. An executive session for
personnel was on the board's agen
da Friday, but no commissioner
took responsibility for asking for
the secret session and no date was
set.
The board spent 90 minutes in
executive session at a meeting Sept.
17 where they chose five applicants
from a list of 47 to see if they were
still interested in the job. Of those
five, three stated that they were still
interested when contacted by Board
Clerk Rcgina Alexander last week.
The applications were accepted five
months ago.
Ms. Alexander said she assumed
the commissioners would need an
executive session so she added it to
the agenda. Interim County Man
ager David Clcgg said he doesn't
know what the board intends to do
regarding the interviews.
In other personnel action Friday,
the board voted 3-2 to eliminate in
house hiring practices for county
employment positions.
Clegg had asked the board to
amend the personnel policy to make
all nositions nnen to the public at
large and to advertise all positions
before accepting applications.
Commissioners Grace Beasley and
Frankic Rabon voted against the re
quest which goes into effect Nov. 1.
'The only thing a working man
has to look forward to is seniority,"
Rabon said. "You're cutting all of
the incentive to people who arc try
ing to move up the ladder."
Ms. Beasley said the county
needs "a whole new personnel poli
cy."
Clegg said probationary employ
ees are applying for in-house posi
tions. If they move to another coun
ty job, their six-month probationary
periods must start over.
Rabon also made a motion Friday
to prohibit non-vested employees
from applying for permanent county
personnel positions. The motion
failed, 4-1.
Big Sweep Volunteers
Find Area Beaches
Serving As Ash Trays
BY DOUG RUTTER
Volunteers who clcancd up the South Brunswick
Islands beaches during The Big Sweep Saturday found
out that the local strands have been doing much more
than providing a spot lor people to spread their beach
towels. They've also been serving as ash trays.
Cigarette butts and filters topped the list of the. types
of trash seen by people participating in the annual litter
cleanup at Sunset Beach, Ocean Isle Beach and Holdcn
Beach.
More than 230 people helped pick up litter on the lo
cal beaches Saturday morning, participating in The Big
Sweep '90, a statewide cleanup of beaches, lakes and
rivers across the state.
Volunteers filled trash bags and recorded what they
picked up on data cards. The information on the cards
will be compiled by the state and put into a national da
ta base that will identify the most common types of lit
ter and what types of groups are littering.
Sunset Beach
Sunset Bcach coordinator Fran Pelletier said about
60 volunteers turned out to help clean up the beach and
causeway, filling 60 trash bags.
"It was an excellent turnout considering the day," she
said. "It was kind of a drizzly day and that probably
kept some people away."
Mrs. Pelletier said the people who did participate
were enthusiastic. Some of the more unusual finds in
cluded a natural gas container, children's shoes, under
wear and a boat engine.
Cigarette butts and filters were the most common
form of later on the bcach. "As one person wrote on
their data card. Sunset Bcach is one big ash tray," Mrs.
Pelleiier said.
The side of the road leading to the island seemed to
be dirtier than the strand was, she said. "That unfortu
nately seems to be a collecting spot."
Following the cleanup, volunteers enjoyed hot dogs
and drinks provided by the Sunset Beach Taxpayers
Association and local merchants.
Ocean Isle Beach
Approximately 110 people helped clean up the strand
and causeway at Ocean Isle Beach Saturday, including
a group of 12 children and six adults from Bay Street
Methodist Church in Fayettcvillc.
The volunteers picked up between 125 and 140 bags
of trash. "We used every bag the slate provided us plus
a few others," said coordinator Chuck Armstrong, pres
ident of the Ocean Isle Beach Property Owners
Association.
People picked up lots of plastic bottles, cans and can
dy wrappers. "There was a tremendous amount of
cigarette filters all over the island," Armstrong added.
"That's unfortunate because they're not biodegradable."
Holden Beach
At Holden Beach, 62 volunteers picked up 56 bags of
trash, but local organizer Margaret Vasco said the
cleanup could have been much better.
She said the high tide Saturday morning prevented
some areas of the beach from being cleaned, particular
ly near the east end of the bcach. "Our tide and rough
seas certainly spoiled our day."
Mrs. Vasco also said some newspapers gave the
wrong time and place for volunteers to meet at Holden
Beach. Helpers were supposed to meet at X a.m. under
(See BIG SWEEP, Page 2-A)
\rtf
STAff PHOTO ?Y DOUG tUTTl*
WALTEK AND ANN HOLT of Carolina Shores, Calabash, cleun up the strand near the Sunset
tieach Fishing Pier. They found lots of cigarette butts.