LOCAL
FEATURE
COMMUNITY
School menus
see pg. 7
Youth conference set
see pg. 91
Museum schedule
see pg. 5
THE PERQUIMANS WEEKLY
Velum* 57, No. 54 USPS 428-080
Hertford, Perquimans County, N.C., Thursday, December 31,1987
30 CENTS
A recent drug raid conducted by the Perquimans County
Sheriff's department and the Hertford Police Department
resulted in the confiscation of drugs, numerous firearms
.drug parafanalia, and a large sum of money. Estimated
street value of the drugs seized was over 100,000 dollars.
Local man arrested in recent drug raid
One man has been arrested in one
of the biggest drug raids ever con
ducted by the Perquimans County
Sheriff's Department.
Andrew Lugene White, Rt. 1, Box
473, Hertford, was arrested at his
home following a raid on the night of
December 23rd by the Perquimans
White
resigns
The Perquimans County Commis
sioners will soon have a new chair
man following an announcement by
Chairman W. W. "Welly" White.
White announced to the board at their
meeting last Monday that he was re
signing to assume the position of
' clerk of Perquimans County Superior
Court being vacated by the retiring
Jarvis Ward.
An emotional White stated that he
has greatly enjoyed serving the citi
zens of Perquimans County as a com
missioner, and was looking forward
to his new responsibilities. White will
step into the clerk's job on January
4th. The commissioners now have 60
days to appoint someone to fill
White's vacated seat. The are also
expected to shortly elect a new chair
man.
; In other business the board ap
proved a new set of tax values for the
county. The board also renamed to
roads in the county at the residents
requests. The roads SR 1111 and SE
1415 were changed to Godwin Mill
Road and Happy Lane respectively.
The board also reviewed a banking
plan from Peoples Bank and Trust
for the county which was presented
"by Mr. Ben Berry.
Service award
nominations
are sought
The Perquimans County Jaycees will
once again honor members of the
community (or outstanding service
through their distinguished service
\ awards.
' Awards will be given in eight cat
egories, and anyone is eligible to be
nominated for the awards or to nomi
nate someone else.
; Awards will be given to the out
standing young fireman of the com
munity, outstanding young law en
forcement officer, outstanding youth,
outstanding senior citizen of the com
munity, outstanding young rescuer,
outstanding public servant of the
^community, and the coveted distin
guished service award.
- Nominations for the awards must
be received by the Perquimans
County Jaycees no later than Jan
uary 4th. For more information on
the awards or on how to nominate
someone lor an award contact any
member of the Perquimans County
J floppy
1 New Year!
? 1 j
County Sheriff's Department and
members of the Hertford Police De
partment.
The raid on Mr. White's home was
part of an ongoing joint effort be
tween local law enforcement agen
cies to deal with the drug problems in
Perquimans County, and resulted in
the confiscation of approximately
$100,000 dollars worth of cocaine,
$500.00 dollars worth of marijuana, a
number of firearms, drug parafana
lia, and a large sum of money.
Following his arrest, Mr. White
was charged with felonious posses
I
sion of a schedule two controlled sub
stance with the intent to distribute,
towit cocaine, and felonious posses
, sion of a schedule six controlled sub
stance with the intent to distribute,
towit marijuana.
Mr. White is currently being held in
the Albemarle District jail under a
$100,000 dollar secured bond. His first
appearance in court was held on
Monday, December 28th, his proba
ble case hearing will be held in Per
quimans County District Court on
Wednesday, January 6th.
Mr. White, if convicted, faces 10
years in prison for the cocaine
charges, and five years in prison for
the marijuana charges.
The Perquimans County Sheriff's
Department is also investigating two
breakins, which occurred at the
homes of Abe Godfrey and Carlton
Hurdle, Rt. 4, Hertford.
Various items were taken in both
robberies, and some of the items
have been recovered.
According to Sheriff Joe Lothian,
one arrest has been made, and more
arrests are pending. An investigation
into the robberies is continuing.
Band fruit sale winners announced!
The Perquimans County High School band recently concluded its annual fruit sales. Picture*
above are the top 1st and 2nd place sellers from the high school and Perquimans Middle School
The high school top seller was Jeff Privott, 68'^ boxes, second place seller was Traci Jump witl
37% boxes. The middle school top seller was Leroy Jones, 48% boxes, and second place sellei
was Nathan Zachary with 38% boxes. The first place winners received $50 while the secorn
place winners received $25.00. The winners were presented their money by Danny Privott
president of the Perquimans County band boosters and John Mansfield, chairman of the frui
sales. The fruit sale was a huge success and 1500 boxes of fruit were sold.
State residents are urged to
use caution when burning wood
Raleigh? With temperatures drop
ping, fireplaces and woodstoves
come into increasing use as a means
of heating homes in North Carolina.
However, the burning of treated
wood and plywood can cause serious
health problems, according to state
health director Dr. Ronald H. Levine.
"Abandoned scrap wood may seem
like a good source of cheap fuel," Le
vine said. "However, wood used for
building is often treated with a pre
servative such' as creosote, petach
lorphenol ( Penta, POP), or a mixture
of copper, chromium, and arsenic
(CCA)."
?i
In the case of wood treated with
creosote and Penta, toxic gases can
be emitted and inhaled. Burning
wuori that has been painted with a
leadbased paint is a potential source
of lead poisoning, as is the burning of
battery cases.
"There are a number of docu
mented cases of poisoning as a result
of burning CCA-treated wood in fire
places and woodstoves," Levine said.
"Toadc metals such as chromium,
copper and arsenic can accumulate
in fireplace dirt, dust and ash. Expo
sure to these toxic metals can result
from breathing airborne particles or
from direct contact with the ash."
Symptoms of poisoning from tin
burning of treated wood include con
junctivitis, bronchitis, pneumonia
sensory hyperesthesia, musch
cramps, dermatitis, nosebleeds, eai
infections, blackouts and seizures
gastrointestinal disturbances am
loss of hair. The wood-treating indus
try is well aware of the dangers o
burning treated wood and caution
against its use
"The money that might be save*
by using this readily available wooc
is not worth the risk to your family')
health,'' said Levine.
1 ..2
Two men are arrested
in ABC Store robbery
Two men have been arrested and
charged with the December 21st rob
bery of the Hertford ABC Store.
Floyd Eugene Farmer, 1019 Ma
hone Avene, Norfolk, Virginia, and
George Willie Razor, Sr., 840 Mullen
Road, Chesapeake, Virginia were
both arrested in Elizabeth City fol
lowing the robbery.
The robbery occurred at approxi
mately 7: 18 p.m. on Monday, Decem
ber 21st.when a lone black male en
tered the Hertford ABC Store
brandishing a chrome 32 automatic
pistol, and ordered the clerks to put
all of the money in the store's regis
ter into a paper bag.
According to police, the clerks, Mr.
Don Keaton, and Mr. Sheldon Zac
hary followed the gunman's instruc
tions, and gave him the money. The
gunman then fled the scene in a oil
transport truck driven by his partner
in the robbery.
The men headed north on U.S. 17
and were apprehended just as they
reached Elizabeth City near the Port
Service Station on U.S. 17.
According to Chief Merritt of the
Hertford Police Department, the
quick arrest of the robbers was made
possible because of several factors.
Merritt complimented the ABC Store
clerks for their presence of mind dur
ing the robbery. The men not only
gave the gunman what he wanted
causing no problems, but also ob
served him closely and gave a very
good description of the man, the get
away vehicle, and the dir action of its
travel. They also acted very
promptly in calling the police.
Following the call by the clerks re
porting the robbery, the Hertford Po
lice Department and the Perquimans
County Sheriff's Department re
sponded in force. The departments
did an immediate canvasing of the
area, and within minutes of the rob
bery, local law enforcement officials
broadcast to all surronding law en
forcement officials in the area impor
tant information, which led to the two
men's arrest.
Members of the Pasquotank Sher
iff's Department and the North Caro
lina Highway Patrol spotted the vehi
cle and stopped it and found a suspect
fitting the general description of the
the armed robber. They also recov
ered a large amount of money. They
arrested the suspects and detained
them at the Elizabeth City Police De
partment until members of the Hert
ford Police Department, and the Per
quimans County Sheriff's
Department brought them back to
Hertford for questioning and even
tually charging them with the rob
bery.
According to Merritt, Farmer has
been charged with armed robbery,
and Razor has been charged with aid
ing and abetting an armed robbery.
Merritt stated that the police have
reason to believe that both subjects
have been involved with armed rob
beries in the past, and police believe
that both men have prior records.
Farmer also admitted to police that
he was a drug addict , and his addici
tion might be a possible case for the
robbery.
The getaway truck used by the men
belonged to Oil Transport, Inc., of
Chesapeake, Virginia. Razor was
employed with the company, and was
apparently making a delivery for the
company in this area. Farmer, the
suspected lone gunman was appar
ently a passenger in the vehicle.
Police have also learned that the
gun used in the robbery belonged to
Mr. Razor.
The two men are currently in the
Albemarle District Jail awaiting
trial. They are being held under a
$30,000 secured bond.
Armed Robbery in the state of
North Carolina is a class D. felony,
and carries a 14 year presumptive
sentence.
School board reviews
its long range plans
The Perquiman's County School
Board faced an awesome task earlier
this month as they sat down to de
velop a school facilities plan for the
system's long term needs.
The school board took many things
into consideration when developing
the plan, but lack of funds and other
problems facing the system have
board members feeling as though the
planning procedure is just more pa
per work for them to do, and an exer
cise in futility.
The Perquimans County School
system currently faces many prob
lems, but the most urgent problem
facing or local schools is the issue of
overcrowding.
The issue of overcrowding in our
local schools and many other prob
lems is addressed in the system's
plan, but unless the school system re
ceives some of the "critical needs"
funding or funds from other state
sources, the board will be able to do
little about the overcrowded condi
tions, and the other problems ad
dressed in the plan despite their feel
ings and efforts.
All of the needs listed in the school
facilities plan are urgent, and the
' board feels that even though many of
the things outlined in the plan may
never be accomplished, it may make
residents of the county, and local
government officials more aware of
what is needed by the school system
to insure quality education for the
child of Perquimans County.
According to Clifford Winslow,
Chairman of the Board, all of the
needs outlined in the plan are crit
ical, and the board hopes to be able to
' handle them all eventually.
Pat Harrell told board members
l that the overcrowded situation at our
r schools will probably get worse be
i fore it gets better. According to state
statics reviewed by Harrell with the
? board, Perquimans County can ex
t pect an 11.9 percent enrollment in
crease by the year 1992. If the projec
tions are correct, it would mean that
the school system which presently
houses 1809 students would be ex
pected to house 2,024 students by the
year 1992.
The statistics show that the great
est increase in the system's enroll
ment will be in the middle school
grades. According to Harrell, Per
quimans County Middle School is
currently using all of its existing
space, and there is no room for ex
pansion. Many of the school's current
programs do not have adequate fa
cilities, but added enrollment will
only magnify the problem, and some
thing mst be done.
Central School will also have a
problem if enrollment increases. The
school currently has some 400 stu
dents, and if their enrollment in
creases they will be forced to use mo
bile classrooms to house students.
The school already is using the stage
area in the library for a computer
lab, and there is no room for music,
art or classes for exceptional chil
dren.
Hertford Grammar School also has
its problems, and according to Har
rell the school has inadequate facili
ties for the library and media center,
and additional space is presently
needed to handle programs needed to
instruct children with special needs.
In addition to many other problems
already outlined, both Hertford
Grammar School and Central School
will soon need new sewer systems,
which may prove to be a problem in
the near future.
Perquimans County High School
also is still in need of some things.
The greatest needs are in the vocatio
nal education building, but Harrell
stated to the board, the system also
needs a warehouse and maintenance
facility, and a school bus garage and
paint shop
The board hopes to have all of the
projects included in the plan com
pleted by 1992, but funding, which is
presently available, will not even
come close to covering the expense of
all the projects. Unless additional
funding is made available, comple
tion dates for many of the projects
may be a long time in coming.
WEATHER
Weekend Forecast
Weather forecasters are calling
for cooler temperatures to usher
In the new year on Friday.
Temperatures will feature lows
in the 20s and highs in the mid
50s.