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WEEKLY
Women of Excellence, 3
“News from Next Door”
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 26, 2019
75 cents
Victims of fatal car accident are remembered
BY PETER WILLIAMS
News Editor
The four young men in
volved in an accident June
17 were trying to make a
better life for themselves
and were willing to work
hard to do it, say people
who were close to them.
Tyrell Davis, 30, Kristo
pher Midgett, 29, and Mar-
quarize Hunter, 23, died of
their injuries in the wreck in
Currituck County. A fourth
"These guys got together, found a job and
drove an hour and a half or two hours to work.
That says something about these kids. They
wanted a better life for themselves."
Frank Norman
Hertford town councilman
man, Damon Hunter, 26, The accident happened
was also transported to Sen- about 7 a.m. as Davis was
tara Norfolk with non-life driving the 2001 Dodge Stra-
threatening injuries, tus northbound on U.S. 158
after the four finished up
working at a nightshift at a
Walmart in Kitty Hawk.
They were headed home.
“I knew all four of them
through my children,” said
Frank Norman, a Hertford
town councilman and a res
ident of Wynne Fork Court.
“Marquarize practically
lived at my house. Not be
cause of any problems he
had at home, but just some
times he and my son might
be going somewhere the
next day.
“They were good kids,”
Norman said. “Tyrell was
like a big brother to them.”
Funeral information, a
photo and details on Tyrell
Davis were not available at
press time. He lived on Wyn
ne Fork Court, according
to the N.C. Highway Patrol.
Midgett lived on Helmlock
Street, Hunter West Market
Street and Damon Hunter
on Belvidere Road.
Norman said he was in
Ocracoke with a group of
other elected officials when
he heard the news about the
accident. He said it high
lights the need to create
good jobs closer to home.
“These guys got together,
found a job and drove an
hour and a half or two hours
to work,” Norman said.
“That says something about
these kids. They wanted a
better life for themselves.”
See VICTIMS, A2
Yates
retiring
from
ECSU
BY REGGIE PONDER
Staff Writer
For the first time in more
than a quarter-century, Fred
Yates won’t be an Elizabeth
City State University trust
ee.
Yates recently left the
ECSU Board of Trustees
after 24 years — nearly all
of which he served consec
utively — saying it’s time for
him to focus more on his
other longtime job: mayor
of Winfall.
Trustee appointments at
ECSU are for four years and
are renewable for a second
four-year term. After eight
years a trustee is required to
leave the board but may be
appointed to another term
after one year.
Yates has taken that re
quired year off and then
gone back on the ECSU
board three times. But he
said he’s not looking to re
turn as an ECSU trustee this
time.
“I think somebody else
needs an opportunity to
serve,” he said.
Yates, who is mayor of
Winfall in Perquimans Coun
ty, said he needs to focus his
energies on being the town’s
mayor on the next mayoral
election in November.
“Winfall is basically
where my heart is now,” he
said.
Yates said he has enjoyed
his tenure on the ECSU
board.
“I served with some good
boards,” he said.
Yates’ service as an ECSU
trustee spanned the tenures
of six different chancellors:
See YATES, A2
FILE PHOTO/THE PERQUIMANS WEEKLY
A float by Bethel Baptist Church rides past the Perquimans County Courthouse during the parade in 2017.
Lineup for July 6 parade grows
From Staff Reports
Organizers are expect
ing more than 60 entries
this year for the Perquim
ans County fourth annual
Independence Day Cele
bration on July 6,
Two officers join Hertford police department
BY PETER WILLIAMS/NEWS EDITOR
Marlos Downing (left) and Victor Sulliban have joined
the Hertford Police Department.
r
Event is open to all and
entries are still being ac
cepted for the parade and
all types of entertainment.
The event calls for deco
rating bicycles, tricycles,
wagons, cars, trucks, bus
es, vans, boats, trailers,
lawn mowers, golf-carts,
and pets in red, white and
blue and waving flags.
Stores asked to decorate
their windows in the best
patriotic way.
For more information,
call Vanora Brothers at
BY PETER WILLIAMS
News Editor
Hertford has two new po
lice officers.
Both Marlos Downing, 24,
of Edenton and Victor Sulli
ban, 23 of Camden recently
passed the state exam and
have joined the department,
Chief Dennis Brown said
this week.
The recent graduates of
the 17-week Basic Law En
forcement Training (BLET)
program have to complete
the classes and then pass
the state exam to serve
426-5956 or Sharon Smith
at 426-5657.
Entries so far in
clude C&C Stables,
the Truckers Club Inc.,
the Albemarle Antique
See PARADE, A2
in North Carolina. Failing
means they have to take the
entire class again.
Even with their hiring,
the additions won’t bring
Hertford up to full staffing
levels. The department is
funded for 11 officers, in
cluding Brown, plus an ad
ministrative assistant. Right
now the department has
seven officers.
“This helps toward our
goal of being fully staffed
this year,” Brown said.
In the short term to fill
the gap, the town has con
tracted with the Perquim ¬
Storms
cause
damage
in area
From Staff Reports
A storm last week left
hundreds without power
and may have caused a fire
that destroyed a Perquim
ans County home.
Three local fire depart
ments responded to a fire
Thursday evening that de
stroyed the structure in the
400 block of Chinquapin
Road.
When they arrived, fire-
fighters from Belvidere,
Hertford and Winfall saw
smoke coming from the
home, but could not contain
the blaze. The family was
not home at the time. EMS
Director Jonathan Nixon
said EMS and the American
Red Cross are working to
provide assistance to the
family.
A go fund me page
has been established
for Rebecca Turner at
See STORMS, A2
ans County Sheriffs Office
to use their off-duty dep
uties to cover some town
shifts and the county is paid
for that out of town funds.
Brown said the relation
ship between the two law
enforcement agencies is
good.
“We have always had an
excellent working relation
ship with the sheriffs of
fice.”
In the long term Brown
said the Hertford Town
Board has also been very
See OFFICERS, A2
Perquimans groups prepare for hurricane season now
BY PETER WILLIAMS
News Editor
Community groups got
together recently for a sem
inar on preparing for hurri
cane season.
It was hosted by the Albe
marle Plantation Commu
nity Emergency Response
Team (CERT). Hurricane
season runs through Nov.
30.
“This was a most worth
while educational experi
ence,” said Roy Carpenter,
the leader at the newly
formed Shores at Lands End
CERT. “Lois Pencinger and
6 89076 47144
2
Paul Holtz provided much
needed advice and informa
tion for preparing.”
The Plantation group
also donated an automated
external defibrillator to the
Shores at Lands End group.
“Once again our gener
ous neighbors at the Plan
tation have taken steps to
help their fellow Perqui
mans County residents,”
Carpenter said. “We would
not be able to get where
we (Shores at Lands End
CERT) if it not for Lois and
Paul and their team mem
bers. We’re extremely grate
ful. This is a huge step to en
suring that we are proactive
in taking care of ourselves
in the case of emergency.”
Perquimans County
Emergency Management
Director Jonathan Nixon
said there are things people
can do now to be prepared.
“You can start now by
gathering your checklist of
items,” Nixon said.
A list is on the emer
gency management web-
site at http://www.per-
quimanscountync.gov/
departments/emergen-
cy-management.html
People with special
needs, can also add them
selves to the county’s pri
vate registry.
“In the event of a storm,
we share the information
with the appropriate fire de
partments and ask them to
check on the residents.”
The registry form is two
pages long and is kept confi
dential. It includes informa
tion on special needs or like
the need for electricity for
things like oxygen, a ventila
tor or feeding pump.
For more information,
call 426-5646.
Researchers at North
Carolina State University
are predicting a normal hur
ricane season for this year.
The 2019 season should
see 13 to 16 named storms
forming in the Atlantic ba
sin, which includes the en
tire Atlantic Ocean, the Gulf
of Mexico and the Caribbe
an Sea, according to Lian
Xie, professor of marine,
earth and atmospheric sci
ences at NC State. That is
slightly higher than the long-
term (1950 to 2018) average
of 11 named storms, it is in
line with the recent (1995 to
2018) average of 14.
See HURRICANES, A2
SUBMITTED PHOTO
The Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) at
Albemarle Plantation recently donated an automated
external defibrillator to the newly formed CERT unit at
Shores at Lands End. Pictured are Lois Pencinger and
Paul Holtz from the Plantation and Roy Carpenter, the
team leader at Shores at Lands End.