from the Charlotte Observer

[Steve Coleman]

Posted on Thu, Oct. 09, 2003

Plans to fill Hatteras breach, replace N.C. 12 changed
AARON BEARD
Associated Press

RALEIGH, N.C. - The project to fill an inlet created by Hurricane Isabel and replace the strip of N.C. 12 that was destroyed by the storm is getting bigger.

Emergency management officials said Thursday that they have adjusted plans for the project, which now include replacing a dune to protect the island from future storm surges. In addition, the estimate of 400,000 cubic yards of sand needed has been increased to 600,000 to 700,000.

Cost estimates are also expected to increase, though it is unclear how much.

"(The project's expansion) was something expected," said Ken Taylor, state director of emergency management. "As engineers get better and better refined numbers, you get closer to reality."

The new inlet wiped out a 1,700-foot section of the road and isolated about 300 Hatteras Village residents on the southern end of the island when the storm landed Sept. 18. Crews have since installed water and power lines to reach those residents, Taylor said.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is expected to complete filling the inlet in about a month, according to a news release from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. It will then take about two weeks for the road to be completed, said Bill Jones, a spokesman for the state Department of Transportation.

FEMA originally allocated $2.65 million for the inlet-filling project, but spokesman Don North estimated the cost Thursday afternoon at $4 million.

Jones said the DOT would have a better idea how much the road repair would cost after meeting with contractors next week.

Taylor said replacing the protective dune would help stabilize the stretch in future storms, comparing it to sandbags being used to prevent flooding.

"If all we do is restore the road, it will be an incredibly thin part of the island," Taylor said. "We need to have the thing be able to withstand at least some level of storm surge."

Officials said the contractor, Great Lakes Dredge and Dock Co., foresaw delays in originally proposed routes for pipelines to deliver sand to the breach. The route was modified to minimize the amount of submerged pipeline needed.

The contractor has already begun work assembling pipes and moving them into position. Some equipment is en route from Texas, while a dredge is on site, officials said.

Wayne Bissette, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers project manager for the Wilmington District, said original estimates were "very rough" due to the need for a quick solution.

"In a longer-term process, these matters would be ironed out prior to contract award," Bissette said in a FEMA news release. "In this situation, the contractor is already at work doing everything possible while the remaining features of the project are finalized."


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[wizardude]

Not hearing about anything but sand? Should be able to costruct some kind of structure underlying the sand before filling.

Whatever they're going to do, procrastination is only going to make it harder, and more expensive.

How is this effecting the Charter Fleet?

[millertime]

It seems the obvious answer is to just make a bridge and leave it as the natural inlet that it is. This idea of spending millions of dollars to move sand for roads and to replenish beaches is a waste of money. Hatteras was a better place when it was a natural barrier island.

[SuBourbon]

Hey Wiz--
The charter fleet is hurting, but they are operating. There are daily shuttle-trips from all around Frisco over to the docks at Little Hatteras. The captains are just about begging for folks to come fishing, and they've been doing pretty well offshore on the tunas and wahoo. A few billfish even.

[wizardude]

Originally posted by SuBourbon:
Hey Wiz--
The charter fleet is hurting, but they are operating.

Good to hear (at least the "operating part"), thanks for the info ...........

[BaitWaster]

Originally posted by millertime:
It seems the obvious answer is to just make a bridge and leave it as the natural inlet that it is. This idea of spending millions of dollars to move sand for roads and to replenish beaches is a waste of money. Hatteras was a better place when it was a natural barrier island.

Oregon Inlet is case in point of problem in putting a bridge over an Outer Banks Inlet. The inlet will move south and NC has some very rigid laws about groins & jetties.

15 years ago maybe a ferry system to Little Hatteras Island might have been a consideration but not now. The Genie is out of the bottle with the big-arsed development in Hatteras Village.

I did like the olden days on Hatteras Island & Ocracoke. During my first trip as a kid in the late 50's you had to take 3 or 4 ferry to get to Hatteras. However one could argue that Hatteras Island moved away from being a natural barrier island in 1930's when the CCC put in the big dunes.

[millertime]

Well said bait waster. Hatteras was much nicer when it took a few ferries to get around.