THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, December 28, 1994 TAG: 9412280450
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY LANE DEGREGORY, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: HATTERAS ISLAND LENGTH: Long : 169 lines
Frustrated Outer Banks residents contended Tuesday that it's time to stop applying Band-Aids on N.C. Route 12 and start trying to find a long-term remedy for keeping the fragile highway open.
As road crews cleared sand clogging the only road linking Hatteras Island to the rest of the world, islanders predicted that the short-term solutions won't last long.
This year alone, officials have had to close the two-lane highway at least three times after storm surges covered it with saltwater and sand.
Workers have cleared the road after each emergency. Nevertheless, no matter how many millions of dollars state officials spend, they can't seem to stop Mother Nature.
But they could rise above her by building a causeway, several residents said, and their idea drew backing from one of the state's most powerful legislators.
They said an elevated road from Oregon Inlet through parts of Hatteras Island could bypass most of the problems that have plagued Route 12.
Waves could wash beneath the roadway without eroding pavement. Sand could spill across the asphalt without impeding traffic. Tourists and the 5,000 residents in Hatteras Island's seven seaside villages would be assured of access during most storms.
And highway workers could stop scooping sand from side to side.
Since 1990, the N.C. Department of Transportation has spent more than $31 million - in addition to scheduled maintenance - trying to keep the only highway between Nags Head and Hatteras Inlet open. Efforts have included a $1.8 million beach-nourishment project and $920,000 worth of sandbags stacked along the shoreline. Most of the work, however, has involved moving sand from the west shoulder of the two-lane road onto the east edge.
Almost every time a storm approaches the North Carolina coast, that sand moves again - on its own.
``It doesn't take a real big blow to wipe that road out any more,'' said N.C. Department of Transportation Engineer Don Conner, who oversees the Albemarle-area from his Ahoskie office. ``It does seem that highway is going out more frequently now. Our guys are having to battle it more and more often.''
N.C. Senate President Pro Tem Marc Basnight said an elevated causeway would be the ideal way to provide a good road through the Outer Banks without damaging the environment.
He said that after the state legislature reconvenes next month, he will set up a meeting of the governor, state and federal officials and Outer Banks residents to discuss the best way to provide transportation through Hatteras Island.
``I want the meeting to center on the idea of a causeway,'' Basnight said Tuesday from his Raleigh office. ``A causeway would put the barrier islands back in nature's hands. And being above the ground would provide travelers with a beautiful view of the water and sand and birds and animals.''
Hatteras Island charter boat captain Randy Turner agreed. Florida has a good semipermanent solution to the road problem, one that could help the Outer Banks, Turner said. All state officials need to do now is follow suit.
North Carolina officials, Turner said, `` ought to just Key that road. You know, like they did to Key West: raise the highway wherever they need to. Bridge it all the way from Oregon Inlet to Rodanthe if they have to. It'd be worth the money.
``And then, at least, the DOT wouldn't have to keep worrying about it.
``Now, if we get even 15-foot seas, we all know that road will go. Some of us may have to miss work. Others might need emergency medical attention. We all rely on that highway.''
Bill Karnish Sr. lives in Southern Shores. On Tuesday, he and his son drove south on N.C. Route 12 to Buxton on an afternoon fishing expedition. Both said an elevated highway would be the best - possibly the only way - to keep the Outer Banks' major artery open.
``Obviously, this road-clearing process isn't going to work forever. And beach nourishment hasn't convinced me as a solution yet, either,'' said Karnish, 72. ``They'll have to elevate it eventually. It's the only thing I can think of.''
Karnish's son, Bill Jr., echoed those sentiments. ``They ought to give up trying to save it and just let nature take its course in some low spots,'' said Karnish Jr., 38. ``If you can't control nature, at least you can accept it - or work around it.''
State Transportation Board member R.V. Owens III of Manteo agreed that a causeway may be a viable option for N.C. Route 12 eventually. But right now, he said, there are more pressing problems to consider. Highway and environmental officials need to work out some priorities so roads can be cleared or rebuilt right away.
``We've got a stinking, rotten mess down here,'' Owens said Tuesday. ``You can spit into the ocean from the road. But we can't do what we need to for its protection.
``Sometimes, it seems the turtles and the vegetation are ahead of the people of Hatteras Island. That's just not right when the road is their only link to the world.''
On Dec. 7 - more than two weeks after Hurricane Gordon flattened dunes along several miles of northern Ocracoke Island - officials with the N.C. Division of Coastal Management told highway workers that they had violated state laws when they scooped sand off N.C. Route 12 and used it to rebuild some of the nearby dunes.
Road crews can move sand only within 50 feet of the highway's center line, Division of Coastal Management spokeswoman Alison Davis said Tuesday. But any other placement or use of the sand requires a state permit.
``That road goes under water six to 10 times a year now. But we don't always know when that's going to happen,'' Owens said. ``Sometimes, it takes up to 75 days to even get a permit. We shouldn't have to wait for CAMA to rebuild the dunes if that's all that will save the road.''
As last week's northeaster was bearing down on the Outer Banks, about 40 state highway workers spent Christmas Eve moving sand from N.C. Route 12.
A few stayed in the Kitty Hawk area, where five blocks of beach road overflowed with ocean and debris. But most were stationed along Pea Island, where a five-mile stretch of highway went under water at each high tide.
Four transportation workers even spent Christmas on the road. They scooped sand and ocean overwash off the pavement at Pea Island all day. They kept N.C. Route 12 open throughout the weekend.
On Monday, another 25 workers joined them.
Before they could begin moving the more than three feet of sand that had spilled across the highway in some spots, transportation officials called the state's environmental office for permission. A local supervisor gave the go-ahead by phone from his home. He attached some conditions to his concession, Davis said:
Sand can only be removed from within the transportation department's 100-foot right-of-way, 50 feet on either side of the center line.
Only front-end loaders - not bulldozers - can be used to move the sand.
Only bulldozers may be used to shape the dunes once the sand is in place.
``We didn't want them to move the sand with bulldozers because we didn't want any other dunes disrupted,'' Davis said Tuesday from her Raleigh office.
``We worked with the DOT to get verbal permission early. We're not trying to keep them from clearing the road. We are trying to protect an environmental resource. It's a balance we try to strike every day.''
Highway officials were relieved they didn't have to wait for a permit to clear N.C. Route 12. They praised local official David Griffin for his willingness to work with them. But they berated state laws that hinder their ability to keep the roads open - and cost taxpayers additional money.
``Using front-end loaders instead of bulldozers is like scooping sand with a spoon instead of a shovel,'' Owens said. ``It's taking our road crews more than twice as long as necessary. And it's costing taxpayers more and more money.
``I'm beyond frustrated with this whole thing,'' said Owens. ``We've got $1.5 million in the transportation budget to do a four-year feasibility study. But we can't look too much to the future now because the future could change so much. Now, we have to deal with changing CAMA rules.''
Conner said state officials also have to alter the way they look at road problems.
``We can't talk about this forever. That road is becoming more vulnerable,'' Conner said. ``At some point, we have to reach a conclusion about what to do. That's a very fragile stretch of land.'' MEMO: THE TROUBLES OF N.C. ROUTE 12
North Carolina Route 12, the two-lane highway that links Hatteras Island
with the rest of the world, is extremely vulnerable. During most major
storms, ocean overwash and sand spill across the pavement. This year
alone, officials have had to close the road at least three times because
it was impassible.
Since 1990, the North Carolina Department of Transportation has spent
more than $31 million keeping the fragile, winding roadway clear. Most
of the work has been concentrated along a five-mile stretch from just
south of the Oregon Inlet bridge to just north of Rodanthe. The $31
million doesn't include $18.1 million in routine maintenance costs that
the state has spent on N.C. Route 12 since 1974.
One short-term suggestion for saving the road is to move about two miles
of the highway on Pea Island west. The area around the sand bags, just
south of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife ranger station, is slated to be
re-routed away from the beach sometime in 1995. Work is projected to
cost about $2.5 million.
Source: Associated Press, North Carolina Department of Transportation.
KEYWORDS: N.C. ROUTE 12 EROSION STORM WEATHER by CNB