THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT 
              Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: Thursday, February 6, 1997            TAG: 9702060351
SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B1   EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA 
SOURCE: BY ANNE SAITA, STAFF WRITER 
DATELINE: COROLLA                           LENGTH:   58 lines

ADDITIONAL LIFEGUARD STANDS APPROVED ONE WILL BE PUT NEAR WHALEHEAD BEACH, AND ONE IN PINE ISLAND.

Outer Banks tourists this summer can expect more lifeguard protection in Corolla.

The Currituck County Board of Commissioners has approved new lifeguard stands - one near the Whalehead Beach and the other in Pine Island.

The two additions bring the total number of stands to 10 along a 10-mile strip and also continue a trend of providing private developments with public lifeguard services.

Until the last couple of years, Currituck County officials had been reluctant to locate county-contracted lifeguard stands within private developments.

But Corolla officials, led by Corolla Fire and Rescue Chief Marshall Cherry, have maintained that the resort town is attracting a growing number of tourists and is in need of more protection.

Ocean lifeguards not only keep a watch on swimmers and warn of hazardous conditions, but also post red flags during adverse surf conditions and help locate lost people.

All funding for ocean rescue services comes from an occupancy tax on rental units.

Each year the county contracts with Corolla Ocean Rescue to provide services for the upcoming tourist season.

Last year, the county agreed to pay $137,740 for operational costs and new or replacement equipment.

This year, that amount jumped to $171,515. The increase is attributed to a 3 percent wage increase, replacement of a 1990 Suburban, two all-terrain vehicles for beach patrols, the additional stands, and wages for a mandatory first-responder class.

Ocean Rescue officials will reduce the crew between Aug. 15 and Labor Day, thus saving $4,500 on the original request of $176,015.

The county staff had asked to have another $8,405 cut by forgoing the request for a new lifeguard stand in Pine Island.

Unlike the new stand for the densely developed Dolphin Street, there currently are 37 houses in the Pine Island area that would be served by the new stand.

``I have some problems with the justification of a stand with that few houses,'' said County Manager Bill Richardson.

Richardson was supported by County Finance Director Dan Scanlon and Emergency Services Management Director Donnie Beacham.

But Cherry said each of those upscale homes typically houses 16 tourists at a time, meaning up to 600 people could use that particular stretch of beach during the peak season.

Areas of Corolla without a lifeguard stand are patrolled periodically by a lifeguard in an all-terrain vehicle.

Ernie Bowden, who lives in Carova, was the commissioner who moved to approve the full asking price, despite staff recommendations.

``I just feel you can't deny the people who are contributing to the cost of this service simply because they are a little more remote,'' Bowden said.

Areas north of the off-road ramp near the Villages of Ocean Hill will continue to be served by roving patrols, rather than fixed stands.