By Staff
Power out for some, three tobacco barns destroyed
By TED STRONG
Staff Writer
Tropical Storm Hanna cut power to more than 2,000 people Saturday, but sent only 21 people to a county shelter, said Paul Spruill, the county manager for Beaufort County.
By about 6:45 p.m., about 220 people remained without power, said John Pack, the county’s emergency management coordinator. He hoped only about 175 would have to wait until tomorrow to regain electricity, he said.
The wind caused damage to major power lines near Possum Track Road and Edward, Pack said.
Flooding was confined to low lying areas like Belhaven, Whichard’s Beach, Pamlico Beach and Washington Park, Spruill said.
The only significant property damage was the loss of three tobacco barns on Lizard Slip Road that burned down about 6 a.m. Saturday, Pack said. The cause of the fire wasn’t yet known, he said.
Bunyan and Pinetown volunteer fire departments responded, he said.
Beaufort County and the City of Washington had declared states of emergency for late Friday night and early Saturday morning, though the storm ended up hitting the town early Saturday morning and departing about midday.
The county and city proclamations limited travel and alcohol sales. The city proclamation also restricted firearms and gasoline.
He said the county hadn’t cited anyone for violating the restrictions.
The county’s shelter officially closed at 1 p.m., Spruill said.
Fifteen minutes later, Thomas Blount, executive director of the Greater Pamlico Area Chapter of the American Red Cross, said all shelters in the state of North Carolina but one had been closed.
During the course of the storm, 1900 people stayed in shelters across the state, Blount said.
Hyde County, including Ocracoke, came through the storm well, said Hyde County Sheriff David Mason.
There was a little flooding of N.C. Highway 12 on Ocracoke, he said.