DENNIS - Storm of ‘99 September 3, 1999 The Beaufort News
The Lesson of Dennis
If Hurricane Dennis proved anything it’s that, like politics, all hurricanes are local. Certainly Dennis didn’t cause anywhere near the property losses it could have and, thankfully, it took no lives. Because it lacked those elements, the national news media did not sensationalize the storm. But for those hurt by Dennis, the reality of its meanness was palpable. Consider the residents of Cedar Island, South River and Merrimon, who in Carteret County Dennis most victimized. At least 30 homes were reported flooded in Cedar Island, numerous trees were downed and lots of shoreline along Cedar Island Bay was lost. Not since the unnamed hurricane of 1933 have “old timers” on Cedar Island seen anything as bad. It was ironic for Cedar Islanders to learn of media reports minimizing the impact of Dennis when, on their level – on the local level – it was a disaster. In South River and Merrimon, both of which are exposed to nor’easterns, many homes suffered from rising water. And in all these communities, saltwater more than likely infiltrated fresh water wells. Economic losses to seafood businesses and fishermen, coupled with residential damage from flooding to lost shingles, already exceed $5 million. Add economic losses incurred in damage to agriculture suffered by county farmers, and losses approach $9 million. And these are just preliminary figures. Our neighbors on Ocracoke Island and Hatteras, along the northern Outer Banks, also took it on the chin.
Perhaps the only good thing to come out of Dennis was that because the decision was made to move the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse back from the Atlantic Ocean earlier this summer, rather than protect it in its old location with berms, that landmark of North Carolina remains. We feel badly for the residents of Cedar Island who took losses, but we know the fisher folk of that remote coastal village are hardy. That quality alone explains why Cedar island waterman Dallas Goodwin could shrug off the damage and inconvenience and say “That’s the price of living in paradise.”