- Ferries will run today (9/20) from 10:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Still no tram service. Barge making limited trip(s) to deliver essentials only.
- Bald Head Island, Southport, & Brunswick County are still under a State of Emergency. Visiting BHI is still not advised. A map of closed BHI roads is now available.
- Update on recovery – grinder pumps, stormwater pumping, road conditions, mosquito control, and swimming advisory remains in effect.
- GFL will pick up household trash today (9/20) and Saturday (9/21).
- Village offices remain closed today with office staff working remotely. The IPC/PO will be open today from 11:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. (limited mail & packages available for pickup).
- Useful links.
- Please check our social media and/or media webpage for more frequent updates.
Ferry Service & Trams
BHI Transportation, Inc. is running ferries again today at 10:00 a.m. from Deep Point with the final departure from BHI at 5:30 p.m. Visitors who do not have an identified residence on the island will not be allowed to travel to the island. Tram service remains suspended due to the conditions of the island’s roads. As a reminder, the Department of Public Safety does not provide personal transport to the marina. Please continue to check the BHIT website or app for updates. BHIT is running the barge today for a limited time for essentials to be delivered to the island. This includes the re-supply of food and beverage to the market and dining establishments.
County, Village, and Municipalities Still Under SOE
The Village of Bald Head Island remains under a State of Emergency. The Village is recommending that visitors not travel to the island at this time. There are still many roads closed in the area. You can view the road conditions for the entire County, including Bald Head Island HERE.
Brunswick County and Southport remain under a State of Emergency. Please use our “Useful Links” below to stay informed about what is happening on the mainland in response to PTC #8.
The roads are now passable through Pleasure Island to Wilmington, so NCDOT reopened the Fort Fisher Ferry at 1:00 p.m. yesterday. The ferry is essential for ongoing emergency response efforts as it provides critical access to Southport. NCDOT is asking that unless your needs are urgent, please refrain from using the ferry to allow a faster recovery.
Update on Recovery
Grinder Pumps
With the pumping operations underway, the Village has shifted to an additional priority in the storm recovery process. Some of the island’s grinder pumps are underwater. With the power still on, these pumps are continuously pumping stormwater to the wastewater treatment plant, adding additional unnecessary flow to the plant.
Village Utilities has been shutting submerged grinder pumps off to better manage the flow at the plant. As we do this, we are notifying the occupants that the sewer service is inoperable and that the home can no longer be occupied. Since we are finding more homes occupied, we will be notifying the property owners via CodeRed (sign up HERE) and publishing the list of grinder pump shutoffs in future Village Voice announcements.
Stormwater Pumping
Both 10-inch pumps have been pushing stormwater off the island at the ocean outfalls since 6:00 p.m. Tuesday (9/17). The BHI Club and the Village continue to coordinate to push water through lagoon bypass and outfall at BHI Creek.
Last night’s update provided as much detail as possible on the Village’s stormwater management procedures. Please be patient as we continue to pump water off the island to lower the water table which will allow the rainwater to percolate into the sandy soil. This is key to getting the low spots with deep pools of rainwater to recede. We are now on day 4 of post-storm recovery. During Hurricane Florence, it took 3 weeks to get the water off the island.
Road Conditions
The Village is now updating the road conditions through the Brunswick County Emergency Operations Center so they can be shown on the County-wide Road Conditions and Closures map. You can view the map HERE. Our list of impassible/inaccessible roads as of 4:00 p.m. yesterday can be viewed HERE.
As roads are being cleared of water, Public Works is coming behind to sweep the roads of debris.
Mosquito Control
The Village started spraying for mosquitos yesterday as the standing water is a prime breeding area. Not all mosquitos carry diseases, but since there is a possibility, they could, this measure is taken to protect the public’s health. HERE are a few tips for mosquito bite prevention.
Swimming Advisory
State officials have advised against swimming in coastal waters impacted by this storm, this includes the beaches and waterways of BHI especially since we continue to pump stormwater to the beach and creek. The advisory will remain in place until water testing can be completed and that is on hold until roads are safe on the mainland.
We have uploaded some photos and UAV (drone) video that were taken on 9/18. View HERE.
Trash Pickup
The Village’s contractor, GFL will be picking up household trash today (9/20) and tomorrow (9/21). Please make sure you put out your YES sign if you have waste in your bins.
Village Offices Closed Today (9/20)
Village offices remain closed today (9/20) with office staff working remotely. You may contact them by email or phone (directory).
The Island Package Center and Post Office will be open today from 11:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. USPS mail and packages will be available for pick up and any packages that arrived at the IPC before the storm. Check the package tracker (HERE) to determine if your packages made it there.
Helpful Links
- Click Here to See Latest Brunswick County Road Conditions and Closures in Real-Time
- North Carolina Department of Transportation‘s DriveNC.gov map (using the Potential Tropical Cyclone filter). If you click on the pin, you will see the date that the road is expected to be repaired.
- Brunswick County Sheriff’s Office, NC’s social media pages and mobile app.
- Bald Head Island Transportation, Inc. website.
- Barge website
- Island Directory
- Village social media channels
- Southport Emergency Information
- Brunswick County PTC #8 Updates
- Village Emergency Preparedness webpage (what did you forget to do before this event?)
Updates on Social Media & Webpage
Continue to check our social media and/or media webpage for more frequent updates We aim to provide an email blast update every morning and evening as we recover from this event.