News Release

NPS Incident Management Team Hurricane Florence September 30 Update

Successful turtle hatch on the seashore!

NPS

News Release Date: September 30, 2018

Contact: Incident Information Officer

Harkers Island, N.C. – The National Park Service Incident Management Team (IMT) is responding to national parks impacted by Hurricane Florence. At this time, 55 National Park Service employees from 29 parks and 15 states and the District of Columbia are assigned to the incident. The public should not enter closed areas of parks until stabilization and restoration efforts are complete.

Cape Lookout National Seashore – CLOSED (EXCEPT FOR BEAUFORT VIC)

• Heavy equipment operators smoothed sections of Back Road on South Core Banks.

• Resource managers excavated a turtle nest to assess the successful hatch rate.

  • 82 eggs confirmed hatched.

  • Two eggs were unhatched.

  • No live or dead hatchlings were in the nest.

• The Beaufort Visitor Information Center is open.

  • Hours of operation are daily from 8:30 am to 5 pm.

• The Harkers Island Visitor Center will reopen on Tuesday, October 2.

• Reservations for Long Point Cabins have been canceled for the remainder of the season.

• Reservations for the Great Island Cabins have been canceled through October 25.

  • Cancellations may be extended; an update will be provided when available.

                                                            
Moores Creek National Battlefield – CLOSED

• Flood waters continue to recede, but park roads remain flooded.

• Crews can now access Patriots Hall via roads.

• Crews continued to remove hazard trees and limbs from near the visitor center.

• Formal assessments and stabilization cannot begin until water recedes.

• A reopening schedule is not available at this time.

-NPS-