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Cooper Asks Congress For $8.8B In Florence Recovery
Governor Roy Cooper is asking Congress for more federal funding to recover from Hurricane Florence, saying the total $8.8 billion requested is comparable to the help Washington has provided for other disasters since Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
Cooper on Wednesday asked congressional budget-writers and the state's congressional delegation to provide another $6.3 billion in federal recovery funds on top of the $2.5 billion already expected.
If approved, the federal funding would make up for about half the total $17 billion in damage from September's historic rains and flooding.
Groups Will Sample Guilford County Private Wells For Water Pollutants
State and local officials plan to test dozens of drinking water wells around Piedmont Triad International Airport next month. They're trying to find out if the wells are contaminated with potentially dangerous chemicals.
Greensboro water department officials have previously found elevated levels of compounds known as PFOS and PFOA in the city's drinking water. The city has since invested in technology to help filter out the contaminants. The source is believed to be firefighting foams used around the airport.
Joe Johnson is with the Guilford County Health Department. He says they sent letters to more than 60 residents in the Horsepen Creek and Brush Creek areas asking for permission to test their private wells.
The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality and local officials will host a public information session to answer questions about the process on December 4 from 6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. at the Guilford College United Methodist Church.
Report: River's Industrial Chemicals Come From Plant, Others
A study performed for a chemical-maker accused of polluting North Carolina's longest river finds the entire waterway used by thousands for drinking water is laced with industrial compounds.
The Cape Fear Public Utility Authority said Wednesday the report shows last week's deal between Chemours and the state environmental agency to cut chemical emissions of GenX does too little for its customers.
The September report says Chemours is responsible for about half the chemicals detected near the river intake providing drinking water to about 200,000 customers around Wilmington. Consultants testing the river for 10 months found other industrial chemicals entered the river upstream of the Chemours chemical plant south of Fayetteville.
Possible Absentee 'Irregularities' Examined In Congress Race
The North Carolina elections board is investigating potential absentee ballot "irregularities" in the 9th Congressional District — a probe that apparently led board members to delay finalizing the district's election results.
Elections board spokesman Patrick Gannon confirmed probe details Wednesday, the day after the board voted to push back a decision on the 9th District until at least Friday.
Republican Mark Harris leads Democrat Dan McCready by 905 votes in the eight-county district.
Police: Body Found In North Carolina Is Kidnapped Teen Girl
Investigators believe a body found in North Carolina is a 13-year-old girl kidnapped from her home three weeks ago.
Authorities said at a news conference Wednesday that preliminary tests show the body found a day earlier is that of Hania Aguilar.
The body was found in a body of water in Robeson County about 10 miles south of the mobile home park where she was kidnapped on Nov. 5.
Frigid Weather Forces More Closures On Blue Ridge Parkway
Frigid weather has led to more closures on the Blue Ridge Parkway.
A "real-time" map showed Wednesday most of the parkway through North Carolina and Virginia was closed. A Facebook post said snow and ice forced the park to close the Craggy Gardens area to vehicles. The area was still accessible by foot.
Also, the North Carolina State Park system said on Twitter Wednesday that Mount Mitchell State Park was closed because of snow on N.C. 128 iced over from the parkway to the summit.
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