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Town to enforce water restrictions
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Jeff Davis photo At the Pittsboro Street Fair . . . There was plenty to see and do at the annual Pittsboro Street Fair Saturday. From homemade crafts to good food and music, the day was a success. Above, Camryn Thomas is framed by a couple of pieces of stained glass as she walks down the street. County considers mandatory water rules By Randall Rigsbee It may feel as if October cruelly yielded no rain, but the reality is that the Army Corps of Engineers at Jordan Lake recorded a total of 3.05 inches of rainfall for the month. All but a fraction of it, however, fell within the first week of October, leaving the last three weeks dry. And what rain there was fell far short of resolving a lengthy drought. It comes as little surprise to R.C. “Duck” Duckson, assistant operations manager with the Army Corps of Engineers at Jordan Lake, who noted that October and November are historically dry months. The average October rainfall is 3.17 inches. That historical pattern is holding true now, with no rainfall in the forecast. The drought is evident at Jordan Lake, where the elevation on Tuesday was 212.64 feet, which is approximately 3 1/3 feet below the normal pool of 216. “That’s far from the record,” Duckson said. The record low at Jordan Lake, he said, is 207.85 feet, recorded on Nov. 12, 1986. While the lake remains above that low-water mark, Chatham County utility officials continue to monitor the situation, though they have not yet implemented mandatory conservation measures. County officials continued this week, as they have since late September, asking water customers to use voluntary conservation measures such as holding back on water lawns and plants and washing cars. Will Baker, director of the Chatham County Utilities Department, said he will likely make a decision by the end of this week on whether to enact mandatory conservation measures for county water customers. Baker said the county’s request for voluntary measures, coupled with lower usage because of the time of year, has been helpful. “People aren’t watering as much,” Baker said Tuesday. “We’re holding off on the move to mandatory restrictions right now,” he said. Siler City officials called for mandatory water restrictions for municipal water customers effective Nov. 7, but Baker noted the town’s water situation is more critical than the county’s.
Truck hits, kills walker in Siler City By Joseph Pardington A pedestrian was killed as he crossed the street Monday, October 31 at 8:06 p.m., according to the Siler City Police Department. The incident occurred on East Third Street near Stout Interiors, authorities said. Police identified the victim as Timothy Oliver Scott of Siler City. Scott was struck by a Townsend’s pickup truck that was driven by William Howard Dixon, according to police. Scott was 38 years old the report said. “According to a witness the Scott subject was walking in the roadway,” the report said. Dixon told police he never saw the pedestrian, according to the report. “There was no alcohol involved in the accident and at this time there will be no charges filed,” the report said. |
Mandatory regulations become effective November 7 By Joseph Pardington Having already briefed Siler City’s major water consumers on Friday, the town issued a statement on Monday calling for mandatory water restrictions from all consumers beginning Nov. 7. “The Siler City Board of Commissioners is requiring that all users of the Town of Siler City’s water begin mandatory reductions in the amount of water they consume,” a press release from the town stated. “This applies to household as well as industrial users and is necessary due to he loss of water storage capacity as a result of the prolonged drought conditions and pessimistic long-range weather forecasts.” Siler City Mayor Charles Turner on Monday said the reservoir was eight feet and one inch low, with a loss of one- to one-and-a-half inches per day. “We didn’t lose that much over the weekend,” Turner said. “But we lost some.” Mandatory reductions begin when a water supply is nine feet low. At the present rate of decline, Siler City’s water supply will be nine feet low, or very close, by Nov. 7. The press release stated, “It is required that each household, business and industry reduce water consumption by 20 percent with the mandatory restrictions effective Nov. 7, 2005. With the mandatory restrictions in place, it will be unlawful to water any lawn, shrubbery, flowers or other vegetation, wash any automobile, or other similar equipment, including commercial washing, wash outside areas, such as sidewalks, patios or driveways, or to use water for other similar purposes, use water for any decorative fountain, pool or pond, introduce water into any swimming pool, make any nonessential use of water for commercial or public use. Noted NCSU teacher dies in Bonlee wreck By Joseph Pardington A noted Professor Emeritus of Architecture from North Carolina State University was killed in a wreck Friday, Oct 28 at the intersection of NC 902 and Old US 421. North Carolina Highway Patrol Trooper A.E. Scott said that Robert Paschal Burns Jr. of 421 Clarence Phillips Road, Bennett died as a result of the two-vehicle accident. Burns was traveling eastbound on NC 902 when he came to a stop sign at Old US 421, Scott said. Burns was 71. Burns stopped at the stop sign, and then he pulled out in front of a car that was traveling northbound on Old US 421, Scott said. The northbound vehicle—driven by Marilyn Grayhill Cox, 37, of 115 Pinecrest Drive, Bear Creek -- struck Burns’ vehicle on the passenger’s side, Scott said. Cox and her 2-year-old passenger -- Macy Davenport of the same address-- were shaken up, and taken to Central Carolina Hospital in Sanford, Scott said. Burns was pronounced dead at Chatham Hospital in Siler City, Scott said. Burns’ wife witnessed the accident from another car that she was driving in front of Burns, Scott said. “She was actually present at the scene,” Scott said. Marvin Malecha, dean of the College of Design at NCSU, briefly spoke about Burns, who was first a student and then a professor at NCSU. “Professor Burns was an incredibly talented teacher who chose a life in education, Malecha said. Burns’ choice to teach others architecture instead of building things himself had a profound impact on the field, Malecha said. |
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The Chatham News is Published Every Thursday by The Chatham News Publishing Co, Inc at 303 West Raleigh Street, Siler City, NC 27344, (919)663-3232
Alan D. Resch Editor-Publisher |
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