Here is a look at the ten most viewed stories of 2023 on publicradioeast.org.
Our most-viewed story was the sudden closure of the North Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles’ Jacksonville License Plate Agency in mid-November. NCDMV confirmed that the office was shuttered because of contract violations by the operator of the agency.
Marty Homan, communications manager for the NCDMV, said an investigation is underway, and because of that investigation he was unable to give details of the nature of the violations. The Jacksonville agency had been operated by Cecil Hargett, Jr. under the business name of Hartag, LLC, since 1993.
It remains closed as the DMV looks for a new operator.
Public Radio East’s coverage of a fire that began in the Croatan National Forest between Maysville and Havelock in April was the second-most viewed story of 2023, and PRE’s video of the fire soon after it was discovered was the most-viewed video on publicradioeast.org. The video was also broadcast, with permission, by The Weather Channel.
The fire grew from 7,000 to more than more than 32,000 acres in the space of two days. The U.S. Forest Service said it cost $12 million dollars to get the fire under control and put a perimeter around it to keep it from spreading.
It took two-and-a-half months, until the end of the first week of July, to get the fire fully contained. Several wildfire fighting crews came to eastern North Carolina from across the southeastern U.S. to help douse the fire during that time.
Read more:
Wildfire in the Croatan: 7,000 acres burning, poor air quality halts after school activities
Great Lake fire grows to 35,000 acres, southern region wildfire crew bringing help to ENC
Southern U.S. regional wildfire fighters join battle against Croatan National Forest blaze
Smoke dried pine needles impacting Great Lakes Fire in Croatan National Forest
Great Lakes Fire now 90 percent contained
Great Lakes Fire 95% contained, road repairs underway
Our third most-viewed story at publicradioeast.org was about North Carolina’s famous carnivorous plant and whether it would be added to the endangered species list.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife announced in August that the Venus Fly Trap is not facing an imminent threat of extinction now or in the foreseeable future and therefore does not warrant listing under the Endangered Species Act. While the plant occupies a narrow geographic range – growing wild only in North and South Carolina – it’s expected to remain stable because protection and active management is expected to remain unchanged.
The Venus flytrap still remains a state threatened species, though, under North Carolina law, and all populations are protected, making it a felony to poach them.
In at number four on the list of most-viewed stories on piblicradioeast.org in 2023, a warning from a local police department to car owners that they may be more vulnerable to having their vehicles stolen. Lumberton Police joined law enforcement nationwide in warning that people who drive a 2015 to 2021 Hyundai or a 2011 to 2021 Kia may be targeted by car thieves because of a design flaw that allowed thieves to drive away with the car with just a USB cable and a screwdriver.
A TikTok challenge brought the design flaw to light. The Lumberton Police Department suggested that people who drive those vehicles park in a secured garage whenever possible, use a steering wheel lock bar or wheel boot, or block in the vehicle with one without the security flaw.
An earthquake on the western side of the state got the attention of a lot of people. That was the fifth top-viewed news story on publicradioeast.org in 2023.
The magnitude 2.6 earthquake was recorded in late May in the North Carolina mountains. Officials with the U.S. Geological Survey said the quake’s epicenter was 2.5 miles northwest of Canton in Haywood County. Its depth was about .07 of a mile.
Shortly after the start of 2023, LGBTQ terms were removed from the North Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles’ do-not-issue list for license plates. That was the 6th most-viewed story at publicradioeast.org in 2023. More than 200 terms were removed from that list after a review late the previous year.
The so-called “Do Not Issue” list contains over 9,000 items that state officials deemed too indecent to be printed on personalized license plates. It formerly included “GAYPRIDE” “LESBIAN” and “QUEER”, entries that prompted DMV Commissioner Wayne Goodwin to launch a formal review of the list for the first time in its 20-year history.
The tragic death of the Carteret County Director of Human Services in an apparent murder-suicide near Morehead City in April was the 7th most-read article of 2023 at publicradioeast.org.
The body of Jaime Long was found inside the home and her husband David was discovered in the backyard with an apparently self-inflicted gunshot wound. He died shortly after arrival at the hospital. Jaime Long, 47, was the county’s human resources director for more than six years.
Investigators said David Long had been dealing with mental health problems prior to the shooting, which may have been a factor.
Continuing coverage that began the previous year of the Camp Lejeune Justice Act and the fight for compensation for those harmed by toxic water aboard the base continued in 2023. PRE’s 8th most-read story of the year was the in first hearing in Camp Lejeune water contamination suit, in which the judge urged quick action on the many lawsuits that were filed.
District Judge James Dever said If each case in the Camp Lejeune Water Contamination lawsuit went to trial independently, it would take the four U.S. District Court of Eastern North Carolina judges 1,900 years to get through — around the same time span of the Roman Empire.
In August 2022, President Joe Biden signed the Camp Lejeune Water Contamination Act; it allows people to sue and recover damages for harm from exposure to the contaminated water if they spent at least 30 days on base, including those who were in-utero and born by mothers who drank the water, between August 1, 1953, and December 31, 1987. People have just two years to file those claims.
More recently, just before mid-December, Public Radio East shared the story of the owner of a New Bern business who says the facility is in jeopardy amid a dispute with North Carolina Railroad Company about a property easement. It has quickly become the 9th most-read story on publicradioeast.org.
Maurice Howland owns the 100-year-old, recently renovated Shop Class building. Howland said he recently received a notice from the North Carolina Railroad Company, which claimed to now have a 200’ easement on the property rather than the previously established 100’ easement that was in place when he bought the building in 2016.
He said the notice stated that if he didn’t pay NCRR a fee and sign an agreement, legal action to remove the encroachments - Shop Class’s century-old building and fencing – would soon commence. The wider easement also impacts a lumber yard across the street from Shop Class and two homes that are both around 100 years old.
Lawyers for the North Carolina Railroad Company said because discussions regarding this dispute are ongoing, it would be inappropriate to comment publicly on the matter at this time.
So far, there has been no apparent resolution to the issue.
An eastern North Carolina high school teacher was charged with assault in March after video appeared to show the 71-year-old woman hitting two students with an extension cord. That story rounds out the top-ten most viewed on publicradioeast.org in 2023.
The Lenoir County Sheriff’s Office said Patricia Graham was shown in a video, shot by someone in the South Lenoir High School classroom, assaulting one of the students with a cord. The students involved were 16- and 17-years-old. Calling the video deeply disturbing, Lenoir County Sheriff Jackie Rogers said his department will not tolerate this type of behavior in schools from people in positions of authority.