BUXTON, N.C. — It is suspected to be leaking oil into the ocean, as surfers in the Buxton area of Hatteras Island report occasionally coming out of the water with an oily sheen on their wet suits.
As 10 On Your Side reported to you earlier this year, the former Naval Facility Cape Hatteras is coming back to haunt the popular beach after decades of erosion. It was decommissioned in the 1980s, previously used to detect submarines. That stretch of the beach closed to the public last fall.
The Army Corps is working with samples they took from the site last month, to confirm if petroleum is still leaking into the ocean.
Now they’re confirming more geophysical work will be done on the site this summer.
This will be used to find out if there are more fuel distribution systems — deep in the soil.
In past meetings, Army Corps reps were asked if fuel tanks are still there. They said they do not know.
One sticking point left with the community — the Army Corps is only authorized to remove parts of the site that are deemed a danger to the public. This means things like large rebar, concrete slabs and other pieces that are not contaminating the soil cannot be removed by the Army Corps.
This sparked a letter signed by a group of local leaders — pleading with the federal government for a more aggressive cleanup. For now, the Army Corps is waiting for the results of its recent soil samples — saying they will share the data with the community once it’s ready.
