Tag Archives: Carteret County
Mullet fishermen: A journey from Carteret County to Florida
The salt mullet trade to Cuba began to fade at the end of the 19th century, however. In the 1880s and 1890s, the first railroads reached Tampa. The railroads then began to inch further into southwest Florida, opening up the fresh fish trade to other parts of the United States for the first time. Like so many in Carteret County, Miss Lela’s husband wasn’t going to miss out on the opportunity. “So in July of 1911 we come on the sharpie to Morehead (City), me and him and our first two children, and then we got on the train to New Bern and stayed the night,” Miss Lela told Ben Green. They took the train to Tampa, boarded a steamer down the coast to Bradenton and then took a taxi to Cortez. “Once we got settled I liked it,” Miss Lela remembered. “But that first year I was still so homesick for North Carolina that I cried all Christmas Day.” photos, >click to read< 13:15
Fire destroys a shrimp boat following an explosion, man injured, flown to UNC Burn Center
Carteret County Fire Marshal Eddie Lewis said George Thomas Guthrie, 56, who lives near Mill Creek, and his crew were loading gear on a 35-foot shrimp boat docked at Jones Fish House off Broad Creek Loop Road when the boat exploded and caught fire. Mr. Guthrie was the only person onboard at the time of the explosion. His father, Phillip Guthrie, was standing nearby on the dock and was reportedly thrown back when the boat exploded, but had no serious injuries, according to Mr. Lewis. The fire marshal further said the family loaded George Guthrie into a vehicle and transported him to Carteret Health Care in Morehead City for initial treatment. There was no further word on George Guthrie’s condition as of Tuesday afternoon. >click to read< 07:26
Jonathan Robinson, commercial fishing advocate, Carteret County Commissioner and former N.C. House member
The county announced Carteret County Commissioner and former N.C. House member Jonathan Robinson, 68, of Atlantic, died late Thursday. In a brief Friday morning release, the county said it is “deeply sadden(ed)” by the commissioner’s death. Mr. Robinson, born in Morehead City into a fishing family, had represented Carteret County’s Down East District 6 on the county board since November 1998. Prior to that, he served in the North Carolina House of Representatives from 1995-96. He is survived by his daughter, Staci Robinson Rinehardt, son, Mathew Robinson, and a grandson. “His voice for the commercial fishing industry was always based on his own understanding of the people who make up the industry and his unwavering pride in being part of that community,” said Ms. Amspacher. >click to read< 15:53
Video: Emergency crews battle shrimp trawler fire near Core Creek bridge
Emergency crews from several departments battled a boat fire near the Core Creek bridge Tuesday evening. Carteret County Fire Marshall Eddie Lewis says the fire was reported at about 4:45 p.m. and crews arrived to find a shrimp trawler burning near the dock. The trawler– which Lewis says he can comfortably confirm was a fishing vessel — was a 1987 built, 56-foot boat named the Melissa Ann II– and was occupied by two people at the time of the fire. Video, photo’s >click to read< 20:05
Carteret County board blasts MFC “draconian measures,” in resolution
Carteret County will join supporters of the commercial shrimp fishing trade, voicing opposition to the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission’s decision to pursue tougher restrictions for shrimp trawling, accusing the MFC of putting politics ahead of good management. Commissioners passed a resolution Monday during their February meeting, casting a unanimous vote of “no confidence” on the MFC decision. “There’s some significant economic implications for Carteret County and for all of the tidewater (through granting this petition),” Commissioner Jonathan Robinson said in an impassioned speech in the county boardroom. He accused members of the MFC of politicizing the issue, rather than relying on scientific findings for rulemaking. “When you go in the face and eyes of all your advisers and take that kind of authoritative action, they’ve clearly demonstrated they don’t have the objectivity to make sound decision on this issue,” Mr. Robinson said. continue reading the article here 09:20
North Carolina Counties and fishermen’s associations file lawsuit over flounder supplement
Several coastal counties have joined with commercial fishermen in litigation against the State of North Carolina regarding last year’s decision by the Marine Fisheries Commission to adopt new regulations on the southern flounder fishery by using the “Supplement” process. The complaint was filed on Sept. 23 in Carteret County Superior Civil Court in Beaufort. The plaintiffs include NCFA Inc., the Carteret County Fisherman’s Association Inc., Carteret County, Dare County and Hyde County. Defendants served with the complaint are the secretary of the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality, the director of the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries and all members of the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission. The practical effect of the litigation is to stop the closure of the recreational and commercial southern flounder fisheries, scheduled to take effect this fall. Read the story here 08:53
Lawsuit in the works over Southern Flounder
Carteret County will join fisheries groups in fighting the state Marine Fisheries Commission’s southern flounder supplement changes to reduce catch, which local fishermen say will kill the flounder industry here and cause a ripple effect in other local economic sectors. “I fished for a living, I know what the implications would’ve meant for my family if you’d have taken half of my income from the fall,” Commissioner Jonathan Robinson told the county board. “It means somebody’s not going to have Christmas. It means somebody’s going to have to decide whether to be cold this winter or have something to eat.” On his recommendation, county commissioners unanimously agreed to a resolution supporting a potential lawsuit from state and regional fishermen’s associations, primarily the N.C. Fisheries Association, against the MFC during their Monday meeting in the administration building. Consideration of the complaint follows the November 2015 adoption of a supplement to southern flounder management regulations, a process which critics say circumvented standard amendment procedures after stopgap reassurances in the form of stock assessments failed to pass peer review. “It didn’t pass the smell test. The science was flawed. It couldn’t pass independent peer review – the chief criteria for the development of any new regulations,” Mr. Robinson said. Read the rest here 14:19
Carteret County approves resolution against critical habitat designation – Public input on the proposal is open through May 24.
JDNews.com – 
BEAUFORT — Carteret County has gone on record against a federal proposal to designate area beaches as critical habitat for nesting sea turtles. “The designation of critical habitat 35 years after the listing of the loggerhead sea turtle (as a threatened species) is the wrong management tool for the conservation of the species, and the Carteret County Board of Commissioners will continue to support the protection and recovery of the loggerhead seat turtle by utilizing effective management guidelines and rules already in place, while evaluating new practices as they develop,” the resolution reads. continued
