AP-US-VIRUS-OUTBREAK-OCRACOKE-ISLAND

Outer Banks island ravaged by storms and virus restrictions

OCRACOKE, N.C. (AP) — A secluded tourist destination on North Carolina’s Outer Banks is having an extremely tough year. Ocracoke Island is recovering from the most damaging hurricane in its recorded history and the near-economic paralysis wrought by one of the world’s worst pandemics. A little more than half of the island’s businesses have reopened since the hurricane struck and pandemic-related restrictions were lifted. Their owners are hoping to recoup some of their losses as tourists return, albeit in smaller than usual numbers. They don’t have much time: The hurricane season is expected to heat up again here in August.

WILD HORSE DEATH

Horse dies on North Carolina coast after choking on apple

COROLLA, N.C. (AP) — A wild horse on the North Carolina coast has died after officials say it choked on an apple, leading to warnings for people not to feed the herd. The Corolla Wild Horse Fund said on its Facebook page that a yearling colt named Danny choked on an apple last Friday. The organization said its veterinarian administered a sedative to try and relax the horse’s esophagus and allow the obstruction to pass. But it was discovered that the apple had been lodged long enough to cause an infection and rupture his esophagus. Officials blame Danny’s death on “humans who had no regard for the safety of the horses.”

ELECTION 2020-GOVERNOR

Forest raises $2.4M, still behind in N.C. gov’s money race

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Forest recorded his largest fundraising haul in his gubernatorial bid, but he’s still way behind Democratic incumbent Roy Cooper in the money race. The Committee to Elect Dan Forest says it raised $2.4 million from mid-February through the end of June and had $2 million in cash. Cooper’s campaign already announced last week it had raised close to $6 million during the extended second quarter and had $14 million in the bank. A separate committee designed to help Cooper and other Democratic Council of State candidates says it raised $6 million. Campaign finance reports were due last Friday.

RACIAL INJUSTICE-NORTH CAROLINA-STATUE

Statue of antebellum N.C. chief justice at court removed

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A statue of a 19th-century North Carolina Supreme Court justice has been taken away by workers from the entrance of the state Court of Appeals building. Chief Justice Thomas Ruffin is known in part for a ruling in which he concluded a slave owner’s power over a slave was absolute. The building is located across the street from the old state Capitol and once housed the Supreme Court. The statue was removed following recent topplings and damage to Confederate monuments in North Carolina and in other states. The Department of Natural and Cultural Resources will store the statue temporarily.

BC-NC-HIKER DEATH

Man, 54, dies while hiking in Pisgah National Forest

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (AP) — A 54-year-old man has died while hiking in western North Carolina’s Pisgah National Forest. The Asheville Citizen Times reports that Robert James Frye, died July 5. Frye was hiking with a friend on the border of the Pisgah and Nantahala national forests and a few miles below the Blue Ridge Parkway. Transylvania County Sheriff David Mahoney said it appeared that Frye “had some medical issues and died of natural causes.” Frye was from Campobello, South Carolina. The Pisgah and Nantahala national forests are said to be two of the busiest in the country. They draw about 5 million visitors a year.

RACIAL INJUSTICE-VIRGINIA-STATUE

Descendant of J.E.B. Stuart wants statue at his birthplace

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A direct descendant of Confederate Gen. J.E.B. Stuart says he wants to bring his ancestor’s statue from Richmond to the cavalryman’s birthplace in Patrick County in southwest Virginia. The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports Dr. James E.B. Stuart V, a Richmond orthopedic surgeon, formally asked Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney and the City Council on Monday to allow the transfer of the statue to the J.E.B. Stuart Birthplace Preservation Trust Inc. The trust is a 29-year-old nonprofit organization that operates Laurel Hill on a portion of the farm where the Confederate grew up in Ararat near the North Carolina border.

INMATE DEAD-JAIL

Officials: Inmate dies at county jail in North Carolina

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — An inmate in a North Carolina jail has died two days after he was booked into the facility. News outlets report 51-year-old Michael Daniel Mangan was found unresponsive in his Mecklenburg County Jail cell in Charlotte early Sunday morning. The Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release that jail staff and first responders attempted CPR on Mangan before he died. The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation will investigate his death. Records obtained by The Charlotte Observer show Mangan was booked into the jail Friday on larceny charges. The release says he was put in a separate unit to screen for coronavirus symptoms.

SWIMMER-DEAD

Officials: 65-year-old swimmer dies at North Carolina beach

OCRACOKE, N.C. (AP) — A swimmer that had been reported missing at a beach on North Carolina’s Outer Banks has died. The National Park Service said in a news release Cape Hatteras National Seashore Rangers received a call about the 65-year-old swimmer from Pennsylvania 15 minutes after he went missing near Pony Pen beach on Ocracoke Island Sunday. The release says the swimmer was spotted face down in the water by a ranger at the scene. Officials brought him to shore and administered CPR but their efforts were not successful. The release says a large rip current was seen at the site the man went missing.