Last Saturday, I witnessed a terrifying event of road rage. A man in a white pick up was driving past me when a man in a red smaller truck passed him in the oncoming lane, well exceeding the speed limit. After getting in front of the white truck, the driver of the red truck slammed his brakes so hard his truck jerked sideways and came to a stop. The white truck slammed on its brakes. There was smoke, most likely from the abrupt stop and it was hard to tell if both trucks had hit but the red truck soon sped off. The man in the white truck, visibly shaken, pulled over immediately and got out of his vehicle. A few minutes later the red truck sped by, not stopping even though the other driver was standing outside his truck. What could this person in the red truck’s intentions have been? What if the white truck had not stopped fast enough and someone was killed? Why do driver’s feel that using their vehicles as a weapon is ever right?
A woman in Hampstead posted about a similar event that involved her 16-yearold son. A man, apparently mistaken by the identity of the driver that had cut him off on the highway, stopped his vehicle and attempted to pull the 16-year-old from his vehicle in broad daylight. The young man has filed a police report and has photos of the man and his vehicle.
A person driving over the Surf City high rise bridge witnesses a man driving a dark grey truck aggressively in the early evening. The driver was swerving toward oncoming vehicles, speeding and jerking his vehicle all over the road, then the driver turns around in the traffic circle and heads back over the bridge. By the time local law enforcement was contacted the vehicle was out of sight.
A woman driving from Wilmington toward Hampstead in stop and go traffic, was shocked when a motorcyclist drove alongside her vehicle, tapped on the window and tried pulling on her car door handle. When he moved on she witnessed him continuing this behavior, as well as weaving in and out of traffic. The witness called 911 and was transferred several times to different agencies but to no avail.
Why is everyone so angry? Too little sleep, poor quality food or too many vehicles on the road? Is it one thing or is it the perfect storm of people feeling disconnected and ignored? This dangerous trend affects all of us so be aware and be patient.
James City, North Carolina has a beautiful high-rise bridge that travels over the Neuse River. At the base of the bridge is a park where people kayak and fish. A few years ago several submerged coffins, visible in the shallow water just feet from the shore, were discovered by kayakers. A local historian believes they could be graves dating back to 1866 when the freed slave community, the Trent River Settlement, resided nearby.
The settlement suffered a great loss from smallpox that resulted in the death of over 200 people. A cemetery was created next to the hospital that cared for the patients. The historian believes these coffins were part of that cemetery.
My question is this. How exactly did a giant concrete bridge get constructed within feet of these visible coffins without anyone noticing? Are there more coffins? Did the DOT know the graves were there? This is all a bit disturbing.
The main concern from the historian is what happens now? Who is going to protect this site and preserve its history?
Remember knowledge is power, under water graves are spooky and road range should never be tolerated.