Special Reports

  • A Look Back at the Mobil Fight

    A proposal by Mobil Oil in the mid-1980s to drill off the Outer Banks set off a fight that pitted the oil company against residents and the state’s governor.

  • Dashed Hopes and Dry Holes

    The history of oil drilling off the East Coast and in North Carolina has been one of dashed hopes and dry holes.

  • Offshore Drilling Series Begins

    This is the first of more than 40 stories that we will publish over the next two months on offshore drilling and its potential effects on the N.C. coast.

  • Below Normal Hurricane Season Expected

    Although the 2015 hurricane season got off to an early start with Tropical Storm Ana, forecasters say overall tropical weather activity in the Atlantic will likely be below normal.

  • State Fines Duke Energy $25 Million

    The N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources yesterday levied the largest environmental fine in state history against Duke Energy for groundwater contamination from coal ash ponds at the company’s L.V. Sutton power plant near Wilmington.

  • Sea-Level Rise Redux

    There were no fireworks this week over the release of a new draft report on sea-level rise along the N.C. coast. The new report contains no scary forecasts, no hockey stick graphs.

  • Hurricane Hazel: What We’ve Learned

    In the last of three parts, we take a look at how hurricane forecasting, state planning for emergencies and building codes have changed since Hazel hit 60 years ago today.