NORTH TOPSAIL BEACH—Plans are underway to have routine checkups on the sandbag revetment at North Topsail Beach.
The town is planning to hire a contractor to monitor the conditions of the bags.
Michael Owens has been a landscaper at North Topsail Beach for over 15 years and he's witnessed firsthand the destruction. He said he has seen everything from houses being moved off of the beach to houses condemned because of the eroding.
"As a matter of fact, I used to take care of two pools at the reef that got undermined and ended up washing out into the water," said Owens.
The sandbag revetment is holding strong at the north end of the beach and there will be more personnel out monitoring the bags.
"This is a significant asset to the town to protect the north end from flooding. It requires significant attention and maintenance of town staff to ensure that it remains as structural integrity,” said Stuart Turille, North Topsail Beach town manager.
Turille said the contractor that the town plans to hire will make routine, monthly inspections. When there are major weather events, such as a tropical storm, then town leaders would contact the contractor on an as-needed basis.
"There's a lot of people here on vacation and others who actually live here and they're just holding on to what they have...especially when the storm comes," said Owens.
With additional surveillance, the town is making sure the sandbags are there to stay.