BOILING SPRING LAKES, N.C. (WECT) – Heavy rains from Tropical Storm Debby have caused damage to the work being done to rebuild the dams in Boiling Spring Lakes in Brunswick County, but town leaders say the damage should not delay the scheduled completion of the project. The Sanford, Upper, Pine Lake and North Lake dams all failed during Hurricane Florence in 2018, and work started in 2023 to rebuild them.

“The Pine Lake Dam project site sustained damage to the project site,” said a email statement sent by town clerk’s office. “Specifically the upstream cofferdam was lost due to the amount of rain. The downstream cofferdam remains intact. However, due to the loss of the upstream cofferdam the downstream cofferdam has been overtopped. Once water levels drop, the contractors will repair the damage. This should not affect the overall project schedule.”

Work to rebuild the dams is scheduled to be finished in early 2026, at a cost of more than $50 million. Voters approved a bond referendum for $20 million as part of the financing. Federal and state funding has also contributed to the rebuilding effort.

“North Lake dam project site and Upper Lake project site both need some clean up but both sites came through the event intact,” the statement from the town government continued. “There are problems at the Samford Dam project site. The liner used to protect the earthen diversion ditch has been compromised. This has resulted in scouring of the slope of the diversion ditch. However, the diversion ditch is still operating as designed and conditions are improving hourly. The contractor continues to monitor site conditions and will manage the loss of the liner accordingly. Water levels are continuing to recede. Once water has receded to an acceptable level the contractor will make required repairs to the diversion ditch. This will not result in an impact on the overall project schedule.”

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