Rachel Lewis Hilburn

Carolina Beach is the largest of the three beach towns in New Hanover County.  At a population of about 6,300, it’s around three times the size of the county’s next largest, Wrightsville Beach and 95% white, according to the U.S. Census.  Median household income is $62,000 a year – higher than nearby Wilmington. 

North Carolinians in two Congressional districts went to the polls Tuesday.  In the 3rd district, Republican Greg Murphy beat Democrat Allen Thomas by a wide margin – nearly 25 percentage points.  That's not a surprise in a district long represented by the late conservative Congressman Walter Jones.  But the ninth district was a different story. 

  This edition first aired February 21, 2019.

Coastal communities on barrier islands will not exist as they are in 30 to 150 years from now.  

Wilmington Mayor Pro Tem Margaret Haynes hopes to win a third term on City Council.  While she admits a love-hate affair with public service, overall, she is proud of her contributions.  

Hurricane Dorian is taking its time creeping up the southeastern coast.  Forecasters with the National Weather Service say they’re expecting sustained wind speeds along the coast of 65-85 mph when the storm passes the Cape Fear region.  

The major concerns:  wind damage and flooding. 

From the Cape Fear Region to Surf City, National Weather Service Meteorologist Mark Willis says winds could gust up to 100 mph.  Dorian makes its closest pass late Thursday into Friday. But a little wobble to the left or right could change the intensity.

As a powerful Category 2 hurricane, Dorian could bring life-threatening storm surge and flooding. But the intensity of those impacts depend on how close Dorian comes to the North Carolina coast.

"The most likely arrival time of tropical storm force winds will be early Thursday morning and through the day with the worst conditions expected Thursday afternoon through the evening hours."

That’s National Weather Service Meteorologist Matt Scalora. 

North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper has issued a mandatory evacuation order for the state’s barrier islands.  

A dozen or so people, diverse in age, ethnicity, and political leanings, are engaged in a year-long experiment in civil discourse.  Each month, we bring you a conversation with members of the group.  We’re observing how the tone and quality of the conversation changes over the course of the year – and how relationships can evolve among people with very different views.

Michael Isikoff is the Chief Investigative Correspondent at Yahoo! News.  He’s also the host of a six-part podcast, Conspiracyland, that explores how a fictional theory grew up around the murder of Seth Rich, a 27-year-old employee of the Democratic National Committee. 

New Hanover Regional Medical Center could soon be up for sale.  The county-owned hospital system, approved by voters in the early 1960s and opened in 1967, is doing well.  

A dozen or so citizens, diverse in age, ethnicity, and political leaning, come together once a month around a table to eat lunch, discuss political issues, and learn about one another.  

 In January of 2019, we launched something new and a bit different:  CoastLine:  Beneath The Surface.  In WHQR's mission statement, we acknowledge the importance of civil discourse.  Now, instead of talking about it, we're practicing it with a citizens’ brigade of sorts.

A dozen or so people, diverse in age, ethnicity, and political leanings, are participating in a year-long experiment in civil discourse.  Each month, we bring you a conversation with members of the group. We’re observing how the tone and quality of the conversation changes over the course of the year, and whether the time participants spend together can forge real connections across political boundaries.

Stand-up comedy is blossoming around southeastern North Carolina.  Comedy enthusiasts can now catch comics in the act at local breweries, arts events, and theatrical venues.  But while the arts scene flourished in the Cape Fear region,  it was only 2014 that the first full-time comedy club opened in Wilmington.  Before that, Timmy Sherrill and Cole Craven worked together in the basement of The Soapbox Laundro-Lounge as Nutt Street Comedy Room. 

The candidate filing period opened Friday for the November municipal elections.  It was a quiet kick-off during the long July 4th weekend.

A dozen or so people, diverse in age, ethnicity, and political leanings, are engaged in a year-long experiment in civil discourse.  Each month, we bring you a conversation with members of the group.  We’re observing how the tone and quality of the conversation changes over the course of the year and whether people with different views will grow to value time with one another. 

Coral reefs are among the clearest harbingers of climate change.  That’s because they live at the upper end of their thermal spectrum – which means they’re sensitive to slight changes.  

Whales are the largest mammals on earth.  They’ve also been around a long time.  According to UC Berkeley’s Evolutionary Biology website,  the first whales evolved over 50 million years ago from a terrestrial ancestor. 

Paula Poundstone is the first female to win a Cable ACE Award.  She’s also picked up an American Comedy Award for best Female Standup Comic.  

The Magnificent Ramshorn Snail and the Greenfield Ramshorn Snail haven’t been found in the wild for more than a decade.  

The East Coast of the United States – specifically North Carolina – is known for its beautiful beaches, but it’s not really on the map for world-class, surf-able waves.  Nonetheless, the Cape Fear region is growing a surprisingly robust surf culture.  

A dozen or so people, diverse in age, ethnicity, and political leanings, have agreed to be part of a year-long experiment in civil discourse.  

The timeline for the Cape Fear Crossing project is getting longer.  The proposed 9.5 mile bridge and road planned between Brunswick and New Hanover Counties is raising concerns for stakeholders along the route.  

Cape Fear Crossing is the 21st century plan to pick up where the Cape Fear Skyway left off.  

Introducing today's guest seems almost like an exercise in absurdity.  For fifteen years, Steve Inskeep has anchored what is now the most listened-to news radio program in the United States.   Hosting NPR’s Morning Edition requires a daily wake-up time of 2:45 AM.  Despite that, or perhaps because of it, he’s written two books and expects to see his third published in early 2020.   

Halibut and yellowtail flounder fish populations are at all-time lows in the Atlantic.  That’s according to Seafood Watch of the Monterey Bay Aquarium.  Cod, once prolific in the North Atlantic, is struggling.  Closer to home, catfish from the Cape Fear River and blue crab and mullet from the Brunswick River have high enough levels of mercury that officials recommend avoiding them.