Cumberland County installs five stream gauges to improve flood monitoring after hurricanes; grant funded project highlighted

Cumberland County officials on a county-commissioners agenda presentation described a recently installed network of stream gauges intended to improve flood monitoring and evacuation planning in inland flooding events.

Gary Cromplin, interim emergency management director, told commissioners the effort was a partnership with state agencies and the Duke Energy Foundation and that the county was awarded $27,650 through the foundation's accelerator grant to install gauges that measure water stage and, in some cases, flow. "I'm excited today to discuss a project that's been a long time coming here in Cumberland County," Cromplin said, describing gauges as instruments designed "to help predict evacuation areas in case of inland flooding during hurricanes or tornadoes."

The county originally applied for six gauges but due to COVID-era supply chain and cost increases installed five, Cromplin said. He identified installed locations in the presentation as Little Rockfish Creek (near Spring Lake), Black Bride Road downstream from Lake Upchurch, Jumping Run/Jump Around Creek (Spring Lake area), Linden (at the Sampson County line) and Lake Williams. The presentation included photographs of installations and a map marking sites.

Cromplin said the gauges feed data to the publicly accessible NC DIAMOND (streamgage) network and that residents and officials can set alerts for specific stages. "You can also use this platform to set alerts. So whenever there's a moderate flood stage ... these are the tools that we use to answer those questions," he said.

Commissioners asked how the gauges would inform emergency response; Cromplin traced the program back to lessons from Hurricanes Matthew and Florence, when officials said they had less than 24 hours' notice for some evacuations and identified gaps in local monitoring and warning coverage. He said the RISE (Regional Innovations for Strong Economies and Environments) accelerator program, administered by the North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency and funded in part by the Duke Energy Foundation, supported the county's competitive application.

Cromplin also warned the board of recent vandalism: in an inspection he said a solar panel had been removed and wires cut on one gauge. "These stream gauges are there to help you. And, if you see any vandalism, please report it to the emergency management office," he said.

The presentation concluded with a certificate of appreciation presented to Andrea Webster and the North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency for supporting local mitigation projects. Commissioners generally expressed support and urged continued pursuit of state and federal resources to augment local resiliency work.

The presentation was given as Item 2 on the agenda and did not include a decision item; commissioners asked questions and publicly recognized the grant and installations.

For residents: the NC DIAMOND network provides public access to the gauges' data and allows users to set alert thresholds for nearby stations.