Orthodontist in Harrisburg NC

Atrium Health is seeking state approval of an $85.8 million satellite hospital in Cabarrus County, according to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services.

The hospital would add inpatient, surgical services and fixed MRI services to Atrium’s emergency department on Rocky River Road in Harrisburg, an Atrium health spokesman told The Charlotte Observer Tuesday.

Atrium Health Harrisburg would be the result of relocating 24 acute care beds and one operating room from the Atrium Health Cabarrus hospital in Concord, the Department of Health and Human Services said in a news release Tuesday.

The project would be completed by December 2025. Atrium Health, which does business as Charlotte-Mecklenburg Hospital Authority, filed a Certificate of Need application for the project on Aug. 15, according to state records.

The state has 150 days from Sept. 1 — or the end of January — to complete its review of the application. The North Carolina Certificate of Need law requires health care providers such as Atrium to get a certificate before building a new health care facility or adding beds to existing facilities.

A public hearing is set for Oct. 17 at 10 a.m. at the Cabarrus County Library auditorium, 27 Union St. N., Concord.

Written comments can be submitted via email or regular mail. The email address is DHSR.CON.Comments@dhhs.nc.gov. The mailing address is Healthcare Planning and Certificate of Need Section, Division of Health Service Regulation, 2704 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-2704.

A number of groups including the Cabarrus Economic Development team voiced their support for the hospital expansion in Harrisburg.

The groups pointed to Harrisburg’s growth over the past decade. The town’s population was around 11,500 in 2010, according to U.S. Census data. It grew to just under 19,000 by 2020.

The letters said that when someone needs more advanced care, people must travel out of Harrisburg to get it.

A “significant” number of people in Harrisburg travel each year to receive inpatient care at Atrium Health Cabarrus, the letters state.

“I believe this proposal to develop inpatient and surgical services at Atrium Health Harrisburg will provide the local access to inpatient and outpatient care that patients need in a location that is more convenient,” Page Castrodale, executive director of Cabarrus Economic Development, wrote in her letter of support.

The plans in Harrisburg follow other big announcements from the health care provider in recent months.

In May, Atrium announced plans to combine with Illinois and Wisconsin-based Advocate Aurora Health, making the new company the fifth largest hospital system in terms of revenue.

Atrium is also behind a new $1.5 billion innovation district that includes a four-year medical school, hotel, residential tower, offices and retail close to uptown. It’s being called The Pearl.

This story was originally published September 6, 2022, 4:32 PM.

A brown, thick substance emerged from WRI customers' faucets after water service was restored in two communities near Harrisburg.

HARRISBURG, N.C. (WBTV) - There were so many warnings. Residents knew, state regulators knew, and multiple WBTV Investigations showed that if the utility provider Water Resources, Inc. did not set up a secondary water connection, two communities near Harrisburg could lose water completely.

The last week of June 2022 that’s exactly what happened. Despite the dozens of warnings, the tale of Water Resources, Inc. (WRI) highlights the consequences a slow-moving bureaucracy can have on the well-being of North Carolinians.

For three years, two communities in Harrisburg were only relying on one well for water. The second one had to be shutdown because of high levels of radium contaminants, according to records from the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality.

The safety of their water source was just part of the problem. Complaints from residents in Rocky River Plantation and Highland Ridge are scattered across customer logs WRI must submit to the North Carolina Utilities Commission.

Customers are so accustomed to issues they know the name of WRI’s owner, Dennis Abbott, not a common shared fact among North Carolina communities.

NCDEQ, NCUC, NCDOJ and, to some extent, the Office of the Governor all have responsibility in regulating and enforcing the rules governing WRI and other utilities. Residents in these communities are calling on them to finally hold the utility accountable but have serious doubts because of their lack of action so far.

When the two communities lost water in June, WBTV reached out to residents for an interview about their situation. Nearly 50 showed up to lodge criticisms against WRI.

Customers complained that, despite testing from NCDEQ showing the water is not contaminated, the water is hard and often filled with sediments. Additionally, the water often comes out brown after the system is flushed or when water service is restored after an outage.

“The water is so hard you could almost chew it,” one resident said.

Additionally, customers said the brown water stains and ruins their appliances.

“We’ve replaced so many appliances. Our hot water heater four times in the last 10 years,” a homeowner said.

Tubs, countertops, faucets have all been tarnished, trashed and replaced, they said, because of the silky, hard water that they rely on. Almost all the residents in the interview said they refuse to drink the water and instead buy bottled water.

When the water was restored after two days, residents sent video of the brown substance that emerged from their faucets.

NCUC and NCDEQ both know about these problems. Two homeowners WBTV interviewed numerous times previously, Eric Olsen and Lenny Devitto, have filed complaints about WRI with the NCUC. Both Devitto and Olsen requested that an emergency operator by appointed. Devitto’s request was denied and Olsen’s hearing was in October and NCUC has still not issued an order.

“The NCUC is well aware of this at this point.,” Olsen told WBTV.

“As far as I’m concerned, it’s their responsibility for us being without water today.”

In an email to WBTV, NCUC legal counsel Sam Watson said that a ruling on Olsen’s hearing should be coming soon.

Statement from NCUC’s Sam Watson:

“I cannot comment on matters pending before the Commission and cannot give you a specific date by which orders in such cases will be issued. However, Mr. Olsen’s leaking meter has been repaired, and as I indicated in my earlier responses to him, the Commission should issue an order on his complaint before too much longer. Also, Water Resources indicated in February that it had replaced all of the meters in Rocky River Plantation, an open issue from its last rate case raised by Mr. Devitto.”

The leaking meters were addressed by WBTV’s first investigation into WRI on May 18, 2021 and were only fixed after WRI applied for a new rate increase with the NCUC.

The issue of the well and water source is regulated by NCDEQ.

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality says having just one well presents a “significantly elevated public health risk.”

On August 12, 2019, Water Resources Inc said it would fix the health issue by connecting with the Town of Harrisburg. Nearly three years later, after numerous violations and missed deadlines, it still hasn’t happened.

In July 2021, NCDEQ and the North Carolina Department of Justice got a consent judgement against Water Resources, setting deadlines for completing a connection.

But that still hasn’t been done. A letter from the Attorney General’s Office in June 2022 reveals NCDEQ agreed to move the deadline again, mandating a connection by completed and service active “no later than October 10, 2022.

Court records show Water Resources wasn’t held in contempt for not following the consent judgement and hasn’t been forced to pay the $4,500 in fines it’s accrued for being in violation.

One of the reasons for moving the deadline to connect was because, according to the letter from NCDOJ, NCUC staff made an alternative suggestion for completing the connection, slowing down the project more.

One agency getting in the way of another and leaving these customers frustrated and without water.

“I mean, do we need to go to the Governor? He oversees the Utilities Commission. He appoints those people. Somebody needs to crack down on them or somebody needs to get fired,” Devitto said.

WBTV reached out to these state agencies to ask what they’re doing to fix the problem for WRI customers and ensure a long lasting issue like this isn’t repeated in another community.

Statement from NCDOJ:

“NCDOJ is continuing to coordinate with DEQ on this issue as their legal counsel. Separately, we are also looking into in the consumer complaints that North Carolinians have been filing with our office. We have received a few complaints, and we continue to encourage people to file consumer concerns with our office as well as with DEQ. You can file a complaint with DOJ’s Consumer Protection Division at www.ncdoj.gov/complaint or 1-877-5-NO-SCAM. We will continue working with DEQ to resolve this matter and ensure clean drinking water for North Carolinians.

Statement from Mary Scott Winstead, Deputy Communications Director for the Office of North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper:

“The Governor expects DEQ and the Department of Justice to continue to use their authority to resolve this issue and water providers must follow the law.”

Statement from NCDEQ:

“Residents are right to be frustrated with the ongoing service issues with their water system operator. DEQ and DOJ are using our authority to force improvement from this operator. We are closely monitoring the situation and committed to ensuring a resolution for the community. We will explore ways to make sure community members have access to updates from our agencies going forward.”

WBTV also interviewed WRI’s legal counsel Patrick Buffkin about the ongoing issues for WRI customers.

WBTV spoke with a legal counsel of Water Resources, Inc. regarding water-related issues facing residents in the Harrisburg area.

On why the water is brown and filled with sediment and milky:

“That is something that happens when a water system loses pressure. The water sits still and then when the system is re pressurized you can have both of those results.”

On whether having a second water connection would have prevented the water outage:

“It is difficult to say, but that is the purpose of the water adequacy regulations that we are working on resolving those issues.”

On why it has taken so long to connect to a secondary water source:

“A good part of the delay was to explore and explore all options for resolving the problem and that is really something that Water Resources did to the benefit of customers. The company didn’t want to spend more money to fix the problem than was necessary.”

On whether customers can expect another rate hike application after construction for the connection is completed:

“It’s a little too early to tell right now when a rate case might happen… but it is true as a general rule, the more money that a utility spends, the more likely it is that a rate increase is going to be necessary.”

Residents who are struggling with issues with their utility have several options to lodge complaints.

File a Complaint with NCUC Public Staff

File a Complaint with NCUC

File a Complaint with NCDOJ

File a Complaint with NCDEQ

Email the WBTV Investigates Team at investigates@wbtv.com

Copyright 2022 WBTV. All rights reserved.

The King made a pop-up appearance at the restaurant and surprised visitors by handing them their orders as part of a sponsorship deal.

HARRISBURG, N.C. — It's been nearly 30 years since Richard Petty competed in NASCAR's premier series but his legendary presence continues to leave fans in awe.

On Monday, people who went to get food at the Hardee's location in Harrisburg were greeted by Petty, draped in his signature cowboy hat and a Hardee's apron.

RELATED: NASCAR: Christopher Bell wins at New Hampshire

Each person that ordered by the drive-thru or dined in was greeted by Petty who gave them "The Bird," or chicken sandwiches.

Hardee's customers expressed joy witnessing their order being handed to them under that classic Petty smile.

"It's always nice to go out and meet fans," said Petty. "There will be kids that have watched Cars and they know Mr. The King but they don't know Richard Petty so it's interesting."

Petty teamed up with Hardee's to give customers "The Bird" in connection with a sponsorship deal where the company plans to use the NASCAR Hall of Famer as an endorser.

"Hardee's started in North Carolina and then they got involved in racing," said Petty. "So that got all of the teams interested in Hardee's and once we started eating there, there was no other place to go."

The 85-year-old Randolph County native posted an interesting remark leading up to Monday's event.

I’m done. That’s it. I’m giving you The Bird.

— Richard Petty (@therichardpetty) July 15, 2022

RELATED: Panthers project fallout continues as Tepper company files complaint against York County

Hardee's has been seen as an associate sponsor in recent weeks for Erik Jones, who drives for Petty GMS Racing, which is partially owned by Petty.

Petty won 200 races and seven championships in his NASCAR Cup Series career, which lasted from 1958 to 1992. His win total is by far the most in NASCAR history and he is tied with Dale Earnhardt and Jimmie Johnson for most titles. Petty was an inaugural member of the NASCAR Hall of Fame when it opened in 2010.

HARRISBURG, N.C. (WBTV) - As serious storms roll through the Carolinas on Monday, some people suffered damage to their homes from trees and roads are being blocked.

In a Harrisburg neighborhood off Camelot Drive and Somerset Lane, debris can be seen everywhere with trees uprooted that landed on multiple homes.

Unsettled weather continues, with a First Alert late Thursday into Friday

There is still a lot of damage left to clear

One tree can be seen through a second-floor window. Thankfully, the Harrisburg Fire Department and homeowners say nobody was injured.

“I looked out the window and it was like buckets coming down,” homeowner Brent Whichel said. “I saw the wind pushing it one direction and immediately it switched went another and I knew we were in trouble. All of the limbs, you look outside our window, all you can see is green. So, for about 30 to 45 seconds it was crazy.”

Storm response. Major damage in Harrisburg. Please avoid area. ⁦@Harrisburg_NC⁩ pic.twitter.com/myV4Rn2Dfp

— Harrisburg Fire (@HarrisburgFire) May 23, 2022

Town manager Rob Donham said 10 properties were damaged in the storm with the damage ranging in severity. One home was severely damaged and evacuated. One vehicle was damaged due to falling debris and there were no reports of vehicular wrecks during the storm.

In Concord, the city says 3,844 customers lost power during the storm but it is all restored now after an hour and 15 minutes of restoration.

The Public Works Department will be focusing on storm debris pick up over the next few weeks. This may cause delays to the regular yard waste pickup schedule. The Town will post updates if delays occur.

In East Charlotte, in a neighborhood on Burnt Umber Drive, downed trees blocked roads and trapped one person inside their car.

Charlotte Fire says no one was hurt, and that person safely made it out.

While there was no serious damage to homes in the area, there’s still plenty of trees to clear.

“It looked like a war zone,” said one neighbor.

“It leaves me speechless, really,” said another.

“I’m grateful though that it was just this tree and that it only hit my car and that nobody else in the neighborhood was hurt at all.”

Copyright 2022 WBTV. All rights reserved.

HARRISBURG, N.C. (WBTV) - Experts from the National Weather Service spread out across the area Tuesday to survey damage from Monday’s storms.

One of the hardest-hit neighborhoods was off Camelot Drive and Somerset Lane in Harrisburg. Early Tuesday morning, a huge tree that had been uprooted was lying in the front yard of one home, with caution tape wrapped around the yard.

NWS confirmed Tuesday the damage in the area came from an EF-1 tornado.

Related: Severe storm causes major damages to homes in Cabarrus County and roads in Charlotte

The National Weather Service in Greenville-Spartanburg said an EF-1 tornado touchdown in northeast Mecklenburg County Monday afternoon and crossed into Cabarrus County.

The NWS said the tornado has winds of 100mph and a path of 10 miles from Hidden Valley in Charlotte to Harrisburg in Cabarrus County.

Brent Whichel’s home did not receive any significant damage, but the yard had tree branches and debris everywhere. One came down and damaged a shed in his backyard.

“I looked out the window and it was like buckets coming down. I saw the wind pushing it one direction and immediately it switched went another and I knew we were in trouble. All of the limbs, you look outside our window, all you can see is green,” Whichel said Monday.

Ten homes in the Camelot Drive subdivision were damaged, with a tree coming through one house. The homeowners weren’t there at the time.

A car was also damaged. The good news in the subdivision is no one was hurt.

Lisa Gardner of Charlotte said, “I’m shocked,” as cleanup efforts were underway 24 hours after the storm. Gardner is in disbelief at what happened.

“I’ve never been through a tornado before so it’s scary to begin with,” said Gardner.

She was home with her family when the storm hit. “I said is it a tornado, and just as I said that, he said well your car is under the carport now and the carport is collapsed, and then I happened to look at the front window, then I said well, there’s a fire in the front yard now because the transformer, a tree came down and hit the transformer,” said Gardner.

NEW: We’re seeing more of the storm damage along Rocky River Road in N.E. Charlotte. Trees on cars, snapped trees, a collapsed car porch and downed lines. Most of this area was blocked off yesterday. @WBTV_News pic.twitter.com/tyggWx7gfy

— Lowell Rose (@LowellRoseNews) May 24, 2022

“It happened so fast man, it came through for about 2 to 3 minutes, did it’s thing, it was just a lot of wind,” said Maurice Tory of Charlotte.

Neighborhoods along Rocky River Road and Burnt Umber Lane in Charlotte saw some of the worse damage from this EF-1 tornado

Bryana Sherman of Charlotte said, “just a big mess that I guess me and my parents, we’re going to have to clean up.”

Sherman’s car was hit by a large tree, and her neighborhood covered in tree damage.

Neighbors tell WBTV this storm was unique.

“It was like a storm that had like a mind of its own, it did the damage in the streets but it didn’t really mess up anybody houses or anything like that was a storm in the streets,” said Tory.

A true testament because no one was injured in this storm, and houses were mostly spared.

Gardner said, “without a doubt that Gods hand was over this house yesterday, you can look at all of the damage around the house, but there’s no damage to my house.”

Mecklenburg County Department of Emergency Management said the last tornado to touchdown in the county was in 2020.

County officials say this damage is minor compared to the last tornado, and they don’t expect the damage to qualify for emergency aid.

Additional surveys may be conducted on Wednesday in Chester County, S.C. and Union County, N.C., according to the NWS.

Stay with WBTV for more details about the NWS’ damage surveying. For the most up-to-the-minute weather updates, download the WBTV Weather App.

Copyright 2022 WBTV. All rights reserved.