Oregon Inlet is closed to vessels drawing more than 2 feet, essentially shutting down the charter fishing fleet with four days left in the bluefin tuna season and Easter week approaching. Petty Officer Kathryn Bruner with the Coast Guard in Wilmington said Saturday that the closing was prompted by the latest U.S. Army Corps of Engineers survey, which showed that search-and-rescue vessels can no longer get out of the inlet. Emergencies will be handled by helicopters out of the Coast Guard’s air station in Elizabeth City, she said. A buffer zone of 100 yards on either side of the Bonner...
