Hurricane Dorian cleared the Beaufort County Detention Center of inmates on Sept. 4. The impending hurricane did not put a damper on retrofitting and replacing locking doors and replacing the entire locking system in the jail; however, it may be delayed a bit just the same.

“The last word that I heard was that it might not be until November or December that they’re here to do the work,” said Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Charlie Rose.

The months-long project will displace inmates, but until construction begins, it is unclear how many inmates will have to be housed elsewhere or for how long.

Rose said 30 to 40 inmates were housed in other facilities in advance of Hurricane Dorian; inmates were returned to the facility two days later. He estimated another 30 to 40 Beaufort County inmates were already being housed in other facilities at a cost of approximately $50 a day per inmate.

When it comes to storms, the jail, which occupies the basement of the Beaufort County Courthouse, must be evacuated. For the Sheriff’s Office, making the decision to evacuate has little to do with the category of storm, or even whether it’s a tropical system at all.

“It’s all about the forecast of how much rain or how much flooding there might be between us and the Washington waterfront and in Plymouth, because that’s where our food comes from,” Rose said. “We’ve had several instances where there’s been flash flooding. It comes in through Second Street; it’s just as a likely we’ve had issues with the water table, pushing sewage up through the drains. … It’s about as bad as it sounds. You can’t have people in your facility when stuff like this is going on.”

The jail has long been a subject of controversy in the county; over the past several decades, it has been cited by inspectors from the Department of Health and Human Services for a variety of violations of state statute. Currently, Beaufort County Commissioner Jerry Langley is advocating for a referendum on the 2020 ballot, asking Beaufort County voters if they would support a new jail. Langley has said that it is only a matter of time before the courts will decide if Beaufort County will have a new jail — this year, three separate lawsuits alleging violation of inmates’ rights are active against Beaufort County.