Several mailboxes, trash bins destroyed in Silver Lake area

NEW HANOVER COUNTY, NC (WECT) - Four mailboxes and several garbage bins were destroyed early Monday morning in a Monkey Junction neighborhood.

“We woke up to a big, huge bang," Natosha Longo said. "It sounded like there was an explosion.”

Longo lives on Antoinette Lane in the Silver Lake area of New Hanover County, and was sleeping yards away when she heard the ruckus.

On Wednesday morning, one yard in the community was littered with broken mailbox posts, trash, furniture remnants and other debris.

“It had to be a drunk driver," Longo said. "Not 100 percent sure but they took out all four mailboxes and two trash bins.”

Longo said whomever is responsible fled the scene. She filed a report with the State Highway Patrol.

As a mother of three, Longo said safety in her community is paramount,

“It is extremely concerning, especially when you have small kids,” said Longo. “We have three elementary school children that live here, and there’s about a dozen kids that live on this street alone. What if they were coming through at 12:30 in the afternoon when my children are getting off the school bus?"

With the scattered debris still along the road, Longo is wasting no time to ensure her neighborhood is back up to par.

“I’m going to go ahead and clean all of this up, just so everyone in the neighborhood doesn’t have to look at it," Longo said. "With traffic coming by, I worry somebody might hit it. It’s awfully close to the road.”

It isn’t the first time her mailbox has been destroyed. Longo said she has had to replace it three times in the past six years.

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