Hundreds join hands on the sand in peaceful protest

KURE BEACH, NC (WWAY) — Hundreds of peaceful protesters gathered at the Kure Beach fishing pier this afternoon to help spread awareness about the topic of off-shore drilling for oil.

Those in attendance said they believe that the approval of off-shore drilling on the NC coast would be bad for the environment. Instead they are pushing for NC leaders to look into wind power further, and other sources of clean renewable energy.

US Senators Thom Tillis and Richard Burr favor allowing drilling along the coast of the US which would include that of North Carolina. Many of those who support the drilling say that there would be an economic gain for the states who drill off-shore.

The protesters today said they don’t think the economic gain is worth the potential environmental damage that could occur on the beautiful coast of the state.

Hands Across the Sand met at Kure beach at 12:00 pm and will meet at Wrightsville Beach at 6:00 pm.