Crashes in Holly Ridge have spiked more than 600% this year as heavy truck traffic tied to Meta’s $27 billion Hyperion data center floods the rural community’s two-lane highways, The Gulf States Newsroom writes.
Police records show 64 crashes between January and mid-September, up from just nine last year, including fatal wrecks and collisions involving unlicensed dump-truck and 18-wheeler drivers en route to the construction site. Traffic counts near Holly Ridge Elementary have nearly tripled since Meta began building less than a mile away, forcing the school to close its playground and raising safety concerns as trucks idle and rumble past classrooms.
State leaders have touted Hyperion as a major economic win, promising thousands of construction jobs and about 500 permanent positions. But residents report unsafe driving, property damage, dust, noise, and utility disruptions as truck volumes rise.
