NEWS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 8, 2000

CARY POLICE CUT RIBBON ON NEW FIRING RANGE

CARY, NC – The Town of Cary officially opens its first, state-of-of-the-art firing range at Shearin Harris nuclear facility during a late-morning ceremony and demonstration today at 11:00 AM. In addition to the brief ceremony, Cary’s Emergency Response Team will give an exciting demonstration, and there will be supervised, live firing for VIP’s. Land for the Cary range is being leased for 10 years from Carolina Power & Light for $1 per year.

"This new facility will help ensure that Cary Police officers receive the highest level of necessary training," said Cary Police Chief Windy Hunter. "Practicing shooting a weapon is as much about protecting innocent bystanders with accuracy as it is anything else. Fortunately, we don’t find ourselves typically having to discharge weapons during our daily course of business. This, however, increases our need to find a safe place to keep our firearms expertise honed."

Cary’s FBI-style site includes 10 target stands with 50’ of open area for shooting-while-moving and special response training, and at a cost of $300,000, the Town of Cary has created a range that is as safe for people as it is for the environment. The open-air facility is surrounded on two-sides by a 20’ tall earthen berm with an EPA-approved backdrop that ensures that no bullet lead can contaminate nearby Harris Lake. Cary Police collects the lead which is sold every few years; the copper shell casings are recycled.

"Until now, we’ve had to spend precious time away from policing waiting in line with many other agencies that also had to borrow time at other facilities," said Lt. Dave Wulff. "Not only will Cary’s 123 officers benefit from longer, more frequent training, but we may also be able to help out some of our neighboring jurisdictions with their training needs." Wulff added that the FBI has also expressed an interested in the Cary facility.

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MEDIA NOTE: To get to the range, go to Shearin Harris. At the "Y" on Shearin Harris Road, turn left through the gate and down the gravel road (the paved road would take you to the Harris plant). Continue 0.5 miles, past the Wake County Fire Training Center and take the first left (gravel again). Range parking lot will be 0.3 miles ahead.