Mail delivery delays in Durham neighborhood: residents await answers amid USPS winter weather impact

DURHAM, N.C. (WTVD) — Durham residents in the Eno Valley neighborhood say that mail had not been delivered in two weeks.

The Triangle was hit with back-to-back winter weather events in late January, impacting access to roads to varying degrees across the region. However, conditions have since improved.

ABC11 spoke with several Eno Valley neighbors about the impact of these delays.

“Even my 82-year-old mother was able to get out (of the neighborhood). But we still don’t have mail,” Alicia Clark said.

Christina Cone highlighted the impact on essential items: “I have medications and some prescription glasses that are on traceable mail carrier that I know arrived probably around January 30 that have not been delivered.”

She added, “The way our health system is (and people) using mail order pharmacies, that is a critical service now that people count on, especially for heart medications and those kinds of things. They don’t have good solutions, and it’s actually a public health risk at this point when they’re not getting delivered medications.”

Alan Cohen said the process to re-route medications can be burdensome and time-consuming, saying, “I’m going to CVS to transfer all my medications from online pharmacy.”

Residents have also faced frustration in seeking answers. Cone sought answers at the post office Thursday but left empty-handed despite waiting 45 minutes.

“The supervisors never presented themselves. I had to leave to go to work,” she said. “I also tried calling later that day. I never got an answer. And then it picked up and then immediately got a busy signal so I couldn’t get any answers locally.”

Shortly after ABC11’s interview on Friday, a mail truck delivered some items to Cone’s home, though not all were received. Cohen reported receiving just one envelope Friday and is still awaiting additional deliveries.

About four miles away, Susan Turner and Jeff Williams also experienced delays.

Turner mentioned a bill due Friday that she never received: “If the City of Durham in case they’re listening — it’s not my fault. I’ve never gotten the bill. And all my tax documents and tax forms.” She noted seeing a carrier pick up mail from neighborhood mailboxes but not deliver any.

Williams noted that the lack of delivery became apparent about five or six days after the winter storms, based on conversations with neighbors.

No one Eyewitness News spoke with can recall delays of this magnitude in years past. Residents also say they have received no direct communication from the United States Postal Service (USPS) about the situation, though its website notes the impact of winter weather on their operations.

In a statement to ABC11, a USPS spokesperson wrote:

“The Postal Service’s goal is to deliver the mail, but safety remains our top priority following recent winter storms. Post Offices in North Carolina have resumed operations, but a few routes in the Triangle area remain impacted. We will look into delivery in Eno Valley to ensure normal delivery resumes soon. Customers with questions about their delivery can call 1-800-ASK-USPS. We thank customers for their understanding and continued support.”

Congresswoman Valerie Foushee’s office is pursuing a formal inquiry into the matter.

Residents are now calling for clearer communication. Williams said, “Just some type of acknowledgement… Even if it’s like, ‘hey, we messed up’ or ‘we’re really backed up because of the bad weather.'”

Clark added, “It would be so nice to have transparency of ‘here’s what’s actually happening.'”