Rain Likely Into The Weekend
December 1, 2023
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
Tonight: A chance of showers and thunderstorms, then showers and possibly a thunderstorm after midnight. Patchy fog after 9pm. Low around 65. South wind 5 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New rainfall amounts between a half and three quarters of an inch possible.
Saturday: Showers and possibly a thunderstorm. Patchy fog before 9am. High near 72. South wind 5 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New rainfall amounts between three quarters and one inch possible.
Saturday Night: Showers and possibly a thunderstorm. Low around 64. South wind around 5 mph becoming west after midnight. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.
Sunday: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms before noon. Cloudy, with a high near 69. Northwest wind 5 to 10 mph.
Sunday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 50. West wind around 5 mph becoming calm in the evening.
Monday: Partly sunny, with a high near 64. West wind 5 to 10 mph becoming northwest in the afternoon.
Monday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 41. North wind around 5 mph.
Tuesday: Partly sunny, with a high near 62. North wind around 5 mph becoming west in the afternoon.
Tuesday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 43. West wind around 5 mph.
Wednesday: Sunny, with a high near 59.
Wednesday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 36.
Thursday: Sunny, with a high near 61.
Thursday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 41.
Friday: Sunny, with a high near 66.
Byrneville Elementary’s Ty Hagan Wins Second In Sandy Sansing Spelling Bee
December 1, 2023
Correctly spelling words like “parallel”, and “anxious”, Byrneville Elementary School fifth grader Ty Hagan took second place in the annual Sandy Sansing Spelling Bee Thursday night. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
2023 Atlantic Hurricane Season Ends As 4th Busiest For Most Named Storms In A Year
December 1, 2023
The above-normal 2023 Atlantic hurricane season, which officially ended Thursday, Nov. 30, was characterized by record-warm Atlantic sea surface temperatures and a strong El Nino.
The Atlantic basin saw 20 named storms in 2023, which ranks fourth for the most-named storms in a year since 1950. Seven storms were hurricanes and three intensified to major hurricanes. An average season has 14 named storms, seven hurricanes and three major hurricanes.
Hurricane Idalia was the only U.S. landfalling hurricane in 2023. It made landfall as a category-3 hurricane on Aug. 30 near Keaton Beach, Florida, causing storm surge inundation of 7 to 12 feet and widespread rainfall flooding in Florida and throughout the southeast.
Tropical Storm Ophelia made landfall as a strong tropical storm with 70 mph winds on Emerald Isle, North Carolina, on Sept. 23 causing widespread heavy rainfall, gusty winds and significant river and storm surge flooding in portions of eastern North Carolina.
Hurricane Lee made landfall as a post-tropical cyclone in Nova Scotia, Canada, on Sept. 16. Swells generated by Lee caused dangerous surf and rip currents along the entire U.S. Atlantic coast. Strong winds with hurricane‑force gusts from Lee caused extensive power outages in Maine and in parts of Canada.
“The Atlantic basin produced the most named storms of any El Nino influenced year in the modern record,” said Matthew Rosencrans, lead hurricane forecaster at NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center — a division of NOAA’s National Weather Service. “The record-warm ocean temperatures in the Atlantic provided a strong counterbalance to the traditional El Nino impacts.”
The eastern Pacific basin hurricane season was also above normal with 17 named storms, of which 10 were hurricanes and eight of those major hurricanes. From Aug. 16 to 21, Tropical Storm Hilary brought widespread heavy rainfall and flooding to Southern California, with some areas receiving up to 600% of their normal August rainfall. Hilary resulted in the first ever issuance of Tropical Storm Watches and Warnings for the Southern California coastline by NOAA’s National Hurricane Center. In addition, the Center distributed key hazard focused messages for Hilary in Spanish through the agency’s new language translation project.
Hurricane Otis made landfall near Acapulco, Mexico, on Oct. 25 as a category-5 hurricane with sustained winds of 165 mph. Otis holds the record as the strongest landfalling hurricane in the eastern Pacific after undergoing rapid intensification in which wind speeds increased by 115 mph in 24 hours.
This season, NOAA Hurricane Hunter aircraft flew 468 mission hours to collect atmospheric data that is critical to hurricane forecasting and research, passing through the eye of a hurricane 120 times and deploying over 1,400 scientific instruments. Since 2020 through this 2023 season, NOAA’s two Lockheed WP-3D Orion have flown 40% more hurricane mission flights than the preceding four years (2016-2019).
Another Cantonment Business Burglary Reported At Back To The Rack Thrift Store
December 1, 2023
Another Cantonment business burglary is under investigation.
Someone forced their way into the Back to the Rack Thrift Store in the 400 block of Highway 29. A door to the business was pried open.
Wednesday, we reported about burglaries at Pittman’s Cantonment Building Materials in Cantonment.
Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 850-433-STOP or the ECSO at 850-436-9620.
Escambia Opioid Abatement Funding Survey Now Open
December 1, 2023
Escambia County’s Opioid Abatement Funding Advisory Board is seeking public input for uses for funding from the National Opioid Settlement. The public is asked to share their opinion by completing a survey no later than end of day Wednesday, Dec. 20.
The survey can be completed online or printed and emailed to homelessness@myescambia.com. Complete the survey online at MyEscambia.com/OpioidAbatementFundingSurvey. Click here to access a printable version of the survey. Surveys can also be completed and dropped off at the below Escambia County libraries and community centers:
- Southwest Library – 12248 Gulf Beach Hwy., Pensacola
- Pensacola Library – 239 N. Spring St., Pensacola
- Westside Library – 1301 W. Gregory St.. Pensacola
- Tryon Library – 1200 Langley Ave., Pensacola
- Molino Library – 6450-A Hwy. 95A N., Molino
- Century Library – 7991 N. Century Blvd., Molino
- Beulah Senior Citizens Center – 7425 Woodside Dr., Pensacola
- Felix Miga Sr. Citizens Center – 904 N. 57th Ave., Pensacola
- Lexington Terrace Community Center – 700 S. Old Corry Field Road, Pensacola
- Marie Ella Davis Community Center – 16 Raymond St., Pensacola
- Mayfair Community Center – 701 S. Madison Dr., Pensacola
- Brownsville Community Center (Boys and Girls Club) – 3200 W. Desoto St., Pensacola
- Dorrie Miller Community Center – 2819 N. Miller St., Pensacola
- Englewood Community Center – 2751 N. “H” St., Pensacola
- Marie K. Young-Wedgewood Community Center and Park – 6405 Wagner Road, Pensacola
- Ebonwood Community Center – 3511 W. Scott St., Pensacola
- Englewood Neighborhood Center – 2749 N. “H” St., Pensacola
- Barrineau Park Community Center and Historical Society – 6055 Barrineau Park School Road, Molino
- Byrneville Community Center – 1707 County Road 4-A, Century
- Carver Park Resource Center – 208 Webb St., Cantonment
- Molino Community Center and Historical Museum – 6450-A Hwy. 95A N., Molino
- Quintette Community Center – 2490 Quintette Lane, Cantonment
- Walnut Hill Community Center and Ruritan Club – 7850 Hwy. 97-N, Walnut Hill
Funding is intended to be used for programs that will benefit the community. The four main categories are identified to help address the opioid epidemic:
- Criminal justice: Prevention efforts with monitoring drug trafficking, treatment in jail or prison, and, upon release, referral to treatment after release; drug courts that by require services or treatment as a condition of probation;
- Harm reduction: Support efforts to prevent or reduce overdose deaths or other opioid-related harms through evidence-based or evidence-informed programs or strategies;
- Prevention: Strategies to prevent all levels of substance use, including services for individuals, families, communities and general society; and
- Treatment and recovery: Designed to help people stop using substances, remain sober and drug free, improve health and wellness, and strive to reach their full potential. Recovery is a lifelong process.
Junior League To Host Free Diaper Drive-Up Distribution This Weekend
December 1, 2023
The Junior League of Pensacola will host a diaper drive-up distribution event on Sunday, December 3, 2023, outside the Junior League of Pensacola office, 2016 West Garden Street in Pensacola.
The event will take place from 1:00 to 3:00 pm, while supplies last.
To ensure participant safety, this event cannot accommodate walk-up participants. No registration is needed to receive diapers and wipes during this drive-up event. Parents and caregivers will have the option of choosing the size of diapers (size newborn – size 7) while supplies last. The group is unable to accommodate special requests in diaper brands. Pull-ups, training underwear, or adult size diapers will not be available at this event. Each parent and caregiver will be given 50 diapers and a pack of wipes per child. The child does not need to be present.
16th Felony Conviction Gets Escambia Man 15 Years In Prison
December 1, 2023
A 44-year-old Escambia County man with 15 previous felony convictions has been sentenced to 15 years in prison as a habitual felony offender.
Bunny Hodart Brown III was convicted of fleeing and eluding law enforcement in May 2022.
Escambia County Sheriff’s Deputies attempted to stop Brown but he fled from law enforcement at a high rate of speed. Prosecutors said he drove at speeds in excess of 65 miles per hour through a residential neighborhood and failed to stop at several stop signs. He eventually fled on foot where law enforcement officers located him hiding behind a fence. Brown was subsequently arrested and booked into the Escambia County Jail.
During sentencing, the state argued that the defendant was a danger to the community and that his actions warranted a severe punishment. Judge Jones took note of the defendant’s extensive criminal record and his lack of regard for the law.
Free Dental, Vision and Medical Care Available At Weekend Clinic
December 1, 2023
Remote Area Medical (RAM), a major nonprofit provider of pop-up clinics delivering free, quality dental, vision and medical care to those in need, will hold a free, two-day clinic Dec. 2-3. RAM will be set up at Milton High School, 5445 Stewart Street in Milton.
All RAM services are free, and no ID is required. Free dental, vision and medical services will be provided on a first-come, first-served basis. The patient parking lot will open no later than 11:59 p.m. (midnight) on Friday night, Dec. 1, and remain open for the duration of the clinic. Once in the parking lot, additional information regarding clinic-opening processes and next steps will be provided. Clinic doors open at 6 a.m.
Due to time constraints, patients should be prepared to choose between dental and vision services. Medical services are offered, in addition to dental or vision services, free to every patient attending the clinic. For more information, to donate or to volunteer, visit www.ramusa.org or call 865-579-1530. Patients may also visit the Facebook event for this clinic at https://fb.me/e/1sy2SjfT5.
Services available at the free RAM clinic include dental cleanings, dental fillings, dental extractions, dental X-rays, eye exams, eye health exams, eyeglass prescriptions, eyeglasses made on-site, women’s health exams and general medical exams.
RAM is a nonprofit organization with a mission to prevent pain and alleviate suffering. RAM operates pop-up clinics delivering free dental, vision, and medical care to individuals in need who do not have access to or cannot afford a doctor. Since its founding in 1985, more than 196,000 volunteers—comprised of professional practitioners, as well as general support staff—have treated more than 910,550 individuals delivering more than $189.5 million worth of free healthcare services.
Sandra (Sandy) Lee Hane Spivey Whitfield
December 1, 2023
Sandra (Sandy) Lee Hane Spivey Whitfield, born December 30, 1962 went home to be with our Lord on November 27, 2023. Sandy was born in Columbus, Ohio to Nelson and Betty Hane Sr. Sandy moved to Florida as a young child where she married and had her daughter, Kelly Marie. Sandy was a stay-at-home mother and home maker for many years. Later in life connection brought her to marry Douglas Whitfield Jr. and she became a second mother to Bryan, Whitney and Brett Whitfield. Sandy spent several years in the painting business with the best teacher, her husband Douglas. She moved on to prepping and finishing out cabinets with her work husband, Doug Mott. She spent her final years caring for her husband before his death, all while putting up the biggest fight against cancer. She gave it her all and fought till the end.
Sandy loved her life, her family, God, cooking and her dogs. She loved being a memaw to ALL the kids. It didn’t matter if they were blood or not, she was THE MEMAW. Her door was always open and there would always be a home cooked meal waiting. If you didn’t get a chance to learn how to make dumplins, homemade pizzas or any one of her many great meals, then you missed out!! She loved her nights out with the girls playing Bunco. She loved her days spent on the river bank with her family and friends, Alabama football, and gardening and tending to her flowers. Most of all she loved being a Memaw!
Sandy was preceded in death by her husband, Douglas Whitfield Jr; mother, Betty Harper; father, Nelson Hane Sr; brothers, Charles Hane and Kenny Hane; sister, Carol Reeves; sister-in-law, Cheety Hane; brother-in-law, David Reeves; and her daddy, Delbert Harper Jr.
Sandy leaves behind a family that loves and misses her dearly: daughter, Kelly (Mike) Rogers; her bonus children, Bryan (Whitney) Whitfield, Brett (Hayley) Whitfield and Whitney Whitfield; grandchildren, Hunter Rogers, Hannah (Michael) Poljak, Chandler Rogers, Juniper Whitfield, Kyley and Camden Whitfield, Jayden Lites; and bonus grandchildren, Laura (Robert) Creighton, Davis, Noah and Maggie Creighton; sister, Diana (Hobart) Howard; brother, Nelson (Nettie) Hane; sister-in-law, Donna Hane; brother-in-law, Randy Spivey; sisters in love, Teresa Milstead and Sandi Spivey; and an abundance of nieces, nephews and a lifetime of friends
Pallbearers: Hunter Rogers, Chandler Rogers, Bryan Whitfield, Kenneth Hane, Delbert Cox and Corey Hanes.
Honorary Pallbearers: Randy Spivey, Jason Spivey, Hobart Howard, Doug Mott, Charles Settle and Frank Mims.
In true Sandy fashion, please come as you are to celebrate her life.
Funeral services will be held Wednesday, December 6, 2023 at 11:00 a.m. at Faith Chapel Funeral Home North in Cantonment, Florida with Pastor Brian Calhoun officiating. Family will receive friends for visitation at 10:00 a.m. Burial to follow at Gonzalez United Methodist Church in Cantonment, Florida.
Faith Chapel Funeral Home North, 1000 South Highway 29, Cantonment, is entrusted with arrangements.
Fire Marshal Investigating After Fire Destroys Home In Century
November 30, 2023
Fire destroyed an abandoned home in Century Thursday morning.
The home, in the area of Hilltop and Alger roads, was fully involved when firefighters arrived on scene.
There were no injuries reported.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation by the Florida State Fire Marshal’s Office.
Photos by Tip Wagner for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
