United Way Of West Florida Names New Board Members
January 2, 2021
United Way of West Florida has installed eight new board members.
They are:
Megan Burke of Pensacola Opera and Pensacola Young Professionals
Matt Couch of Clark Partington
DJ Echols of LandrumHR
Johanna Freeman of Underwood Anderson Insurance
Wesley Hall of Escambia County Government
Aaron Jones of ServisFirst Bank
Kim LeDuff of the University of West Florida
Dan Schebler of Santa Rosa County.
Board officers for 2020-2021 are:
Jack Lowrey, chair
Amy Miller of Port of Pensacola, chair-elect
Marla Purvis of Lighthouse Health Plan LLC, secretary
Clare Haenszel of Warren Averett CPAs & Advisors, treasurer
Wes Hudgens of Gulf Power Company, campaign chair.
“Our board members go above and beyond to support UWWF’s work through their volunteerism and financial support,” said Laura P. Gilliam, UWWF president and CEO. “I am proud to work alongside this group of community leaders who are passionate about creating a better tomorrow for every person living in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties.”
Driver Trapped In Wreckage By Live Power Lines After Cantonment Crash
January 1, 2021
A driver was trapped in their mangled vehicle by live power lines for nearly half an hour following a wreck in Cantonment early Friday morning.
The woman crashed into a power pole at Highway 29 and Neal Road about 5:25 a.m. Live power lines were downed across the wreckage, preventing firefighters from beginning extrication efforts until Gulf Power could cut off a portion of the power grid. Once power was off, firefighters were forced to cut the victim from her pickup truck.
The woman was freed from the wreckage shortly after 6 a.m by Escambia County Fire Rescue units from Cantonment, Ensley and Molino, and a special operations team from Brent and Osceola. The victim was transported to an area hospital for treatment by Escambia County EMS. An updated on her condition was not available.
About 400 Gulf Power customers initially lost power when Gulf Power remotely cut off the grid in the area, but that number was later narrowed significantly.
The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating.
Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Gulf Power Customers Will See Slight Electric Rate Increase In 2021
January 1, 2021
Gulf Power customers will see a small rate increase on their bills in January.
Gulf Power residential customers that use 1,000 kilowatt hours in a month will see their bill increase by 19 cents from $140.43 to $140.62, according to the Florida Public Service Commission. The 1,000 kilowatt hours in an example; actual usage varies widely among consumers.
Customers of Florida Power & Light, the parent company of Gulf Power, will see a $2.62 increase for 1,000 kilowatt hours. Their total bill for example usage will increase to $99.05.
Milton High, Former Ernest Ward Teacher And Coach Jeff Larson Lost To COVID-19
January 1, 2021
A Milton High School science teacher and coach with North Escambia ties has passed away due to COVID-19.
Coach Jeff Larson passed away on Christmas Day.
He was in education for 38 years, the last 26 as a science teacher at Milton High School.
“He was probably the most revered science teacher in the department. A great teacher, a tremendous football coach, but a better person,” said Tim Short, principal of Milton High School.
Larson was a coach and teacher at what was then Ernest Ward High School in Walnut Hill.
Two Teen Boys Rescued From Human Traffickers, Two Arrests Made
January 1, 2021
Two teenage boys are safe from human traffickers after a traffic stop and arrest in Santa Rosa County. The boys, ages 17 and 14, are citizens of Guatemala who were recently smuggled into the country from Mexico into Texas.
The investigation began when a Santa Rosa County Sheriff’sdeputy stopped a vehicle for a moving violation on I-10 and noted indicators of possible human trafficking. The Santa Rosa Sheriff’s Office contacted the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) for assistance with the investigation.
“A deputy’s keen eye and immediate multiagency cooperation were instrumental in rescuing two children,” said Chris Williams, chief of Investigations for FDLE Pensacola Regional Operations Center. “I’m proud of the deputies and agents who teamed to bring two human traffickers to justice.”
Investigators believe the boys were trafficked into the United States for forced labor. According to the victims, their families each paid more than $1,000 to be smuggled into the U.S. Each teen was told they had to work to pay off additional travel debt. Agents believe the men were taking the boys to different cities in Central and South Florida.
Agents arrested Frank Moreno, 39, Odessa, Texas, and Jackson Perez-Godinez, 21, Guatemala. Each are charged with two counts of human trafficking and two counts of human smuggling.
Moreno and Perez-Godinez were booked into the Santa Rosa County Jail on no bond, pending first appearance.
Northwest Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz Gets Engaged
December 31, 2020
Northwest Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz is now engaged.
Gaetz, 38, got engaged Wednesday night to his 26-year old girlfriend, Ginger Luckey.
The moment (pictured above) was captured by Carly Ortiz-Lytl of the Washington Examiner.
Luckey is a financial analyst based in California for food company Apeel, which describes itself as reducing food waste. The company makes an edible “barrier” that reduce food spoilage. She is the sister of former Facebook executive Palmer Luckey, the founder of Oculus VR.
Rep.Matt Gaetz is newly engaged. pic.twitter.com/E2MgiLurNJ
— Carly Ortiz-Lytle (@intlcarly) December 31, 2020
Escambia Family Cares Grant Program Has Distributed Final Check Payments
December 31, 2020
Escambia County says the Escambia CARES Family Assistance Grant program has ended with the last of the $3,000 checks issued to qualified residents.
In total, the grant program sent 5,500 payments of $3,000 directly to county residents. In all, the county directed $16.5 million to its citizens through Escambia CARES Family Assistance Grant program. Dozens of county employees worked hard to review nearly 10,000 applications.
In addition to the Family CARES grant, the county also delivered $7,500 to 428 businesses as a part of the Escambia CARES Business Grant program. A total of $3.2 million was distributed to area businesses through this program.
The county also assisted households impacted by COVID-19 who were late on rent, mortgage and utility bills through the Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF) offered through Florida Housing Finance Corporation. The county made 803 payments directly to accounts in arrears totaling $1.3 million for 389 income eligible households through the Rent and Mortgage assistance program.
With the conclusion of these programs, staff will no longer be responding to phone calls or emails in regard to the grants. To check the status of any Escambia CARES grant payments, view the county’s check registry online.
The Escambia County Family CARES Grant program is part of a larger federally funded stimulus package that was required to be spent by the Dec. 30, 2020 deadline. In total, there was a $57.3 million allocation for Escambia County.
Cantonment Man Charged With Shooting Man In The Head At Christmas Party
December 31, 2020
A Cantonment man is accused of shooting another man in the head during a Christmas Eve party at an Escambia County Home.
Terrell DeAngelo Hunter, 34, was charged with felony aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and criminal mischief with property damage.
A woman at the party told deputies that Hunter got into an argument with one of her old boyfriends on the porch. As the argument escalated, she tried to break it up. She said the former boyfriend pulled a handgun, and she went inside.
After hearing two gunshots, she went back outside to find the former boyfriend face down with a gunshot wound to his head. She said Hunter was the only other person on the porch.
Deputies responded to the Baptist Hospital emergency room on Christmas Day after Hunter arrived with a gunshot wound to the leg. He told deputies he was at the party, but he had no idea who shot him, an arrest report states.
Hunter was charged with criminal mischief after allegedly throwing a small child’s tricycle through the window of another ex-girlfriend’s apartment window during an unrelated incident December 6.
Hunter remained in the Escambia County Jail Thursday with bond set at $201,000.
By The Numbers: Escambia County COVID-19 Hospitalizations Nearly Double In Last Month
December 31, 2020
The number of daily COVID-19 hospitalizations has nearly doubled in the past month in Escambia County.
On November 30, there were 130 people hospitalized due to COVID-19 in the county; that number was 205 on December 30.
The numbers in the graph indicate daily hospitalizations in Escambia County and are provided daily by Ascension Sacred Heart Hospital, Baptist Hospital and West Florida Hospital. The daily numbers are not cumulative.
Data source/graphic: City of Pensacola.
Frontier Customers In Walnut Hill, Bratt, Molino Atmore Without Phone Service For Days
December 31, 2020
Frontier Communications customers in Escambia counties in Florida and Alabama have been without telephone service for days.
Most, if not all, Frontier landline customers in the Walnut Hill, Bratt, Molino and Atmore exchanges lost phone service on Saturday. Some have had service restored, but most remained out Wednesday.
“We are aware of a service outage affecting customers in the area of Escambia County in Alabama and Florida,” Bob Elek, Frontier director of public relations for the south region, told NorthEscambia.com. “Frontier’s engineering and tech teams are working non-stop to resolve the issue and restore service as quickly as possible. We thank our customers for their patience.”
Elek said it was possible that a Christmas Day explosion outside a major AT&T hub in Nashville was to blame, but that he had not received any confirmation to that effect.
The Nashville explosion on Christmas day led to service disruptions across parts of Alabama, Tennessee and Kentucky as battery backups failed. AT&T said Tuesday that almost all service had been restored.
Officials said 911 service continued to operate during the period for Frontier customers in both states.
NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.