Electrical Fire Destroys Home Near Nine Mile Road; No Injuries Reported
April 29, 2025
An electrical issue is being blamed for a Sunday night fire that destroyed a home just north of Nine Mile Road.
Escambia County Fire Rescue responded around 10 p.m. to the 9500 block of Hummingbird Boulevard, where they found heavy flames and smoke coming from the garage of a single-story brick house.
All residents and pets escaped without injury, according to ECFR. The home was declared a total loss, and the cause was determined to be electrical.
The American Red Cross is assisting the displaced occupants with temporary housing.
Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
FPL Proposes Laydown Yard Near McDavid
April 29, 2025
Florida Power & Light is proposing a seven-acre laydown yard primarily for pole storage off Camp Road in McDavid.
According to plans filed with the Escambia County Development Review Committee, the laydown yard would be located on about seven acres of an octagonal-shaped 48.65-acre parcel already owned by FPL. It is about a half mile south of an Escambia County Road Camp and the closed Camp 5 Landfill.
FPL also owns all of the adjacent parcels and those across Camp Road — the former Gulf Power, later acquired by FPL, purchased hundreds of acres beginning in 2009 for a potential nuclear power plant, but those plans never materialized.
The laydown yard, if approved, would be served to a new 30-foot gravel access road from Camp Road. The utility said the site will operate from 6 a.m. until 3 p.m. with no overnight vehicles on site.
The FPL plans are undergoing DRC internal staff review and have not yet been set for a public meeting.
NorthEscambia.com graphics, click to enlarge.
Casey’s Updates Plans For New Convenience Store At Highway, Highway 97 In Molino
April 28, 2025
Updated plans have been filed for a new convenience store at the intersection of Highway 29 and Highway 97 in Molino.
Costcorde, Inc. of Houston recently submitted the plans to the Escambia County Development Review Committee (DRC).
The updated plans show a 4,569 square foot convenience store, 12 gas fueling stations and two diesel fueling payments. According to the plans, there will only be right turn in and right turn out access on Highway 29 and a full access connection to Highway 97.
Casey’s is the third largest convenience store and fifth largest pizza chain in the United States. Last year, Casey’s announced the acquisition of Fikes Wholesale, owner of CEFCO Convenience Stores, in an all-cash transaction for $1.145 billion for 198 stores.
The plans are undergoing DRC internal staff review and have not yet been set for a public meeting.
Plans were filed for a convenience store in the same location back in 2017 and 2019 by an Atmore company, but those projects were never finalized. The new store will be across Highway 97 from an existing Cumberland Farms store that is still operating under Tom Thumb branding.
NorthEscambia.com graphics, click to enlarge.
Meet Byrneville Elementary School Principal (For A Day) Tripp Fowler
April 28, 2025
Last Friday morning, Principal Tripp Fowler started his day early by welcoming every student as they arrived in the car rider line at Byrneville Elementary School.
The it was off to visit every classroom, where he denied teacher requests to take off early since it was Friday. If Principal Fowler was going to put in a full day, so was his staff.
For second grader Tripp Fowler, Friday was a really big day at the charter school — he was Byrneville Elementary School’s principal for a day. He won the opportunity by being the top seller in a recent fundraiser.
Principal Fowler took a few minutes out of his very busy day to speak with NorthEscambia.com just before lunch duty Friday. When we met up with him, he was behind “everyday” Principal Ashley Trawick’s desk, hard at work on project to prepare for an upcoming student visit from the Century Camp Fire USA Learning Center.
Friday was a good day to be principal for a day at Byrneville. Students earned movie time at lunch for good behavior, there was pizza for students that met their AR reading goals, and field day winners had ice cream to celebrate.
But the workday was not all fun and games — Principal Fowler was faced with an emergency with an overflowing toilet. He quickly radioed for help, bringin the challenging situation under control.
His favorite parts of being principal for the day? The walkie-talkie and his ID badge. And looking inside a closet with computer servers and security camera feeds was a pretty big deal.
We had to cut our interview with Mr. Fowler short so he could use the intercom to call a student to the office, a task he easily handled (as soon as someone found him a step stool). He then headed to the lunchroom, walkie-talkie in hand, where kindergarteners were having lunch as the movie “Ratatouille” played.
When asked if he would like to be an elementary principal when he gets a bit older, Mr. Fowler was quick with his answer.
“I want to drive a truck and be like my dad,” he said, just a principal for a day.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Century Sets Public Hearing To Discuss Grant Finding Application
April 28, 2025
The Century Town Council will a public hearing on Tuesday to discuss a grant funds application.
The town is preparing to apply for a Small Cities Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) from Florida Commerce. The town is considering seeking funds for projects in several categories, including neighborhood revitalization, commercial revitalization, housing rehabilitation, and economic development.
According to the town, these funds must be used for one of the following purposes, if approved:
To benefit low- and moderate-income persons;
To aid in the prevention or elimination of slums or blight; or
To meet other community development needs of recent origin having a particular urgency.
The town council will discuss additional information regarding the range of activities that could be funded at the public hearing on Tuesday, April 29 at 6:30 p.m. at town hall.
NorthEscambia.com file photo.
Florida Gas Prices Up About A Nickel Over The Last Week
April 28, 2025
Florida gas prices jumped by 13 cents early last week, then declined 8 cents through the weekend.
Sunday’s state average was $3.05 per gallon. That’s 5 cents more than a week ago. However, pump prices are averaging 10 cents less than a month ago, and 51 cents less than this time last year, according to AAA.
The average price per gallon in Escambia County was a bit lower at $2.88. In Pensacola, prices around $2.65 were available at stations on East Nine Mile Road and Highway 29 in Gonzalez. In North Escambia, the lowest available price was $2.66 per gallon at a station on Highway 29 in Cantonment.
The price of crude oil – which directly influences about half of the price of gasoline – declined 3% last week. Friday’s closing price of $63.02 per barrel is $1.66/b less than the week before. Gasoline futures rose 12 cents through the past two weeks.
Rough Inning Sinks Wahoos In 7-4 Loss To Smokies
April 28, 2025
written by Bill Vilona
After four weeks and 20 previous games in April, the Blue Wahoos didn’t have one to forget.
That good fortune ran out Sunday.
In a rare defensive meltdown, the Blue Wahoos committed three errors and yielded seven runs in the third inning of an eventual 7-4 loss against the Knoxville Smokies, ending their homestand in a tough way at Blue Wahoos Stadium.
Even trailing 7-0, however, the Blue Wahoos had the game-tying batter at the plate three times, including with two-on, no outs in the ninth inning. It also happened with less than two out in the sixth and eighth innings. But each time, the Blue Wahoos couldn’t get a game-changing hit.
Still, the week ended with the Pensacola (15-6) winning the series (4-2) and keeping their place with the best record across three Double-A leagues. The team will have an off-day Monday before embarking on consecutive road series in Birmingham and Biloxi.
A crowd of 4,011 watched a game unravel in one-half inning.
Blue Wahoos starter, lefthander Luis Palacios, had overcome two walks in the first inning and breezed through the second inning of a scoreless game.
He never lasted through another inning.
Palacios, who allowed just three earned runs in three previous starts, lost command of his five-pitch repertoire. He gave up a lead-off double to No. 9 hitter Corey Joyce. Pedro Ramirez singled and B.J. Murray Jr. walked to load the bases. A sacrifice fly scored the first run, followed by Ethan Hearn’s RBI single.
An RBI ground out made it 3-0 with two out. And then it got worse for Palacios. Hits and three consecutive errors followed.
Another single and fielding error by left fielder Dalvy Rosario allowed two runners in scoring position. Jordan Nwogu’s two-run single included a fielding error by Shane Sasaki, to put Nwogu on second. A ground ball was misplayed by second baseman Josh Zamora to allow another run to score.
After a wild pitch and a walk, Blue Wahoos manager Nelson Prada pulled Palacios. With Zach McCambley in relief, the Blue Wahoos pulled off a double steal for the seventh run.
From that point, the Smokies did not have another hit until the ninth inning as the Blue Wahoos bullpen again put up zeroes.
That enabled a comeback to begin. Catcher Spencer Bramwell drove in the first run with his fifth inning single, scoring Josh Zamora who led off with a single. Dalvy Rosario followed with a sacrifice fly to score the second run.
In the sixth, Tony Bullard had a two-run single. But with two runners on, reliever Zac Leigh, who wound up winning his third game, got Bramwell to ground out and struck out Rosario.
In the eighth, the Blue Wahoos had two runners on, none out, but two pop outs and a flyout ended that inning.
In the ninth, Shane Sasaki led off with a single. Jake Thompson walked. Smokies reliever Mitchell Tyranski earned his second save by striking out Kemp Alderman, getting Nathan Martorella to pop out and ending the game when Josh Zamora flew out to right.
The Blue Wahoos will travel Tuesday to Birmingham to begin a six-game series against the Barons.
Jim Allen Elementary Honors Volunteers
April 28, 2025
Jim Allen Elementary School recently held a luncheon to honor volunteers that support the school and provide lasting impact.
The school also named Volunteers of the Year:
- Ashlee Elliot – 300 volunteer hours
- Bobbie Wilson – 291 volunteer hours
Pictured: Jim Allen Elementary School Volunteers of the Year Ashee Elliot (above) and Bobbie Wilson (below). Pictured bottom: JAE volunteers were honored at a recent luncheon. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
EREC Holds 86th Annual Meeting (With Photo Gallery)
April 27, 2025
Escambia River Electric Cooperative members held their 86th annual meeting Saturday at Wallace Lake K-8 School in Pace.
Dozens of door prizes were awarded, most of them electric, and one lucky member won the grand prize of a $500 credit on their electric bill.
Members met in a business session after voting on trustees.
Colton Criswell from Northview High School and Braden Adams from Jay High School were recognized as winners of four-year Herman D. Johnson Scholarships; Ayden Attalah from Northview High School and Lael Peterson from Jay High School were recognized as winners of EREC Trade/Votech Scholarships.
EREC was formed in 1939 with 88 members in their first month. The cooperative now serves about 13,409 members in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties with 1,823 miles of energized line and has 1,629 water meters in Escambia County.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Molino Library Hosting Photography Meetup Group Monday Afternoon
April 27, 2025
Interested in learning more about photography?
The Molino Library will host the next meeting of Molino Library Photography Group at 2 p.m. on Monday.
Whether you are taking photos with your phone or a professional camera, the group is open to everyone.
NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.