Hurricane Michael Insurance Claims Continue To Grow
November 24, 2018
More than a month after Hurricane Michael barreled through parts of Northwest Florida, insurance claims have topped 125,000, according to numbers posted online by the state Office of Insurance Regulation.
As of Friday, insurers had reported 125,356 claims, with estimated insured losses of $3.43 billion. The bulk of the claims, 85,017, involved damage to residential property.
Overall, 55.3 percent of claims had been closed.
The largest number of claims was in Bay County, which had 75,412 as of Friday. Bay was followed by Jackson County, with 12,605 claims; Leon County, with 8,661 claims; Gulf County, with 7,231 claims; Gadsden County, with 5,255 claims; and Calhoun County, with 3,754 claims.
Hurricane Michael made landfall Oct. 10 as a Category 4 storm in Mexico Beach in southeastern Bay County and then continued north into Georgia.
by The News Service of Florida
Dental Services Cut From Molino, Ensley Health Department Locations
November 24, 2018
Dental services are being cut from the health department locations in Molino and Ensley.
Effective December 22, dental services at the Florida Department of Health in Escambia County are being discontinued at the Molino Service Center on North Highway 29 and the Northside Service Center on Palafox Street. The services were contracted through Pro Med Healthcare Services.
Community Health of Northwest Florida provides dental care for children and adults at three locations:
- Cantonment Pediatrics: 470 South Highway 29, Cantonment
- Century: 501 Church Street, Century
- Fairfield: 1295 West Fairfield Drive, Pensacola
Community Health Northwest Florida accepts DentaQuest, Medicaid, and many dental insurance plans. A sliding fee scale program is available for individuals who do not have insurance. Eligibility for the sliding fee scale program is based on household income. Payment plans are available.
For more information about Community Health Northwest Florida’s dental program, please call 850-760-0679, or visit healthcarewithinreach.org.
Patients of the closing dental centers in Molino and Ensley can request dental records at the Fairfield Service Center or by calling (850) 595-6500 ext. 1075.
FWC Law Enforcement Report
November 24, 2018
Here is the latest report from the Florida FWC Division of Law Enforcement for Escambia and Santa Rosa counties:
ESCAMBIA COUNTY
Officer Allgood was working the Escambia River and saw a fire at a campsite. He approached the campsite and saw two subjects fishing. As he approached the subjects, he saw an alligator snapping turtle tied off to a tree on the bank. One subject admitted to catching and tying the rope around the turtle’s head. After removing the rope from its head and ensuring the turtle was safe, Officer Allgood seized the turtle to take to the fish hatchery. Officer Allgood issued both subjects citations for no camping permits and the male subject was issued a citation for possession of an alligator snapping turtle.
SANTA ROSA COUNTY
Officers Lewis and Hoomes investigated a complaint of a vessel that was dumped in Blackwater River State Forest. After trying to locate the vessel’s origin, the officers utilized Google satellite imagery to locate the vessel at a residence near where it was later dumped. The officers interviewed a subject at the residence. The subject was cooperative and admitted to dumping the vessel. Charges were filed for misdemeanor littering, and the subject removed the vessel from the forest.
This report represents some events the FWC handled over the past week; however, it does not include all actions taken by the Division of Law Enforcement. Information provided by FWC.
NorthEscambia.com photo.
Flomaton Makes History With 12-10 Playoff Win (With Other Scores)
November 24, 2018
The Flomaton Hurricanes made history Friday night with their first-ever third round playoff win. The Hurricanes beat Pike County 12-10 on the road in Brundidge.
Pike County was first on the board 3-0 with a field goal with about six minutes to go in the second quarter.. The Hurricanes scored on a 14-yard pass from Da’Quan Johnson to Quincie McCall for a 6-3 advantage. Johnson was in again for Flomaton for a 12-3 lead with 3:06 to go in the half.
Pike County scored with a 69-yard touchdown run to pull within two of Flomaton.
Flomaton will host Providence Christian next Friday night at 7:00 in the state semifinal round.
Other scores:
FLORIDA
Class 1A Quarterfinals
Baker 51, Vernon 19
– Baker will host Play Port St. Joe in state semifinal
Class 6A Quarterfinals
Crestview 49 Navarre 27
Crestview will face Armwood
ALABAMA
Class 3A Quarterfinals
Flomaton 12, Pike County 10
– Flomaton advances to host semifinals against Providence Christian
NorthEscambia.com file photo.
Thanksgiving Wreck Claims One Life
November 24, 2018
An Alabama man died in a Thanksgiving day vehicle crash in Escambia County.
Tyler William Glen Nelson, age 22 of Foley, was traveling east on Barrancas Avenue near Seamarge Lane when he left the roadway and overcorrected, causing his 1998 Jeep Cherokee to overturn about 12:20 a.m. Nelson, who was not wearing a seat belt, was ejected from the vehicle, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
Cantonment Man Charged With Sex Crimes Against Juvenile Male
November 23, 2018
A Cantonment man was charged with sex crimes against a juvenile male.
Michael Davis Edgar, 45, was charged lewd lascivious behavior, distribution of obscene material to a minor, and two counts contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
Edgar operated a business out of a trailer on Fowler Avenue near the Hadji Temple. Inside that trailer, he allegedly provided a juvenile male with alcohol, marijuana and prescription medication while he was working on the trailer, according to an arrest report. The victim told Escambia County Sheriff’s Office investigators that he and Edgar watched pornography together and sexual acts occurred.
Edgar’s statements to deputies were redacted from the arrest report. He was released from the Escambia County Jail on a $112,000 bond.
Photos: A Christmas Carol At The Molino Library
November 23, 2018
The Hampstead Stage presented A Christmas Carol Wednesday at the Molino Branch Library.
For a photo gallery, click here.
Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
The Faces Of Thanksgiving At Waterfront Rescue Mission (With Gallery)
November 23, 2018
Dozens of volunteers spent their Thanksgiving working to feed the less fortunate at the Waterfront Rescue Mission. Turkey, dressing, gravy, vegetables and dessert were served to about 1,000 people in need at locations in Pensacola and Mobile.
For a photo gallery, click here.
Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Proposal Takes Aim At Cell Phone Use By Drivers
November 23, 2018
A proposal that would allow law-enforcement officers to pull over motorists for using cell phones while driving will be back before lawmakers in 2019.
Sen. Wilton Simpson, R-Trilby, has filed a measure called the “Florida Ban on Wireless Communications Devices While Driving Law,” which would prohibit texting, reading data or talking on wireless handheld devices while behind the wheel.
Currently, texting while driving in Florida is prohibited, but it is enforced as a “secondary” office. That means motorists can only be cited if they are stopped for other infractions, such as running a stop sign or speeding.
House during the 2018 legislative session approved a proposal that would have made texting while driving a “primary” offense, allowing police to pull over motorists for tapping away on phones. But the measure failed to advance in the Senate amid concerns about issues such as minority drivers facing increased racial profiling.
Simpson’s new proposal, which is filed for consideration during the 2019 session, would impose a broader ban on use of cell phones by drivers and allow enforcement as a primary offense. It would allow drivers to communicate hands-free on wireless devices. Also, motorists would be allowed to use handheld devices for such purposes as getting safety-related information or for navigation.
by The News Service of Florida
Election Changes Eyed As 2018 Results Finalized
November 23, 2018
After months of mudslinging, weeks of court wrangling and days of ballot counting that again landed Florida in an unwelcome national spotlight, a state panel matter-of-factly finalized the 2018 election results in a five-minute meeting Tuesday.
The certification came on time, but problems with other election-related deadlines in two large, heavily Democratic counties — Palm Beach and Broward — are prompting county supervisors and legislative leaders to ponder possible solutions to the state’s ballot-box woes.
Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Susan Bucher blamed mechanical failures for missing deadlines for recounts ordered in statewide races. Broward County Supervisor Brenda Snipes, meanwhile, experienced myriad problems, including failing — by two minutes — to meet a Thursday deadline for a machine recount in Republican Gov. Rick Scott’s race against Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson.
Scott — who eventually emerged the victor in the Senate race — and other Republicans castigated Snipes and Bucher for their handling of the recount, accusing the elections chiefs of incompetence and outright fraud. Snipes on Sunday submitted her resignation to Scott.
But other county supervisors say this year’s three statewide recounts — the first since Florida law was changed after the 2000 presidential recount — show that the system generally worked well.
“Clearly, being the first test of the system for a statewide recount, there are some things that need to be tweaked,” Okaloosa County Supervisor of Elections Paul Lux, the president of the Florida State Association of Supervisors of Elections, told The News Service of Florida in a telephone interview. “There’s room for improvement, especially as it relates to the deadlines.”
Floridians cast more than 8.2 million ballots through the mail, at early voting sites or on Election Day, according to the state Division of Elections website. In addition to a recount in the U.S. Senate race, recounts were required because of slim margins in the races for governor and agriculture commissioner.
The state Elections Canvassing Commission on Tuesday quickly certified the results of the elections, two days after results of manual recounts were submitted in the U.S. Senate and agriculture-commissioner races. The governor’s race required a machine recount but did not go to a manual, or hand, recount.
In 2000, Florida law did not require statewide recounts, meaning only some counties conducted recounts and, because they had different types of voting machines, the counties used different recount methods. The law was changed in 2001, but the crafters never envisioned the state would undergo three recounts at once, Lux said.
Deadlines for the manual and machine recounts included in state law are built around a mandate that legislators be seated two weeks after the general election — which was Tuesday this year. Also, the deadlines are built around an early December deadline for the Electoral College to vote on the results of presidential elections.
State lawmakers might consider pushing back deadlines to give larger counties more time to tabulate absentee ballots and conduct recounts, Lux and several other elections supervisors suggested during interviews with the News Service this week.
“The discussion has to be, did we see actual problems, or did we see problems that were perceived as problems based on a particular candidate or a particular campaign seeing something that was not going their way, or that was perceived as not going their way,” Lux said. “There’s a huge difference.”
The state also may want to revisit deadlines for mail-in ballots, Lux said. Under current law, mail-in ballots must be received by 7 p.m. on Election Day. But overseas ballots postmarked by Election Day can be counted up to 10 days following the election. The mail-in ballot deadline was the subject of one of several lawsuits filed by Democrats in the days following the Nov. 6 election. Other states allow up to 10 days after the election for mail-in ballots to be counted.
Florida could consider allowing mail-in ballots to be counted if they are postmarked before Election Day and received by elections offices within two days after the election, Orange County Supervisor of Elections Bill Cowles said. That’s the same amount of time allowed for voters who cast provisional ballots to provide documentation to elections offices, Cowles said.
“Our U.S. postal service is not what it used to be,” Cowles said. “I can’t tell you the number of ballots that people put in the mail on Tuesday, thinking they’re still going to count.”
And lawmakers may want to authorize the use of vote centers, Lux proposed. The “mega-precincts” could help eliminate the need for provisional ballots, which are given to voters whose identities or other information cannot be confirmed on Election Day. Critics say minority voters, as well as young or old voters, are more likely to have their provisional ballots tossed.
“Imagine a world where everyone is using some version of a vote center instead of precinct-based voting on Election Day, and you could go to any one of them. You would never find yourself in the wrong precinct. Bam. You’ve just eliminated all of the provisional ballots that are voted by people for being in the wrong precinct,” Lux said.
Elections chiefs also cautioned against basing changes to state laws on hiccups in this year’s election.
“I’m concerned that the Legislature is going to jump on this and overreact. I think that, for the most part, the process worked the way it was supposed to. We’re not supposed to have instant results. When you have a close race, we need to methodically review every ballot,” Polk County Supervisor of Elections Lori Edwards, a former state representative, said.
Many of the county supervisors lamented that the state’s 67 elections chiefs are being viewed with the same contempt as the isolated areas that experienced high-profile problems.
“Clearly there were issues in the counties that were reported, but I think we need to remember, in totality, we got it right,” said Pasco County Supervisor of Elections Brian Corley, adding that the supervisors and their staff “work tirelessly” in the months leading up to the August primary.
The hectic pace continues until after recounts are completed following the general election.
“It’s not fair to the clear majority of supervisor of election offices that went above and beyond,” Corley said. “To be dragged down with a perception of the whole state having issues, it’s not accurate. It’s not fair.”
Edwards also said she wished politicians and the public would tone down the rhetoric in the days following an election.
“I think the folks that were claiming fraud knew darn well, and had plenty of lawyers to explain to them the process, that an election takes a couple of days,” Edwards said. “I think they knew it. And I think it was a political strategy to try to condemn the process for their own political gains.”
Given the razor-thin margins that have become the norm in Florida elections, the state should be prepared to be the focus of scrutiny, even in years like 2018 that don’t involve presidential contests.
“When you’re the largest battleground state in the nation and all the eyes are going to be on Florida forever, there’s no such thing as a low-key midterm,” Corley said.
by Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida