No Serious Injuries In Fiery Cantonment Wreck (With Gallery)
March 5, 2026
There were no serious injuries reported in a fiery crash on Wednesday night in Cantonment.
The driver of a Hyundai Elantra apparently rear-ended a Dodge Ram pickup truck on Highway 95A at Neal Road. Following the collision, the Hyundai burst into flames, but everyone was able to escape the fire.
The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating. Escambia County EMS and Escambia County Fire Rescue also responded.
NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Barbour, click to enlarge.
Northview NJROTC Cadets Undergo Annual Inspection (With Gallery)
March 5, 2026
Northview High School’s NJROTC Annual Inspection was held Wednesday morning at the school, with cadets undergoing face-to-face scrutiny with a Navy commander.
The inspection was conducted by Navy Commander Jonathan Shaw, NJROTC Area 10 manager. Shaw went face to face with the cadets, asking them questions about their NJROTC experience.
Click here for a photo gallery.
The day’s events included a command brief, drill, and personnel inspections, exhibition teams, and a pass in review. Several cadets were also promoted.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Escambia County Schools Will ‘Unplug’ On Friday
March 5, 2026
Escambia County Public Schools will observe ‘National Day of Unplugging’ across all campuses on Friday.
ECPS said in order to draw attention to the serious mental and social harm addiction to technology causes for our youth in the United States, the will take a day to ‘unplug’ and focus on intentional personal interaction. Schools are encouraged to promote activities which bring students together, without technology.
“It’s a small step, but an important one,” said ECPS Superintendent of Schools Keith Leonard. “Actually, this idea came from our Student Advisory Council, who collectively saw reliance on technology as a real problem at their schools. We are proud they recognized this and wanted to do something about it.”
Century Correctional Inmate Assaulted Multiple Officers, FDC Says
March 5, 2026
A Century Correctional Institution inmate assaulted multiple correctional officers recently, according to the Florida Department of Corrections.
Maurice Davis, 47, assaulted multiple correctional officers by striking them in the face, causing injuries, according to the FDC.
Since 2014, Davis is serving a 30-year sentence out of Leon County for assault with a deadly weapon.
UWF Awarded $2 Million National Science Foundation Grant To Support STEM Students
March 5, 2026
The University of West Florida has received a $2 million, six-year S-STEM Track 2: Implementation grant to support academically talented, financially disadvantaged students pursuing degrees in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. The award will provide scholarships to 38 Pell-eligible STEM students while embedding expanded mental health resources within the existing STEM Living Learning Community.
The project, led by Dr. Karen Molek, professor of chemistry and associate vice president of Computational Intelligence and Student Scholars Programs, builds on UWF’s 14-year history of successful STEM Scholars programming and lessons learned from a previous NSF S-STEM award. The initiative integrates academic, social and emotional support to strengthen student resilience, persistence and graduation outcomes.
“We are thrilled to receive another six years of NSF funding to expand our support for STEM students,” Molek said. “This funding will create a seamless partnership with Counseling and Psychological Services, adding a layer of professional and peer support to our existing successful STEM Living Learning Community in partnership with Housing and Residence Life and the Hal Marcus College of Science and Engineering. It’s impossible for students to focus on learning if they aren’t sure how they will afford their next meal or aren’t connected to the resources readily available on campus. Deploying resources strategically will help mitigate financial and mental health barriers while strengthening student resilience and persistence through graduation.”
Through the grant, UWF will award scholarships to two cohorts of first-time-in-college Pell-eligible STEM students and provide six years of comprehensive support. The program expands the four-year STEM for Life Seminar Series with a focus on resilience and mental health, implements peer mentoring in the STEM Living Learning Community and embeds a staff member in the residence hall in partnership with UWF Counseling and Psychological Services to provide preventative and just-in-time mental health support. The project will also examine the impact of embedded support and peer mentoring on student well-being and retention.
“This sizable grant is befitting the various efforts led by Dr. Molek and her team in supporting academically talented but financially disadvantaged students,” said Dr. Mohamed Khabou, dean of UWF’s Hal Marcus College of Science and Engineering. “These efforts have had an impressive effect on students, including outstanding on-time graduation rates and acceptance into prestigious graduate and professional schools.”
As the region’s only four-year university in a county where 74% of students are first-generation college students, UWF plays a critical role in expanding access to high-impact STEM education. By integrating destigmatized mental health resources with structured academic support, the Resilient STEM Students Program aims to strengthen the pipeline of prepared graduates ready to meet growing regional and national workforce demands.
The new knowledge generated from this program will be shared via national conferences and journals in student affairs, housing and residence life, and national counseling to inform the creation of scalable mental health programming that increases the retention and graduation rates of Pell-eligible students in STEM fields.
Student Athletes Honored At FCA Basketball, Soccer Banquets
March 5, 2026
The Fellowship of Christian Athletes recently presented Above the Rim Awards for basketball and the Beyond the Goal Awards for soccer.
The winners were chosen by their teammates based upon their integrity, dedication, character, and FCA values.
BASKETBALL
Northview — Makayla Plato, Bryson Orso
Tate — Zoe Dailey, Keon Whaley
Central — Tambrey Frady, Keaton Henry
East Hill — Addison Wheeler
Escambia — Chloee Roberson
Gulf Breeze — Kaia Seeley
Milton — Madilyn Hall
Pace — Trace Perkins
PHS — Jatina Brown, Catino Mobley
Pensacola Catholic — Krystiana Chatman, Sam Quebedeaux
Pine Forest — Cymone Mckinney, Jacorie Thomas
Washington — Chamiah Francis, Brody Michael Dykes
West Florida — Solise Beeks, Frank Likely
PSC — Shania Beeks
UWF — Amelia Bell, Christian Valarezo
SOCCER
Tate — Ruth Oaks ,Tyler Clarke
Escambia — Sabrina Corleone
Gulf Breeze — Jaida Gelsinon
Milton — Addison Burne, Nicco Grancagnolo
Navarre — Dominique Acosta
Pace — Lillian Espinosa, AJ BonJorno
PHS — Peyton Chester
Pensacola Catholic — Allison Bennet, Atticus King
Pine Forest — Azharia Knight, Job Friere
Washington — Brooke Stubblefield, Brendan Boyer
West Florida Tech — Laney Jackson, Austin Jackson
Pensacola State College — Alexis Parscal
It’s Getting Warmer: When Is Spring Breaking?
March 5, 2026
Warmer days and sunshine have students anticipating Spring Break.
For Escambia County Public Schools students, Spring Break is March 16-20. Students will also be out of school on April 3 (Good Friday), but teachers will have a work day.
Pensacola State College and University of West Florida, will have Spring Break March 16-20.
Highway 97 Crash Snaps Power Pole; Over 500 FPL Customers Lose Power
March 4, 2026
A driver was airlifted after crashing into a power pole on Highway 97 on Wednesday afternoon.
The crash happened around 2:40 p.m. near Molino Park Elementary School.
The power pole was snapped during the crash. Florida Power & Light reported that up to 530 customers lost power due to the wreck, which also cut power to the traffic signal at Highway 29 and Highway 97 for a brief period. FPL reported that power had been restored by about 4 p.m.
The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating, and has not released more information. Escambia County Fire Rescue and Escambia County EMS also responded.
NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Barbour, click to enlarge.
Teen Seriously Injured When His Pickup Crashes Off Kingsfield Road Bridge
March 4, 2026
A teen was seriously injured when he crashed his pickup truck off a Cantonment bridge on Wednesday afternoon.
The Florida Highway Patrol said the 17-year-old lost control of his Toyota pickup truck on the East Kingsfield Road bridge over Eleven Mile Creek, just eat of Highway 297a. The vehicle overturned off the bridge and landed on solid ground.
He was airlifted to an area hospital in serious condition. There were no passengers in the vehicle.
For additional photos, click here.
The FHP investigation is continuing.
NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Barbour, click to enlarge.
Former Escambia Firefighter Assigned To Beulah Gets 75 Years In Federal Prison For Child Porn
March 4, 2026
A former firefighter assigned to the Beulah Fire Station has been sentenced to 75 year in federal prison on child porn charges.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office said 48-year-old Garey Anthony Buscaino had a decade long pattern of producing and possessing child porn.
Multiple victims of Buscaino’s crimes were present at the sentencing hearing in federal court. In addition to serving 75 years in federal prison, Buscaino was ordered to pay approximately $30,000 in restitution to the victims. He will also have to register as a sex offender for life.
“Protecting our children from exploitation and the predations of sick individuals like this offender remains one of my office’s highest priorities. I deeply appreciate the outstanding investigative work of our state and federal law enforcement partners who helped stop this predator from continuing to sexually exploit minor children and brought him to justice. As this substantial prison sentence demonstrates, my office will relentlessly pursue offenders who victimize our children, prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law, and seek maximum punishment for their heinous crimes,” said United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida John P. Heekin.
Court documents reveal that the Florida Department of Law Enforcement received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that an online user in Northwest Florida possessed what appeared to be child pornography in a cloud account. Upon looking into the account and obtaining a search warrant for it, law enforcement determined that it not only contained child pornography from the internet but also what appeared to be hidden camera produced pornographic videos of unsuspecting minor females.
Based upon the content of the cloud account, and further investigation, FDLE linked the account to Buscaino and obtained a search warrant for his local residence and the Beulah firehouse. Located within, the Internet Crimes Against Children Task force seized dozens of electronic devices from the defendant.
“Our agents worked diligently to identify the offender and secure the evidence needed to protect these victims,” said FDLE Commissioner Mark Glass. “We appreciate the strong partnership with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida in ensuring this individual is held fully accountable and cannot harm another child. Protecting Florida’s children is one of our highest responsibilities, and we will continue to pursue anyone who seeks to exploit them.”
Prosecutors said those devices contained hidden camera produced porn videos of five minor females in various states of undressing in bedrooms and bathrooms, as well as thousands of graphic images and videos of sexual child abuse from the internet. Some of these images and videos captured victims as young as toddlers being sexually abused, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
This sentence reflects the seriousness of these crimes and the unwavering commitment of Homeland Security Investigations to protect children from exploitation,” said Assistant Special Agent in Charge Nicholas G. Ingegno. “We will continue to work closely with our law enforcement partners to ensure offenders are brought to justice and victims receive the support they deserve.”
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice and led by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Divisions Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), it marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.