School Bells Ring Early For Florida Students
July 7, 2018
In a little more than a month, tens of thousands of Florida students will return to their classrooms.
Nineteen of the 67 school districts will open their doors on August 10, according to the state Department of Education’s 2018-2019 school district calendar. Another 40 districts, including Escambia County, will be open by August 13, meaning nearly nine out of every 10 districts statewide will be operating by mid-August, well ahead of the September 3 Labor Day holiday.
Miami-Dade County, which is the largest district with some 350,000 students, and Hamilton County, which is one of the smallest with fewer than 1,700 students, will both open on August 20, the latest date to start the new school year. Both of those districts will end their academic years on June 6, the latest date to conclude the year. In general, school, districts that start classes early will also release students earlier in the spring.
Sixteen districts including Escambia County, will conclude their school years on May 24, ahead of the May 27 Memorial Day holiday. Teachers will return to their classrooms ahead of the students, with teachers in Bay, Calhoun, Holmes and Madison counties set to return on August 1, the earliest return date for teachers. Escambia County teachers will return August 3.
Florida schools, which generally operate on a 180-day school year, are projected to serve nearly 2.85 million students in the new academic year.
by The News Service of Florida with contribution from NorthEscambia.com
Wahoos Win in 11
July 7, 2018
After a sluggish performance Thursday night, the Wahoos showed their grit with a hard-fought, 8-7 win in Friday’s 11-inning contest at Riverwalk Stadium.
After neither team was able to score in the 10th inning, T.J. Friedl broke a 6-6 tie with an RBI triple that put the Wahoos ahead. He later scored on Brian O’Grady foul sacrifice fly that extended Pensacola’s lead to 8-6.
The bottom of the 11th was not without drama. Montgomery began with a runner on second base, and Victor Payano was brought in the game to try and close out the win. After Dalton Kelly grounded out, Peter Maris tallied a RBI single to make it 7-6 Pensacola. After Nick Solak flew out to center, Payano had a 1-1 count on Nate Lowe before grimacing on the mound. He was looked at by the Wahoos athletic trainer before lifted from the game. Alejandro Chacin became the fifth relief pitcher used by Jody Davis and was able to induce Lowe to foul out to Cassidy Brown to end a wild game.
Pensacola got off to a dream start against one of the premier pitching prospects in the Rays system in Genesis Cabrera. Friedl opened the game with a single, and after a walk to Jose Siri, Shed Long drove home Friedl with an RBI single to center. The Wahoos doubled their advantage after Narciso Crook’s sac fly to center scored Siri.
Seth Varner took the hill in the first inning with a 2-0 lead and did not squander it. Despite not having his “best” stuff, the Cincinnati-native battled his way through five innings and only yielded one run. Michael Brosseau tagged Varner with a triple in the fourth inning and later scored on David Rodriguez’s sac fly to make it 3-1.
The Wahoos quickly countered with three runs in the fifth. Crook picked up his second RBI with a single that brought home Siri, and after a wild pitch from Matt Krook, Taylor Sparks delivered a two-out RBI single that made it 6-1 Wahoos.
Montgomery slowly chipped at away the Wahoos lead over the final four innings. They scored one run in the sixth, and three runs in the seventh all of Rafael De Paula, which cut the Wahoos lead to 6-5. There was a scary moment in the top of the seventh inning when Long was hit in the helmet with a pitch from Matt Krook. After being checked by the athletic trainer for several minutes, Long was helped off the field and replaced by O’Grady.
Alex Powers entered the game in the ninth inning with a chance to wrap up his ninth save of the year, but he and the Wahoos watched their one-run lead evaporate with Nick Solak’s twelfth home run of the season that tied the game at 6-6.
The series concludes Saturday with the Wahoos hoping to clinch their sixth consecutive series win. RHP Vladimir Gutierrez (5-8, 4.95) has been stellar as of late for Pensacola and he will be opposed by RHP Sam McWilliams (3-4, 4.57)
Pine Forest Road Crash Claims One Life, Two ECUA Workers Seriously Injured
July 6, 2018
One person died in a traffic crash on Pine Forest Road near 9 1/2 Mile Road Friday morning, and two ECUA workers were seriously injured.
The Florida Highway Patrol said 32-year old Blake Emory Wartenbe was southbound on Pine Forest Road when he traveled into the northbound lane in a no passing zone in an attempt to pass. His 2009 Audi S5 collided head-on with an ECUA sanitation pickup truck driven by 47-year old Robert Bodiford of Pensacola.
Wartenbe was pronounced deceased. Bodiford and his passenger, 62-year old Horace Green, were transported to Sacred Heart Hospital in serious condition.
The accident remains under investigation by the Florida Highway Patrol.
Pictured: The scene of a fatal crash Friday morning on Pine Forest Road. Photo below for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge. Photo above courtesy WEAR 3 for NorthEscambia.com.
ESCO: Child Found Living In Squalor With Drugs, Easy Access To Gun
July 6, 2018
A couple was charged after a child was found living in squalor with drugs and easy access to a gun when the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office served a narcotics search warrant.
Justin Lee Devries, 33, was charged with felony child neglect, unsafe storage of a firearm, possession of marijuana with intent to sell, manufacture, or deliver with 1,000 feet of a worship center, and possession of drug paraphernalia. Brooklyn Sky Sorrells, 28, was charged with felony child neglect and unsafe storage of a firearm.
Inside the home, deputies reported finding piles of dog feces, dog feces smeared and smashed all across the floor and walls, a dead rat in the toilet, a large number of live flies and cockroaches, and a lack of available food. The only furniture in the house was a mattress and box spring used by the child that was “soiled and when moved produced a cloud of dirt and dust”, according to an arrest report. Deputies found a loaded .45 caliber handgun between the mattress and box spring..
The male child was walking around the home at the time of the search in an adult diaper with no shoes, the report stated, and would have easy access to the gun. The Department of Children and Families responded, and the child was released to Sorrell’s mother.
When the home was searched, investigators recovered $19,503 and 1,074 grams of marijuana. Sorrell told deputies that she did not know her boyfriend was selling marijuana.
The house was located with 1,000 feet of Ensley United Methodist Church on East Johnson Avenue.
Devries was released from the Escambia County Jail on a $26,000 bond. Sorrells was released on a $6,000 bond.
Free Meals Available At The Molino, Century And Main Libraries
July 6, 2018
Free summer meals continue to be available at the libraries in Molino, Century and downtown Pensacola.
The meals are available through a partnership with West Florida Public Libraries and Feeding the Gulf coast through Friday, August 3 for children 18 and younger.
Meals are available as follows:
– Molino Branch Library, 6450-A Highway 95A : Monday-Friday, breakfast from 9-10 a.m. and lunch from noon to 1 p.m.
– Century Branch Library, 7991 N. Century Blvd: Tuesday-Friday, lunch from noon to 1 p.m.
– Pensacola Library, 239 N. Spring St.: Monday-Friday, breakfast from 9-10 a.m. and lunch from noon to 1 p.m.
Pictured: Summer meals at the Century Branch Library. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Man Sentenced To Prison For Fatal Pedestrian Hit And Run
July 6, 2018
An Escambia County man was sentenced Thursday in a fatal hit and run crash a year ago.
Charles Otto Bodie was sentenced to 10 years in state prison for leaving the scene of a fatal crash July 15, 2017 in Ensley.
The Florida Highway Patrol said Bodie was driving a 1994 Chevrolet C10 that struck 52-year old Tina Baker Cain of Linden, AL, as she walked across Pensacola Boulevard in the 5800 block near near the Motel 6.
Cain was thrown about 100 feet from the collision and was pronounced deceased on the scene.
Bodie fled the scene, according to the FHP, with a witness following him to his address.
File photo.
Deadline Near To Request Alternate Escambia District Bus Stops For Students
July 6, 2018
from the Escambia County School District
Parents who are planning to request special transportation accommodations so their student can be picked up or dropped off somewhere other than their home address (such as a before or after-school care program site) are reminded that the deadline to file their requests online is midnight on July 15.
Parents wishing to hand-deliver their request need to bring the appropriate request form to the transportation office by 4:00 p.m. on July 12. District offices are closed July 13, 14 and 15. Families without internet access are welcome to visit the Transportation Department’s office for assistance.
To submit the form online, go to the ECSD Transportation’s home page and scroll down to read the instructions and identify the link that fits their student’s situation. Questions may be emailed to Ann Swanson at aswanson@escambia.k12.fl.us. The office is located at 100 E. Texar Dr. and the phone number is 850-469-5488.
Transportation will acknowledge receipt of the request within a few days. If parents do not receive that acknowledgment, they should send an email asking for confirmation or call 850-469-5488. All of this information, and links to the forms, is also available online on the Transportation Department’s home page: ecsd-fl.schoolloop.com/transportation.
Only requests submitted by July 15 will be considered for approval in time for the start of the 2018-2019 school year. Requests must be submitted each year.
Requests that arrive late will be held to be processed, but not until after school starts.
Biscuits Roast Wahoos 8-2
July 6, 2018
Montgomery’s offense struck early and often against Wyatt Strahan Thursday night as the Biscuits cruised to an 8-2 win at Riverwalk Stadium.
After putting together one of his best outings of the season, Wyatt Strahan (L, 5-8) struggled to keep the Biscuits offense in check. After scoring a pair of runs in the second inning, the hosts exploded for six runs in the fourth. He was eventually replaced with two outs in the fourth inning by Joel Bender.
Four different Biscuit pitchers held the Wahoos to a pair of runs. Using a strategy similar to their parent club, Montgomery opened with Brandon Lawson who pitched three shutout innings before being relieved by Curtis Taylor (W, 2-1). Taylor worked the next four innings without giving up a run before Roel Ramirez entered the game in the eighth.
That’s where the Wahoos did their damage offensively. Aristides Aquino led off the frame for Pensacola, and after a great battle, he ripped a single up the middle to extend his hitting streak to 10 games. Gavin LaValley followed with his seventh home run of the season to make it 8-2. After Luis Gonzalez reached with an infield single, Ramirez settled down and retired the next three batters in order to end the threat.
In the ninth, Travis Ott worked around a Brian O’Grady single to finish out the Biscuits win.
The series rolls along Friday with Seth Varner (4-0, 2.48) battling against LHP Genesis Cabrera (6-4, 3.83)
Man Sentenced For Shooting His Drug Dealer
July 6, 2018
An Escambia County man has been sentenced for the attempted murder of his drug dealer.
Dequnta Jerome Durant, 25, pleaded no contest to attempted first degree premeditated murder with a firearm, robbery with a firearm, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
Immediately following the plea, Circuit Judge Paul Rasmussen sentenced Durant to 20 years in state prison with a 10 year minimum mandatory sentence. He will serve the first 10 years of his sentence day for day and he will serve at least 85 percent of the remaining 10 years. Durant has four prior felony convictions.
On March 30, 2016, Durant met with the victim in the in order to purchase a quantity of marijuana. During the exchange, the Durant pulled a firearm, shot the victim in the chest, and stole the marijuana. He was identified by the victim in a photo lineup.
Woman Finds Burglar In Her Closet, Manhunt Follows In Cantonment
July 5, 2018
A manhunt was underway Thursday afternoon in Cantonment after a woman found reporting finding a burglar hiding in her closet.
The woman had been behind her home on Rose Petal Lane and went back inside to notice things were out of place. She located a black male dressed in all black inside her closet and pepper sprayed him, according to Major Andrew Hobbs of the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office. During an ensuing struggle, she received a small superficial scratch on her arm before the suspect ran outside.
There was no word of any arrests from the Sheriff’s Office.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office at (850) 436-9620 or Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP.
Rose Petal Lane is located between Well Line Road and Neal Road, just west of Highway 29.
NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Barbour, click to enlarge.
