Students Enjoy Milkshakes With Their School Resource Officer
August 4, 2016
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office held a “Milkshake With A School Resource Officer” event at Chick-fil-A on Nine Mile Road Wednesday evening.
The event provided an opportunity for students to meet their SRO before school starts, and enjoy a little conversation over a free milkshake provided by Chick-fil-A.
Over 50 students took part in the event. The Sheriff’s Office also handed out free school supplies to the kids.
Pictured top: Florida’s statewide School Resource Office of the Year, Deputy Ronnie Gill of Ernest Ward Middle School, with students enjoying milkshakes Wednesday evening at Chick-fil-A on Nine Mile Road. Also pictured: The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office “Milkshake With A School Resource Officer” event. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Debate Turns Emotional Over Dozier School Memorial
August 4, 2016
A state task force on Wednesday began an emotional debate about how to commemorate the victims of abuse and brutality at the Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys and what to do with the unidentified remains of youths who died at the shuttered reform school.
“The mission and goals of this task force are different and sensitive from most other task forces,” Secretary of State Ken Detzner told the nine-member panel, which held its first meeting in Marianna, near the site of the 1,400-acre Dozier property in Jackson County.
Detzner said the task force has been directed by the Legislature to develop recommendations by Oct. 1 on the creation of a memorial to honor the victims of the reform school, which operated from 1900 to 2011, as well as designating a permanent burial site for victims whose bodies were unidentified or unclaimed.
An investigation led by University of South Florida researchers found 51 sets of remains in an unmarked graveyard known as Boot Hill Burial Ground at the Dozier facility, including victims of a 1914 dormitory fire. USF anthropologists identified 21 of the sets of remains through DNA and other methods.
The law that created the task force also provided $7,500 for each family for funeral and reburial costs if they claimed the remains of victims.
But in its initial meeting, the task force found itself at odds over the issue of whether the memorial and the permanent burial site should be at the former Dozier reform school or elsewhere in the state.
Eric Hill, a Jackson County commissioner who serves on the task force, said the permanent burial site and memorial would receive greater exposure if it was in a more populated area of the state, rather than the rural Panhandle county.
“I think the location would be best fit with a larger population,” Hill said.
He was supported by Jerry Cooper, who was sent to Dozier as a runaway teen and who leads a group of “White House Boys,” an organization named for a building where youths said they were beaten and abused.
“I see no reason, whatsoever, to reinter these people, these children, back on this property,” Cooper said. “As far as I am concerned, it would be only adding insult to injury.”
Dale Landry, representing the Florida NAACP, said his civil rights organization was unanimous in believing that the memorial should be at the former reform school.
“Our biggest fear is that once you let it go, it will be forgotten,” Landry said, adding the goal should be to “repurpose that land and make it sacred.”
Stephen Britt, whose uncle died at Dozier in 1946, strongly objected to the idea of not having a memorial and permanent burial in Jackson County.
“They want it to be totally eliminated. They don’t want any reference of it being here. They are ashamed, but they shouldn’t be,” Britt said. “They didn’t commit those crimes. Their ancestors did, but they didn’t.”
Britt, at one point, called the proceeding “a farce,” but later apologized for his outburst, while adding “you must understand this is extremely personal to me.”
“I think everyone understands how emotional this is,” said Timothy Parsons, head of the state Division of Historical Resources and chairman of the task force. “And I think we all feel really strongly about our responsibilities.”
David Jackson, a Florida A&M University history professor who was appointed as a non-voting adviser to the task force, said it would be “very unusual” to not have a memorial at the site of the former reform school.
“It gives us an opportunity to continue to teach people for generations to come about what’s right, what’s wrong, what should not have occurred so we won’t repeat those things going forward,” he said.
The task force agreed to wait until its Aug. 19 meeting to begin voting on proposals for creating a memorial and designating a permanent burial site for the unidentified or unclaimed Dozier victims.
The task force’s Oct. 1 report will be forwarded to the Department of State, lawmakers and Gov. Rick Scott and the Cabinet.
by Lloyd Dunkelberger and Tom Urban, The News Service of Florida
Pictured top: A trench dug in the search for human remains at the Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys in Marianna. Pictured below: Mapping the graves. Pictured inset: The remains of George Owen Smith have been positively identified. Courtesy photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Zika Tourism Effects Could Take Time To Play Out
August 4, 2016
With Florida battling a Zika virus outbreak in Miami, the full impacts of federal and international travel advisories on the state’s tourism industry won’t be known for months.
The state’s tourism-marketing arm Visit Florida, following Gov. Rick Scott and other officials, has maintained a message that Florida is safe and open for business.
But Mark Bonn, professor of services management at Florida State University’s Dedman School of Hospitality, said the state — which recently has also drawn negative international attention because of a mass shooting in Orlando and toxic algae blooms in estuaries fed by Lake Okeechobee — needs to get a handle on the Zika issue before the cooler-weather tourism season kicks in.
“We know from tourist behavioral research that the most important decision-making motive in a consumer’s mind about where they’re going to go for their vacation is safety and security,” said Bonn, who specializes in tourism marketing and research. “So if a consumer is at all unsure about a destination’s safety and security, they’re probably going to pass and probably go somewhere else.”
Bonn said most travelers to Florida aren’t planning to visit the area of Miami known as Wynwood, where state Department of Health officials believe people have been infected with Zika through mosquito bites. But the perception of the situation, similar to the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010, could be much wider that the actual area of impact.
“The further away the consumer was from the epicenter of the (BP) damage, the more fear they had that there was a factor of unsafeness in the consumptive factor of seafood,” said Bonn, who published a study on the impacts of the BP spill. “I guarantee you that the same hypothesis is true here. That the further away the consumer is, such as in the UK or Canada, the higher the fear is about traveling to Florida.”
British and Canadian health officials have issued advisories about travel to Florida.
The British release was for all of Florida, while the Public Health Agency of Canada advisory said pregnant women and those planning pregnancies should “avoid travel to the area in South Florida and countries with reported mosquito-borne Zika virus.”
The Canadian advisory, ranking the outbreak a Level 2 risk, also informed all travelers to “protect themselves from mosquito bites.”
Under the Canadian grading, a Level 3 risk would advise people to avoid non-essential travel into an area with an outbreak and Level 4 states that individuals should avoid all travel due to a high risk to the general public of infection.
Those advisories came as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued an advisory that pregnant women should not travel to the Wynwood area of Miami.
Zika, which emerged last year in South America, generally produces mild symptoms. However, it is particularly dangerous to pregnant women because it can lead to severe birth defects, including microcephaly, which leaves babies with abnormally small heads and developmental problems.
Health officials are investigating 15 cases of people infected with Zika in South Florida. No new locally transmitted cases were reported Wednesday. Numerous other cases have been diagnosed involving people who were infected while traveling outside the continental United States.
Scott has been holding roundtables across the state and on Wednesday held a midday call with Visit Florida and tourism leaders about Zika preparedness.
Regional tourism officials in South and Central Florida didn’t respond to requests for comments.
The governor’s office issued a release Wednesday that said the state Department of Health is providing free Zika testing to pregnant women in all county health departments.
On Tuesday, Scott and other state officials tried to assure the public that Florida remains safe.
Visit Florida President & CEO Will Seccombe on Tuesday called the outbreak “a hyper-local situation,” joining Scott in expressing confidence in the state’s effort to contain and eradicate Zika.
“The Florida Department of Health reports that the only locally transmitted cases to date are confined to a neighborhood in Miami,” Seccombe said in a statement. “For perspective, that’s a one-square-mile area in a state where a drive from end to end can cover more than 800 miles.”
Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam said the state needs to get a “clear message” that Florida is safe outside of the Miami neighborhood, but people need take “reasonable precautions.”
“I grilled out every night this weekend,” Putnam said Tuesday after a state Cabinet meeting. “The mosquitoes that are biting you at dusk are not the mosquitoes that are carrying Zika. And based upon what we know so far, the mosquitoes that are carrying Zika are pretty tightly contained in one area of South Florida.”
While state officials were calling Florida “safe,” CDC Director Tom Frieden appeared Tuesday on ABC’s “Good Morning America” where he said eradication has been difficult in the affected area in Miami.
“It could be that the mosquitoes there are resistant to the insecticide being used,” he said.
He added that the neighborhood’s design had contributed to the difficulties.
“It’s mixed use. It has industrial, business and residential and that makes mosquito control very complex,” Frieden said.
by Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida
Cantonment Community Group, Church Provide Food, Educational Help For Kids
August 4, 2016
Wednesdays in the park have meant a good lunch, a fun time, and a little education thanks a local church and a community group.
All summer on Wednesday, Saint Jude Catholic Church has provided free hot dog meals in Cantonment’s Carver Park on Webb Street. This Wednesday, they provided a pizza lunch. The Cantonment Improvement Committee has cosponsored the events.
Children have also had the opportunity to keep up with their reading and math skills using the computer lab the Carver Park Resource Center.
Photos courtesy Cantonment Improvement Committee for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Football Registration Continues At NWE, Century
August 4, 2016
Practice is underway for the 2016 football season for both Century and Northwest Escambia, and registration is continuing.
Century Blackcats CRA football is continuing football player registration during practices 5:30-7:00 p.m. Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays until August 23 at the Anthony Pleasant Park on Highway 4. Registration fee for football is $25, free for cheerleaders. Cheerleaders must purchase a uniform for $110-$140. The ages for football are 5-13 and 4-13 for cheerleading. For more information, contact April at (850) 776-5334 or Ricky at (850) 777-6288.
Northwest Escambia is continuing to register football players during practices. Football registration is $50 with NWE providing all equipment and uniforms, except cleats. Football practices and registration times are 6-8 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and some Fridays until August 12 at Bradberry Park. Cheerleader registrations are no longer being accepted due to uniform turnaround times. For more information, call (251) 234-4716.
Submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Tate Showband To Hold Preview Night, Dinner And Auction
August 4, 2016
This Friday is the Tate High School Showband of the South preview night for friends and family at 6:30 p.m.
The preview will be followed with a dinner and auction at 7:30 p.m. Dinner tickets are $6 per person and can be purchased at the door. The dinner will include a BBQ sandwich, chips, and a dessert.
A live and silent auction will be held to raise money for the December Hawaii trip where the band will perform at the 75th anniversary of Pearl Harbor. Auction items to include donations from Dolphin Cruises, Pensacola Lighthouse, Blue Wahoos, Ice Flyers, musical instruments, golf passes, dinner at Hemingway’s, Flounders, and much much more.
World Renew Assessment Team Visits Century Tornado Zone
August 4, 2016
On Wednesday, a reconstruction assessment team from World Renew toured facilities capable of housing teams of up to 20 skilled reconstruction volunteers in Century.
The World Renew regional managers, project managers and construction managers began their assessment with a tour led by Mayor Freddie McCall. The outcome of the assessment could lead to a commitment by World Renew to deploy volunteer teams by fall to support recovery assistance to low income survivor families in Century and North Escambia with the assistance of the Escambia Long Term Recovery Group, with coordination by BRACE.
World Renew is a member of the National Voluntary Organization Active in Disaster and widely recognized for its efforts to assist survivors following disaster. Services of World Renew include disaster response, needs assessment, reconstruction assessments and recovery reconstruction. The organization establishes up to five reconstruction sites simultaneously to support communities recovering from disaster. World Renew reconstruction sites are typically established for a year or longer hosting volunteers with teams rotating every three weeks.
Greg Strader, executive director for BRACE said, “the Escambia Long Term Recovery Group is thrilled that World Renew is considering our request that it establish a reconstruction site in Century”. World Renew partnered with BRACE and the Escambia Long Term Recovery Group to assist 113 low income homeowners in their recovery following the 2014 flood that impacted over 10,000 families in Escambia County.
NorthEscambia.com file photo.
Wahoos Loads Bases In Ninth But Drop 3-2 To Mississippi
August 4, 2016
One thing about the Pensacola Blue Wahoos this season, you can never count them out until the very last out.
Mississippi reliever David Peterson loaded the bases by walking three Blue Wahoos with one out in the bottom of the ninth inning but allowed just one run to give the Braves a 3-2 victory Wednesday at Blue Wahoos Stadium. The teams are tied, 2-2, headed into the final game of the five-game series Thursday.
In all, Mississippi’s four pitchers walked nine batters and lead all of Double-A with 437 walks but Pensacola, which added two hits, failed to capitalize.
“Without getting any hits it’s tough to take advantage of nine walks,” said Pensacola manager Pat Kelly, whose team has a franchise record 10 walk-offs this season.
Pensacola and Mississippi are 1, 2 with the best earned-run averages in the Southern League at 3.17 and 3.21, respectively.
The Mississippi Braves twice threatened to go ahead and both times Pensacola Blue Wahoos starting pitcher Sal Romano thwarted them.
However, Mississippi’s best pinch hitter Levi Hyams delivered a two-out, two-run triple on a fly ball in the right center gap off of Pensacola reliever Carlos Gonzalez in the seventh inning to put the Braves up, 2-1. Hyams is 5-12 as a pinch hitter this year and 2-2 in this series.
Romano came out with a cramp in his right hamstring in the top of the seventh after allowing a single to Mississippi first baseman Carlos Franco and getting ahead on the count 0-2 against Braves right fielder Joey Meneses.
Franco’s run counted against Romano. It was the first earned run off of the big righty in his last four starts going back to July 17 against the Jacksonville Suns. Romano has allowed one unearned run in 22.2 innings.
The No. 17 prospect in the Cincinnati Reds organization turned in six innings, giving up one run on six hits, walking none and striking out six. He retook the Southern League lead in strike outs with 112 on the season. After starting the season 1-10, Romano has won three of his last five starts by pitching inside more effectively and relaxing before the game, Kelly said.
“I have a sour taste in my mouth that I didn’t get the win,” Romano said. “All of our starters are in a really good groove right now.”
Pensacola’s Romano was coming off his best game of the 2016 season when he threw 6.2 perfect innings the Montgomery Biscuits. He ended up throwing seven scoreless innings with one hit and seven strikeouts.
“It was nice. I got to dwell on it one day,” Romano said. “Then I had to pitch in the bullpen and get ready for this start. You can’t have that kind of outing every day.”
The Blue Wahoos scored its first run in second inning when Pensacola shortstop Zach Vincej singled sharply back up the middle to extend his hitting streak to nine games. Pensacola first baseman Eric Jagielo got the other hit for Pensacola when he doubled in the sixth.
Vincej went to third when Mississippi pitcher Lucas Sims threw the ball past the first baseman on a pickoff attempt and it rolled into the bullpen. Pensacola third baseman Taylor Sparks then hit a fly ball to the warning track in right field to score Vincej easily.
Pensacola clung to that 1-0 lead in the fourth inning when Mississippi threatened to score with base runners on second and third with one out. Braves shortstop Dansby Swanson reached third base on left fielder Dustin Peterson’s Southern League-leading 34th double.
But Pensacola first baseman Eric Jagielo leaped to his right to catch a rocket off of the bat of the Braves Franco. Pensacola’s Romano then struck out Joey Meneses looking and pumped his fist as he walked to the dugout.
Again in the fifth inning, Mississippi third baseman Johan Camargo doubled off the left center wall and reached third with two out. And again, Romano ended the inning by striking out Mississippi second baseman Ozzie Albies — who is ranked No. 18 in MLB.com’s Top 100 and who has reached base in 37 straight games.
Mississippi added another run when center fielder Connor Lien hit his third homer this series and fourth home run in seven games, drilling the ball just right of center field. Lien now has five homers on the year and 11 RBIs in 34 games.
Groundbreaking Held For New Splash Pad In Century
August 3, 2016
The Town of Century held an official groundbreaking Tuesday afternoon for a new splash pad.
Installation of the splash pad at Showalter Park should begin by next week and be completed within another two weeks, if the weather cooperates. The splash pad will have hours of operation that are yet to be announced, but will likely follow a schedule along the lines of sunrise to sunset. A motion sensor will allow children to start the water flowing during operational hours.
Town officials had hoped that the splash pad would be up and running by the start of summer, but they said an EF-3 tornado that struck the town in February delayed the process. Town workers were busy with tornado clean up, leaving no time to install the water and sewer lines for the splash pad.
A $50,000 Florida Recreation Development Assistance Program grant was awarded to the town last October to fund the splash pad. The competitive grant program provides state funds to develop lands for public outdoor recreational use, such as building or renovating sports facilities or playgrounds. Century was the only recipient of the grant last year in Escambia County.
FWC Law Enforcement Report
August 3, 2016
The Florida FWC Division of Law Enforcement reported the following activity during the weekly period ending July 28 in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties.
ESCAMBIA COUNTY
Lieutenant Hahr was patrolling in the Perdido River Wildlife Management Area (WMA) when he observed a woman and three men sharing a cannabis cigarette while watching their children play in the river. All four were charged with possession of not more than 20 grams of cannabis and three were issued citations for possession of alcoholic beverages.
Officers Allgood and Cushing spent three days on the Fincat working offshore with FWC biologists from Pensacola to Panama City with a focus on the Madison-Swanson Marine Reserve. During their patrol, they assisted the biologists in retrieving and deploying 26 monitoring stations. They also issued federal citations for fishing in the Marine Reserve, for possession of red snapper and greater amberjack during the closed season and charter fishing in federal waters without a permit.
Officers Allgood and Cushing worked offshore on the Fincat in federal waters off the coast near the Florida/Alabama line. Fishermen on five different vessels were found to be in violation. Federal citations were issued for persons in possession of red snapper and gray triggerfish during the closed season, failure to maintain whole condition (gray triggerfish), and undersized king mackerel.
Officer Cushing observed a commercial shrimping vessel in Pensacola Bay trawling with three nets. Trawling with more than two nets is a violation. A notice to appear was issued to the owner/operator.
Officers Cushing, Jernigan and Jones responded to a boating accident involving two personal watercraft (PWC) in the Santa Rosa Sound. The PWC were being operated illegally at night without lights, and when the operator of the lead jet ski stopped, the following jet ski struck him. The operator of the first PWC was transported to the hospital for his injuries while the operator of the second PWC was arrested for Boating under the Influence (BUI) and transported to the Santa Rosa County Jail by Officer Cushing. Charges are pending on the operator of the first PWC.
SANTA ROSA COUNTY
Officer Lewis was on patrol in the area near Blackwater River State Forest when he observed a convoy of Jeeps heading toward the forest. Since it had been raining all day, Officer Lewis thought the group was likely to go “wheeling” in the forest. Officer Lewis waited about 20 minutes, then made his way to an area where vehicles have been known to go off-roading. Officer Lewis located 12 Jeeps in the area, six of which were being operated off the established road. Officer Lewis issued each driver of the six Jeeps a citation for operating a vehicle off the established road in a state forest. Officer Jernigan came to assist Officer Lewis and in doing so observed a subject operating an ATV in the state forest. He issued the driver of the ATV a citation for operating an ATV in a state forest.
Officer Jones responded to a B.O.L.O. from the Santa Rosa Sheriff’s Office for a stolen truck, possibly in the Escribano Point WMA, and went to the Bayside Campground where he located an abandoned and vandalized Suzuki vehicle. The campsite had been ransacked, and the registration on the abandoned vehicle returned to a female from another state. Witness reports and information from WMA employees led investigators to be concerned that a mother and child previously seen with a man might be endangered. Officer Jones, along with several other FWC officers, attempted to locate the registered owner or others who may have information on their whereabouts and were able to contact the father of the vehicle’s registered owner. He provided information about his daughter and her boyfriend and said the infant child was his granddaughter, whose custody was granted to them by local court. After exhausting all efforts locally, Officer Jones received a call several days later stating that the couple were arrested in another state in connection with the stolen truck. The authorities contacted the grandfather of the child and he traveled to that state to take custody of the infant child.
Officer Hoomes was a guest speaker at the monthly meeting for the Milton Kiwanis Club. Officer Hoomes discussed the responsibilities and duties of an FWC officer. He also talked about ideas to reduce human and black bear encounters and the upcoming Family and Mobility Impaired hunts held on the Blackwater State 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.