Cause Still Unknown Of ‘Monster’ Fire That Destroyed Historic Atmore Home
July 10, 2016
Four weeks ago today, a massive Sunday morning fire destroyed a historic turn of the century home in downtown Atmore. And now, investigators still don’t know how the fire started.
Atmore Fire Chief Ronald Peebles said the Alabama State Fire Marshal’s Office has not reached a final determination on the cause of the fire.
The fire was reported about 6:35 a.m. June 12 at 311 South Main Street, at a two story, 4,000 square foot home built in 1900. Flames were shooting skyward from the second floor as the fire firefighters arrived on scene. The residents of the home had escaped unharmed, and the family dog was miraculously found alive and doing well on the first floor of the home nearly two hours after the blaze began. Click here to read more about the dog.
Firefighters were hampered by heat and humidity as they fought the blaze, but there were no injuries. Smoke from the fire was visible as far away as Ernest Ward Middle School on Highway 97 in Walnut Hill.
The Atmore, Poarch, Wawbeek and Flomaton fire departments from Alabama and the Walnut Hill Station of Escambia Fire Rescue in Florida, Atmore Ambulance, the Atmore Police Department and the Poarch Creek Tribal Police responded to the fire.
For a NorthEscambia.com photo gallery, click here.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
FDOT: Weekly Traffic Alerts
July 10, 2016
Drivers will encounter traffic disruptions on the following state roads in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties as crews perform construction and maintenance activities.
Escambia County:
- I-10/U.S. 29 Interchange – The I-10 westbound to U.S. 29 north (Exit 10B) ramp will be closed from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. Wednesday, July 13 and Thursday, July 14 as crews perform striping work. Traffic will be detoured to U.S. 29 south. Drivers will make a U-turn at Diamond Dairy Road to access U.S. 29 north.
- I-10 Widening – Intermittent and alternating lane closures on I-10, between State Road (S.R.) 291 (Davis Highway/Exit 13) and U.S. 90 (Scenic Highway/Exit 17), from 7 p.m. to 6:30 a.m. the week of Monday, July 11 as crews perform striping work. ·
- S.R. 727 (Fairfield Drive)- Northbound lane closure on Fairfield Drive at 77th Avenue from 8 p.m. Monday, July 11 to 5 a.m. Tuesday, July 12 as crews mill and resurface area.
Santa Rosa County:
- I-10 Widening – Alternating lane closures, between the Escambia Bay Bridge and S.R. 281 (Avalon Boulevard/Exit 22), from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. Sunday, July 10 through Thursday, July 14 as crews continue widening work. In addition, alternating lane closures on Avalon Boulevard near the I-10 interchange for bridge work.
- S.R. 87 Multilane – Alternating lane closures from one mile south of the Yellow River to north of the Yellow River Bridge from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. Sunday, July 10 and Monday, July 11. In addition, traffic will be shifted to the west on the Yellow River Bridge and adjacent approaches as crews continue to widen S.R. 87. The speed limit on the Yellow River Bridge will be reduced to 45 mph and vehicles will not be allowed to pass on the bridge.
- S.R. 281 (Avalon Boulevard)- Intermittent lane restrictions across the Garcon Point Bridge from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday, July 12 and Wednesday, July 13 as crews perform a routine bridge inspection.
- S.R. 281 (Avalon Boulevard)- Intermittent lane closures and slow moving operations from U.S. 98 to the toll bridge from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. continuing through Thursday, July 28 as crews perform striping operations. There will be no work performed Friday through Sunday.
- S.R. 87 and S.R. 89 from S.R. 4 to the Alabama line – Intermittent and alternating lane closures and slow moving operations from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. continuing through Sunday, July 31 as crews perform striping operations.
- U.S. 98 – Crews will perform striping operations and install raised pavement markers (RPMs) from the Pensacola Bay Bridge to Central Parkway (approximately nine miles) Sunday through Thursday nights through Sunday, July 31. Motorists may encounter minor traffic delays from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m.
All activities are weather dependent and may be delayed or re-scheduled in the event of inclement weather. Drivers are reminded to use caution, especially at night, when traveling in a work zone and to watch for construction workers and equipment entering and exiting the roadway.
Alabama Deputy Involved In Traffic Crash
July 10, 2016
An Escambia County (AL) Sheriff’s Deputy was involved in a traffic accident in Atmore Saturday night.
About 9:30 p.m., the deputy’s marked cruiser was traveling on Highway 21 near Hendrix Tractor Company when it was sideswiped by another vehicle. The cruiser came to rest in a ditch.
There were no injuries in the accident.
The crash remains under investigation by the Alabama State Troopers.
Florida Gov’t Weekly Roundup: Brown Interrupts The Quiet
July 10, 2016
Other than a steady stream of emails from politicians letting loose about mushrooming concerns regarding toxic waters south of Lake Okeechobee, it was a quiet week in Tallahassee.
Florida Supreme Court justices left court watchers high and dry, taking an annual summer break without opining on closely monitored cases involving gambling and the death penalty. And Gov. Rick Scott was nowhere to be seen in Tallahassee, though he and his staff tried to make crystal clear that they are concerned about nasty algae coating waterways south of the big lake.
But by Friday, a veteran congresswoman prevented capital denizens from succumbing to the lethargy induced by Florida’s dog days.
After months of rumors, U.S. Rep. Corrine Brown and her chief aide pleaded not guilty to a series of charges related to what federal prosecutors described as a “scheme involving a fraudulent education charity” and a “personal slush fund.”
LONGTIME CONGRESSWOMAN’S LONG-AWAITED INDICTMENT
Brown and Chief of Staff Elias “Ronnie” Simmons were indicted Friday on charges that they used a sham education charity to pay for personal expenses and luxurious events, accusations that pose the most serious challenge yet to her 23-year congressional career.
Brown and Simmons pleaded not guilty to all of the 24 counts in the indictment, which includes allegations of mail and wire fraud, concealing facts on financial-disclosure forms, filing false tax returns and theft of government property.
Federal prosecutors say the two worked with Carla Wiley, a Virginia woman who reached a plea deal with the government in March, to set up “One Door for Education” and use it “as a personal slush fund,” in the words of Assistant Attorney General Leslie Caldwell.
“Congresswoman Brown and her chief of staff are alleged to have used the congresswoman’s official position to solicit over $800,000 in donations to a supposed charitable organization, only to use that organization as a personal slush fund,” Caldwell said in a press release announcing the indictment. “Corruption erodes the public’s trust in our entire system of representative government.”
But Brown, a pugnacious congresswoman known for fiercely defending her district and her legacy, insisted to reporters Friday that she is innocent. The congresswoman, who has built her identity around constituent service, said she would “let the work I’ve done speak for me.”
“My heart is just really heavy,” the 69-year-old Jacksonville Democrat said. “This has been a very difficult time for me, my family, my constituents. But I’m looking forward to a speedy day in court to vindicate myself. … We’ve got the rest of the story. So I’m looking forward to presenting the rest of the story.”
Brown — who has fought off challenges to her district and other threats over two decades in Congress — has long insisted on her innocence in the matter. “I’m clean,” she told reporters in March as she faced questions about federal probes amid a separate legal fight over the shape of her district.
Brown has represented a district that stretches from Jacksonville south to Orlando since 1993. She is seeking re-election in a dramatically redrawn district that goes from Jacksonville west to Gadsden County, passing through Tallahassee.
RIVERA STILL COULD BE ON THE HOOK
In other ethics-related news involving a onetime member of Florida’s congressional delegation, a state appeals court on Wednesday rejected Miami Republican David Rivera’s challenge to an ethics finding against him but didn’t close the door to the possibility of hearing the case again in the future.
Rivera left the Legislature in 2010 and served one term in Congress. The ethics case deals with his time in the state House before heading to Washington.
Wednesday’s ruling means the lengthy battle over a proposed ethics fine of nearly $58,000 will likely continue, even as Rivera attempts a political comeback in this year’s elections. The former lawmaker is one of five Republicans and one Democrat running for an open seat in state House District 118 in Miami-Dade County.
In a unanimous decision, a three-judge panel of the 1st District Court of Appeal said it was too early for Rivera to challenge the constitutionality of a law allowing him to be fined by state House Speaker Steve Crisafulli, R-Merritt Island. While the Florida Commission on Ethics recommended a punishment, Crisafulli is charged by the law with the final decision.
Rivera’s attorney had argued that it’s unconstitutional for the speaker to have that kind of authority over a former member. But the judges said challenging the law now was jumping the gun, because the ethics process “will not be complete until the speaker acts on the commission’s recommendation.”
COURT LEAVES ‘EM GUESSING
The Florida Supreme Court issued a ho-hum batch of opinions on Thursday before shutting down shop for a nearly two-month summer hiatus.
The break leaves unresolved questions about issues such as the constitutionality of the state’s death-penalty sentencing laws, something the court has grappled with since a January U.S. Supreme Court ruling that essentially said the state’s system was unconstitutional because it gave too much power to judges, instead of juries, in sentencing inmates to death.
The Legislature and Scott scrambled to approve changes to address the U.S. Supreme Court ruling, which came in a case known as Hurst v. Florida. Since the ruling, the Florida Supreme Court has been inundated with arguments on the issue and is faced with trying to sort out questions such as whether the changes approved by the Legislature and Scott meet constitutional tests.
The court also left hanging a case that has major implications for the gambling industry and for communities in various parts of the state. The case centers on whether Gretna Racing, a pari-mutuel facility in rural Gadsden County, should be able to offer slot machines without the express approval of the Legislature.
The ultimate ruling likely will come down to how justices interpret a 2009 gambling law. Gretna Racing contends the law permits counties to hold referendums to allow slot machines — an argument Scott’s administration and Attorney General Pam Bondi dispute. The outcome will affect at least six counties where voters have approved slot machines in referendums. Those counties are Gadsden, Brevard, Hamilton, Lee, Palm Beach and Washington.
The justices also left in limbo a case challenging the constitutionality of a Florida law requiring women to wait 24 hours before having abortions.
STORY OF THE WEEK: Longtime Congresswoman Corrine Brown, a Jacksonville Democrat, pleaded not guilty to charges that she and a top aide used a sham education charity to pay for personal expenses and luxurious events.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “We protect everyone just as a matter of course because it’s just, you know, it’s a nice thing to do.” Administrative Law Judge R. Bruce McKibben, after deciding to keep secret the names of investors affiliated with a Jacksonville nursery trying to get a license to grow, process and dispense marijuana products.
by Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida
Florida Supreme Court To Heart Arguments On Gambling Initiative
July 10, 2016
The Florida Supreme Court will hear arguments Nov. 2 on a proposed ballot initiative that could make it harder to expand gambling in the state. The court issued an order Friday scheduling the arguments, as pari-mutuel facilities contend that the measure should be kept off the 2018 ballot. Justices do not rule on the merits of proposed constitutional amendments but must sign off on the ballot wording. The proposal, known as “Voter Control of Gambling in Florida,” would require future statewide votes to authorize casino-style games including blackjack, craps and roulette. The amendment, which has received financial backing from the group No Casinos Inc., would take away the Legislature’s ability to approve casinos in Florida but would not affect tribal casino operations, which are regulated by federal law.
by The News Service of Florida
Wahoos Open Series With Win Over Biloxi
July 10, 2016
Pensacola center fielder Jeff Gelalich was called up to Double-A to be a backup player on the Blue Wahoos team.
But he created a problem for Pensacola manager Pat Kelly by hitting so well.
Now a starting outfielder for the Blue Wahoos, Gelalich smacked two doubles and drove in Pensacola’s first run of the game to propel them to a, 4-2, victory in the series opener Saturday against the Biloxi Shuckers in front of a sellout crowd of 5,038 at Blue Wahoos Stadium.
Kelly said Gelalich is a good “problem” to have, hitting .321 in 32 games with five doubles, three triples, one home run and 11 RBIs.
“If you hit it doesn’t create a problem for you,” he said. “I’ll find a spot for you. At this level, if you perform, you’re going to get an opportunity to play.”
Gelalich, who was a high draft choice by the Cincinnati Reds in 2012, came into his fifth year in the minor leagues with a career .245 average. He spent three years at the Low-A Dayton Dragons before moving up to High-A Daytona Tortugas this year.
Gelalich was promoted May 15 to the Double-A Blue Wahoos after hitting .235 in 24 games for Daytona. He’s happy to have worked himself into a starting role with Pensacola.
“It’s always a goal,” said Gelalich, who was 2-4 with one RBI Saturday. “You always want to play.”
The Pensacola victory was the first time the first half South Division champions have won back-to-back games in the second half. They moved out of the cellar and are 7-9 in the second half and 48-38 on the season.
The Blue Wahoos scored first in the third inning when catcher Jose Duarte scored on a double by Gelalich off the right field wall for a 1-0 lead. Then pitcher Tyler Mahle scored on a sacrifice fly to right field by second baseman Alex Blandino to go up, 2-0.
“I’m just trying to hit the ball hard and not do too much with it,” Gelalich said.
Pensacola first baseman Eric Jagielo hit a deep solo shot to right center field to lead off the fifth inning and put Pensacola ahead, 3-0. It was Jagielo’s second homer in three games and sixth on the season.
With two outs in the bottom of the sixth inning, Pensacola shortstop Zach Vincej smashed a line drive into right center field for a stand up double. Right fielder Juan Duran then hit a zinger past the third basemen into left field that scored Vincej, giving the Blue Wahoos a 4-0 lead.
Biloxi first baseman Nick Ramirez crushed the ball deep over the scoreboard in right field to end Mahle’s scoreless inning streak in the seventh inning and pull the Shuckers within, 4-1.
Shuckers left fielder Johnny Davis hit a grounder into right field to start the eighth and advanced to third base on Biloxi right fielder Tyrone Taylor’s single to center. Davis scored when Brett Phillips grounded out into a double play to pull Biloxi within, 4-2.
Pensacola righty Mahle rebounded from his worst outing in three starts with Pensacola when he gave up five earned runs to Mobile in 4.2 innings, the shortest of his three starts.
He gave up just one run on a solo dinger, five hits, one walk and struck out five. Mahle improved his Pensacola record to 3-1 with an earned run average of 3.74.
Kelly said he has liked what he has seen out of the 21-year-old pitcher.
“He had a good fastball and spotted it where he wanted to,” Kelly said. “That was a quality seven innings.”
Northview, Jay Students Take Part In Washington Youth Tour
July 10, 2016
Rebecca Boutwell of Jay High School and Zipporah Harris of Northview High School recently joined 1,600 youth leaders representing electric cooperatives from 43 states for a week-long tour of the nation’s capital as Washington Youth Tour delegates.
Rebecca and Zipporah won Escambia River Electric Cooperative’s contest held annually for juniors in EREC’s service area.
Highlights of their trip included visits to the World War II, Lincoln, Vietnam, Korean and FDR memorials; Arlington National Cemetery; relaxing on the Potomac River during an evening boat cruise; and visiting many other places of interest in Washington, D.C.
Youth Tour delegates also met with Congressman Jeff Miller and visited the U.S. Capitol, where they learned more about how government works. During the Rural Electric Youth Day program, they gained a better understanding of rural electric cooperatives’ history and their importance in the communities they serve.
Major Drug Bust In Jay (With Photo Gallery)
July 9, 2016
Local and federal authorities conducted a major meth bust in Jay, with a Century connection, Friday morning.
Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office Narcotics and SWAT units, along with the DEA and the Monroe County (AL) Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant at 3501 Highway 4 in Jay, a small rental home on the corner of Highway 4 and Luman Shell Road.
Authorities located over 14 ounces of crystal methamphetamine valued over $50,000 along with several assault style weapons, hand guns and caches of ammunition. In addition, several stolen items were located from neighboring counties, according to the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office.
Edgardo Xavier Rivera, age 33 of Jay, was taken into custody in the parking lot of a business on North Century Boulevard in Century as he arrived to pay his rent. Authorities also arrested was 35-year old Mariana Solano of Jay at the Jay residence.
Rivera and Solano were both charged with possession of a controlled substance without a prescription, methamphetamine trafficking, and possession of drug paraphernalia. They were both booked into the Santa Rosa County Jail with bond set $141,000 each.
A neighbor, who asked to remain anonymous out of fear of retribution, said she and other neighbors were concerned about activity at the home.
“There are always people coming and going from the house at all times of the day and night,” she said. “And we all felt like something was up by the way they kept the windows and carport blacked out all the time. It just seemed like they really had something to hide.”
For a photo gallery, clck here.
Pictured top and bottom: Deputies collect evidence under the carport of a Jay home Friday morning. Faces of undercover deputies have been obscured for their safety. Pictured below: Weapons and over $50,000 worth of crystal methamphetamine seized during the operation. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Most School Grades Fall
July 9, 2016
The Florida Department of Education released school and districts grades Friday, and they generally fell across the board due to a new scoring system for leaning gains.
The Escambia County School District fell from a B in 2015 to a C for 2016. Last year, there were 14 A schools in Escambia County; that number fell to six this year.
Individual school grades are in the table below:
Atmore Woman Charged After Child Left Unattended In Hot Car
July 9, 2016
An Atmore woman has been charged with child abuse after allegedly leaving her young child in a hot vehicle outside a local Walmart.
According to Atmore Police Chief Chuck Brooks, a customer saw unattended the two-year old child crying and upset in a parked car that was not running about 12:20 p.m. Thursday. The customer was able to reach through window that was rolled down slightly, unlock the vehicle, remove the child and take it inside the air conditioned store.
Atmore Police arrived to find the child inside the Walmart being given water by an employee.
The child’s mother was identified as Kim Ross of Atmore. She told police that the child was asleep in the car when she arrived at the store. Ross said she rain inside the store to purchase birthday supplies for the child’s birthday.
Brooks estimated the child had been in the hot car for 6-7 minutes, but would have been there 20 minutes before Ross returned if not rescued by the Good Samaritan.
Ross was booked into the Escambia County Detention Center in Brewton on a charge of torture and willful abuse of a child.
The Alabama Department of Human Resources was called to assist with the investigation. The child was later released with a family member.