Vet Students Donate Pet Oxygen Masks To Escambia Fire Rescue
January 26, 2016
The Pensacola State College’s Veterinary Technology Program presented Escambia County Fire Rescue with five sets of pet oxygen masks Monday.
The masks were donated by students in the class.
Veterinary Technology Program Director Sarah Meyer-Paterson made the presentation to Escambia Fire Rescue Captain Craig Ammons at the PSC Warrington Campus.
“We have been very fortunate to have used these several times in the past with great success,” Ammons said. “This will replace where our people have been very creative and used water bottles and oxygen tubing. So this will help out tremendously.”
Pictured top: Pensacola State Veterinary Technology Program students demonstrate the use of a per oxygen mask. Pictured inset: Escambia Fire Rescue Captain Craig Ammons accepts the donation. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge. Pictured below: An Escambia County (FL) EMS crew uses a water bottle as a makeshift oxygen mask to revive a kitten found during a fire in Flomaton last month. The kitten made a complete recovery. NorthEscambia.com file photo, click to enlarge.
Lawmakers On Board With Alcohol At Florida Train Stations
January 26, 2016
If passenger rail service returns to the Gulf Coast, passengers would be able to buy alcoholic drinks at train stations in Florida under a measure proposed Monday by a Senate panel.
The proposal is part of a wider-ranging bill (SB 698), sponsored by Senate Regulated Industries Chairman Rob Bradley, R-Fleming Island, and would permit the Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco to issue alcoholic beverage licenses to the owners of railroad transit stations, existing and planned.
The division could also issue alcohol licenses to the operators of restaurants or shops tied to rail stations.
The Southern Rail Commission has recently announced it is in talks with Amtrak about providing daily service from Orlando to New Orleans/ A study has tentatively affixed stops in Pensacola, Crestview, Chipley and Tallahassee — all of which would be permitted to make alcohol available at their stations under the bill.
The division could also issue alcohol licenses to the operators of restaurants or shops tied to rail stations.
Bradley said before the meeting of the Senate General Government Appropriations Subcommittee that the bill doesn’t specify any existing or proposed passenger rail service.
However, a staff analysis of the proposal specifically highlights — without commenting — that All Aboard Florida, an offshoot of Florida East Coast Industries, is building stations in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach and Orlando for its Brightline passenger rail service that is expected to begin running next year.
The legislative proposal could also result in alcohol being sold at the Tri Rail stops from Mangonia Park to Hialeah or the more than 20 stations along the Metrorail in Miami-Dade County.
The measure specifies that a “railroad transit station” handle passenger trains running regular, fixed schedules between two or more cities.
Also, under Bradley’s proposal, a permit wouldn’t count against any quota license restrictions that limit the number of such permits that may be issued per county.
Municipalities or counties also wouldn’t be able to impose additional licenses or taxes to sell alcohol at stations. And the “railroad transit station” license could not be transferred beyond the stations.
A House proposal (HB 645) by Rep. Kathleen Peters, R-Treasure Island, has a somewhat similar proposal regarding train stations and alcohol sales. Her bill goes before the Business and Professions Subcommittee on Tuesday.
by Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida, with contributions by NorthEscambia.com
Revolutionary War, Siege Of Pensacola Hero Galvez Named Honorary U.S. Citizen
January 26, 2016
Monday, Congressman Jeff Miller presented the UWF Historic Trust Board of Directors with the official documentation conferring Honorary Citizenship to Gen. Bernardo de Galvez, a Spanish military leader who led his forces against the British during the Siege of Pensacola in the American Revolutionary War. Galvez joins Sir Winston Churchill, Mother Teresa and just five others to become the eighth person to earn honorary citizenship in the United States. The documentation will be housed at the T. T. Wentworth, Jr. Florida State Museum in Pensacola. Courtesy photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Senators Support Stepped Up Efforts To Test Rape Kits
January 26, 2016
.Plans to speed up DNA testing in suspected rape cases are moving in the Legislature, following revelations that thousands of evidence kits remain untested statewide.
On Monday, the Senate Criminal Justice Committee unanimously passed a measure (SB 636), filed by Sen. Lizbeth Benacquisto, R-Fort Myers, that would establish time limits for local agencies to submit sexual assault kits to FDLE for testing. The vote came after a Florida Department of Law Enforcement report earlier this month showed the state has more than 13,000 untested rape kits.
The House version (HB 179), filed by Rep. Janet Adkins, R-Fernandina Beach, has passed one panel and faces two more.
“All I know is that we are going to make sure that this bill passes, and that it is not an optional question moving forward, that they will be submitted and tested in a very timely fashion,” Benacquisto said. “And we think that 120 days is long enough for someone to wait to make sure that the person that committed that crime against them — that they can be brought to justice.”
Testing DNA evidence could help law enforcement agencies catch rapists and prevent future rapes, but Florida does not require kits to be submitted for testing. That decision has rested with local law-enforcement agencies.
The bills, however, would require any evidence collected in rape investigations to be submitted for testing within 21 days of being received by law-enforcement agencies or after notification by victims or victims’ representatives that they wish the evidence to be tested.
The report came after Attorney General Pam Bondi in September called on lawmakers to increase funding for crime labs to address the testing backlog. In its report, FDLE recommended that the state spend at least $8 million over a three-year period to do so.
“We must ensure we are able to test all DNA evidence, including sexual assault kits, in a timely manner, and this legislation will help expedite the process,” Bondi said in a statement on Monday.
Benacquisto said the funding for the backlog wasn’t part of her bill, but would be dealt with through the budget process.
“The issue with the backlog is a separate issue which will require additional funding and make sure that we can clear that backlog in a very, very time-efficient way,” she told reporters. “And you’ve seen (Senate Criminal and Civil Justice Appropriations) Chair (Joe) Negron, (R-Stuart), be very aggressive to make sure that we’ll have the funding that we need to clear that backlog and that it’s done in a much shorter timeline than FDLE had originally proposed, of six to eight years. That’s just far too much time.”
Backlogs are a national problem, said Jennifer Dritt, executive director of the Florida Council Against Sexual Violence — and jurisdictions that have cleaned up their backlogs have caught a number of rapists.
“They solved a lot of rapes, and they found quite a few serial rapists, which was not surprising to people who do the work,” Dritt said.
According to FDLE, New York City in 2000 began to test its entire backlog — 17,000 rape kits — resulting in more than 2,000 DNA matches and 200 cold-case prosecutions. In Michigan, the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office identified 188 potential serial rapists and obtained 15 convictions. In Houston, the testing of 6,663 rape kits resulted in 850 matches in the federal DNA database.
In its report, FDLE found that kits were not tested for several reasons, including victims declining to proceed with investigations, state attorney’s offices declining to prosecute and suspects pleading guilty.
Also, some victims do not wish to file police reports. In those situations, kits may be held by local law enforcement or by rape-crisis centers for periods of time in case victims change their minds. Kits are forwarded to laboratories for testing only if reports are filed and victims have consented to testing.
Benacquisto said in her proposal, victims have “the ultimate authority” over whether or not the testing proceeds.
“We feel very strongly about making sure their wishes are known,” she said.
by Margie Menzel, The News Service of Florida
Adult, Two Young Children Injured In Molino Crash
January 25, 2016
Three people — including two young children — were seriously injured in single vehicle crash Monday morning in Molino.
The accident was reported about 7:45 a.m. on Highway 95A near Josh Lane, just south of Cedartown Road. According to the Florida Highway Patrol, 24-year old Erin Michell Hallford of Cantonment was traveling north on Highway 95A in a 1989 Chevrolet pickup when she ran off the roadway, hit a utility pole and overturned in a wooded area. One of the children and Hallford were trapped in the vehicle following the crash.
Hallford was airlifted by LifeGuard medical helicopter to a Pensacola hospital, while two children, ages three and five, were transported to the hospital by Escambia County EMS.
The FHP cited Hallford with failure to maintain a single lane.
NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Price, click to enlarge.
Local Water Company Reports Positive E-coli Test
January 25, 2016
One local water company is reporting a positive test for the E. coli bacteria back in December, and the company failed to take all of the steps required by the state after the finding.
In a notice sent recently via postal mail to customers, Walnut Hill Water Works said a December 2 raw sample taken at one of their three water wells showed the presence of E. coli. However, none of the distribution samples taken the same day were positive for total coliform or E. coli bacteria, and a single sample taken on December 4 was also negative.
But according to state regulations, the utility was required to take five additional samples within 24 hours of the positive result for E. coli. The five samples were not taken until December 29 “when the State finally learned of the December 2nd result,” according to the company notice.
The company said they also failed to notify the state by the end of the day when they learned of the first result, and they failed to provide the required proper public notice to customers and the media within 24 hours of learning of the result.
Walnut Hill Water Works also failed to remove the well with positive E. coli test result from production or issue a system-wide precautionary boil water notice until five additional negative sample were obtained.
The positive E. coli test may have been a warning of potential problems but may have been the result of a lab or handling error, the water company noted. The company said they are reviewing their policies and procedures to battle handle any future positive results and working into minimize the possibility of contamination during the sampling process.
Walnut Hill Water Works is owned by Escambia River Electric Cooperative. The water company serves a population of a 2,384 people, according to the Florida Department of Environmental Management.
Berrydale VFD Chief Jim Cagle Passes Away
January 25, 2016
Berrydale Volunteer Fire Department Chief Jim Cagle passed away Sunday.
Cagle was recently diagnosed with a severe illness and was undergoing treatment at Shands Hospital in Orlando. He had served as Berrydale’s fire chief for over 25 years and served as a firefighter for the United States Navy.
He is survived by his wife Debbie and numerous relatives and friends. Funeral services have not yet been announced.
Close Call: CSX Train Makes Emergency Stop To Avoid 18-Wheeler
January 25, 2016
It was a bit of a close call between a CSX train and an 18-wheeler Sunday evening near Atmore. The train was forced to make an emergency stop to avoid the 18-wheeler, which was stuck on the tracks on 21st Avenue at Highway 31 just east of Atmore. Photos courtesy David Gehman for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Florida House Plans To Take Up Fracking, Uber Bills
January 25, 2016
The House is expected Tuesday to take up controversial bills about regulations dealing with oil and gas drilling and app-based transportation services such Uber and Lyft.
The bills were included Thursday in what is known as a “special order calendar,” which lists issues that will be considered on the House floor. The House is scheduled to go into session at 2:30 p.m. Tuesday.
The drilling bill (HB 191), filed by Rep. Ray Rodrigues, R-Estero, and Rep. Cary Pigman, R-Avon Park, would create a regulatory framework for oil and gas drilling in the state — including the controversial technique known as “fracking.” The bill is backed by organizations such as Associated Industries of Florida but has drawn opposition from environmental groups that fear it could help lead to fracking in the state.
Among other bills on the special-order calendar is a proposal (HB 509), filed by Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fort Walton Beach, that would prevent local governments from regulating fast-growing transportation services such as Uber and Lyft. The bill has drawn opposition, in part, from taxicab companies that face local requirements and contend they could be put at a competitive disadvantage. But supporters, including House Speaker Steve Crisafulli, R-Merritt Island, say the state should take a free-market approach to such new technologies.
by The News Service of Florida
Library Friends To Hold $5 Blowout Book Sale
January 25, 2016
The West Florida Public Library will hold a $5 Blowout Book Sale on the this Saturday.
Attendees can pay $5 for a brown paper bag and stuff it will all the books that will fit. There’s no limit to the number of bags that can be purchased.
Contributions will be used to support the West Florida Public Library’s efforts to build community and improve literacy.
The sale will be Saturday, January 30 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the West Florida Public Library Main Branch at 239 North Spring Street.