FSU Shooting Victim Paralyzed, But Determined To Graduate
November 25, 2014
The student who was critically injured in Thursday’s shooting at Florida State University is paralyzed from the waist down, but still determined to realize his dream of becoming a biomedical engineer, his sister told reporters Monday.
Farhana Ahmed, the older sister of FSU student Farhan “Ronny” Ahmed, said her brother’s condition has been upgraded from critical to serious at Tallahassee Memorial Hospital, where he was taken after the shooting and where she met with reporters.
“Despite his injuries, he’s alive and we’re so grateful he is here with us,” she said.
Ronny Ahmed, 21, was shot three times. He was the most seriously injured of the three people attacked at FSU’s Strozier Library early Thursday morning, when a gunman, Myron May opened fire in the lobby. The library’s security measures kept at least 450 students who were studying for exams out of harm’s way, while May was shot and killed by FSU and Tallahassee police who were on the scene in less than five minutes.
Farhana Ahmed credited law enforcement for sparing other students from May’s bullets. “Ronny himself was probably saved by the quickness of their actions,” she said.
University employee Nathan Scott, 30, was shot in the leg and was released from the hospital Friday. The third victim, Elijah Velez, 18, suffered what police called a “grazing” wound.
Farhana Ahmed said she spoke to reporters on behalf of her family to respond to messages from across the country.
“We’ve gotten so many teddy bears and letters and calls and messages of support saying they are with Ronny and they hope he recovers soon and that he is part of the Tallahassee community,” she said.
At her side was FSU President John Thrasher, who pledged his full support to the Ahmed family.
“Florida State University is 100 percent committed to ensuring that we do everything we can to fulfill Ronny’s dream, as Farhana said, of achieving his goal of graduating from Florida State University,” Thrasher said. “We are going to work with her and her family to do that and continue to support them in every way we can.”
Friends of the Ahmed family put up a fundraising website to help with Ronny’s medical expenses, and donations are pouring in.
Farhana Ahmed said her brother grew up in Orlando and graduated from Lake Highland Preparatory School. He has a year and a half to go to complete his bachelor’s degree at FSU.
by Margie Menzel, The News Service of Florida
Video Shows Armed Robbery Of Highway 97 Convenience Store
November 24, 2014
This story has been updated. Click here.
The search is continuing for the suspect in the Friday armed robbery of a Highway 97 convenience store , and a surveillance video has revealed new details about the crime.
The male suspect entered the Davisville BP about 7:45 p.m. and and demanded cash. In the video, he walks directly to the counter, then walks further into the store, presumably to get the clerk who was not behind the counter. He pulls what appears to be a handgun out of his coat pocket. The clerk can be seen removing cash from the register, placing it in a plastic shopping bag, and hurriedly placing the bag on the counter.
The perpetrator quickly exits the store toward Nokomis Road, quickly turns around and looks back in the door, and then continues to make his getaway. The video shows the entire robbery took about 45 seconds.
Friday night, the clerk was not immediately available to provide a good description of the suspect, but investigators reviewed surveillance video in their effort to develop a suspect. He fled the store in an unknown type vehicle in an unknown direction of travel. No suspect has been named by the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office.
The suspect appeared to be a white male, average height and was wearing glasses with a dark frame. At the time of the robbery, he was wearing khaki colored pants, a ski mask and a blue winter coat with an attached hat.
Anyone with information on the robbery is asked to call the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office at (850) 436-9620 or Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP.
If you do not see the video at the top of this story, it is because your home, work or school firewall is blocking YouTube videos.
Pictured inset: The suspect in a Friday night robbery. Pictured below: The BP station on Highway 97 in Davisville minutes after a Friday night robbery. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Ernest Ward Middle Names Students Of The Month
November 24, 2014
Ernest Ward Middle School has named Students of the Month for September and October. They are (pictured L-R) October – Crystal Douglas, 8th grade, and Savannah Spence, 7th grade; September – Liby Pugh. Not pictured is Abenia Diggs, 6th grade, October. Submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Let The Miracle League Fry Your Turkey
November 24, 2014
Want a fried turkey but afraid to try it yourself? Volunteers from the Miracle League of Pensacola will fry your turkey for you on Wednesday, November 26, saving you the time and trouble while benefiting the charity. And there is still time to make an appointment.
Completely thaw your turkey, removing all of the inside packaging and giblets. Write down exactly how much your turkey weighs so it is fried perfectly and take it to the Miracle League Park at 555 East Nine Mile Road from 7 a.m. until 5 p.m. on Wednesday. For a monetary donation to Miracle League, the volunteers will fry your turkey to perfection. A minimum of $20 per turkey is necessary to help cover costs, and any additional donation will benefit the Miracle League of Pensacola.
Call Greg Wiggins at (850) 529-2155 or Paul Hinson at (850) 450-8319 with questions or to schedule your time (leave a message if no answer). Reservations should be made early as they number of time slots is limited.
Turkey Time: Extension Service Offers Thawing Tips
November 24, 2014
It’s Thanksgiving week, time for family and friends to gather and give thanks. And time for cooks to ponder the correct way to prepare their turkey.
Today, we are taking a look how to make sure your turkey is properly thawed with tips from Dorthy Lee, Family and Consumer Sciences Agent for the Escambia County Extension Office.
Following four simple food-handling practices—clean, separate, cook, chill—will ensure a delicious and safe meal.
Frozen turkeys should be thawed—at a safe temperature— prior to cooking. There are three safe ways to thaw a turkey — in the refrigerator at 40°F or less; in cold water; and in the microwave.
Frozen Turkeys
Allow 1 pound of turkey per person.
Keep frozen until you’re ready to thaw it.
Turkeys kept frozen in the freezer should be cooked within one year for best quality.
Thawing Your Turkey
In the Refrigerator (40°F or below)
Keep the turkey in its original wrapper. Place it on a tray or in a pan to catch any juices that may leak. A thawed turkey can remain in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 days. If necessary, a turkey that has been properly thawed in the refrigerator may be refrozen. When thawing in the refrigerator, allow 24 hours thawing time for every 5 pounds of turkey.
4 to 12 pounds = 1 to 3 days
12 to 16 pounds = 3 to 4 days
16 to 20 pounds = 4 to 5 days
20 to 24 pounds = 5 to 6 days
In Cold Water
When thawing in cold water, allow 30 minutes per pound and change the water every 30 minutes until the turkey is thawed. Wrap your turkey securely, making sure the water is not able to leak through the wrapping. Submerge your wrapped turkey in cold tap water. Change the water every 30 minutes. Cook the turkey immediately after it is thawed. Do not refreeze. Allow approximately 30 minutes per pound.
4 to 12 pounds = 2 to 6 hours
12 to 16 pounds = 6 to 8 hours
16 to 20 pounds = 8 to 10 hours
20 to 24 pounds = 10 to 12 hours
In the Microwave
When thawing in the microwave, follow the manufacturer’s instructions, and plan to cook the turkey immediately after thawing because some areas of the turkey may become warm and begin to cook during microwave thawing.
For more information, call the Escambia County Extension office, (850) 475-5230.
Northview Cross Country Team Members Honored
November 24, 2014
The Northview High School Cross Country team honored their outstanding members recently during their annual banquet.
Award winners included:
Photos: Escambia Academy Wins State Championship
November 24, 2014
The Escambia Academy Cougars from Canoe, AL, won the AISA Class AAA state championship Friday night with a 35-28 defeat of Bessemer Academy at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Troy, AL.
For a bonus photo gallery, click here.
For the game story, click here.
NorthEscambia.com photos by Ditto Gorme, click to enlarge.
Former Principal’s Wooden Santas On Display At Molino Library
November 24, 2014
Hand-carved wooden Santas created by a former principal are on display this month at the Molino Branch Library.
Dale Cooey was principal of Molino Elementary School and Molino Park Elementary School from 1997-2007, and was also principal at Barrineau Park Elementary school during the consolidation into Molino Park. He apprenticed under his uncle was a master wood carver.
Through a one year grant from the Florida Folk Art Association, Cooey and his uncle began showing their carvings and received several blue ribbons. The “Santa with the Tree” carving included in the display case won a blue ribbon this year at the Pensacola State Fair. His carvings are made from cypress knees and bass wood.
Pictured: Wooden Santas on display at the Molino Branch Library. Courtesy photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Florida Lifts Ban On Silencers For Hunting Deer, Other Game
November 24, 2014
Florida hunters can now muffle their shots when hunting deer, gray squirrels, rabbits, wild turkeys, quail and crows.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission on Friday agreed, with little comment, to issue an order that immediately removes a prohibition on the use of noise-suppressors, or silencers, with rifles and pistols.
Florida becomes the 33rd state to allow the noise-suppressors for game hunting.
Florida had been the only state in the Southeast to have such a ban, which was lifted at the request of hunters, said Diane Eggeman, director of the agency’s Division of Hunting and Game Management.
Eggeman said silencers cut noise by about 30 decibels, and it’s a common misconception that such noise-suppressers eliminate sound from the weapon.
“You can hear it from a long way away,” Eggeman said. “It’s a significant noise.”
Florida already allows the use of suppressors on shotguns for game hunting. A suppressor can also be placed on a rifle or pistol when hunting on private lands for non-game wildlife, including hogs and armadillos.
During the commission meeting, held in Key Largo, Fish and Wildlife staff and a couple of hunters defended the proposal as a means to protect hunters’ hearing, lessen the impact of hunting on others and help while introducing people to the sport.
Buck Holly, an owner of C&H Precision Weapons in LaBelle, told the commission that silencers also improve communications among hunters in the field, and he noted his 17-year-old daughter prefers using a silencer on a rifle as it reduces the recoil and sound.
“None of my kids are afraid to hunt with rifles because there is no longer the loud bang,” Holly said. “There is not a lot of recoil, they all think it’s fun.”
Holly added there has been an uptick in silencer sales in Hendry County in anticipation of the prohibition being lifted.
Concerns have been expressed to the commission that lifting the ban would reduce safety and increase opportunities for illegal activities. But Eggeman said wildlife officials from other states haven’t reported an increase in illegal activities as few hunters use suppressors because they are expensive and highly regulated.
To purchase a silencer, a hunter must pay a $200 registration fee with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and pass an FBI background check.
The cost of a rifle suppressor has been estimated between $450 and $2,000.
by Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida
Molino Fire Holds Live Burn Demonstrations (With Fire Videos)
November 23, 2014
The Molino Station of Escambia Fire Rescue held an open house and special fire safety demonstrations Saturday.
In live burn scenarios, the department demonstrated holiday and winter fire dangers in the home — from grease fires and a toaster fire in a mock kitchen to a dried-out Christmas tree in a living room setup.
In less than two minutes, a live Christmas tree that had been improperly watered became a raging inferno, filling an entire living room with fire. Click here to watch video.
A grease fire exploded into a tower of flames when water was incorrectly used on the flames. And in a second kitchen demonstration, a residential sprinkler system installed by Living Water Fire Protection of Molino quickly put out an appliance fire. Click here to watch video.
Organizers said they plan to have future live demonstrations to promote fire safety in the local community.
Pictured top and inset: A small fire on a dry Christmas tree explodes in just minutes into a raging inferno. Pictured below: The incorrect use of water to extinguish a grease fire results in a tower of flames. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
