Firefighters Battle Cantonment House Fire; Save Family Cats
January 4, 2014
Fire heavily damaged a Cantonment home Friday afternoon as first responders worked to save family pets overcome by smoke.
Firefighters battled the house fire on Bonanza Drive, near Pine Forest Road north of Nine Mile Road. Firefighters also dealt with a lack of hydrants in the immediate area, shuttling water in tanker trucks from fire hydrants from some distance away in the neighborhood.
The residents were able to escape without injury, but family pets were still inside the home when first responders arrived.
At least two cats were removed from the home. Escambia County EMS personnel were seen providing them oxygen and working with the felines for some 10-15 minutes to resuscitate them. The two cats were then returned to their owners.
There were no human injuries reported. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
Pictured top: Fire ravaged a Cantonment home Friday afternoon. Submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com. Pictured inset and below: EMS personnel resuscitate two cats found inside the home. NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Smith, click to enlarge.
2013 Persons Of The Year: Marilyn Robinson
January 4, 2014
NorthEscambia.com is naming several Persons of the Year for 2013. More honorees will be named on Sunday.
Marilyn Robinson of Century has been named one of our North Escambia persons of the Year.
There’s that old saying, “When the going gets tough, the tough get going”. That’s Marilyn Robinson.
The Carver Community Center Association has been a big part of the Century community for many years. The center was started by a group of senior citizens in 1992, spearheaded by Leola Robinson, the mother of Marilyn Robinson, who now serves as the director. The center provides a safe place for children to go after school and during the summer and offers year-round tutoring and other programs.
The Carver Community Center on Jefferson Avenue provides food for 70 to 100 children Monday through Thursday and serves as a satellite office for Catholic Charities and United
Ministries.
Marilyn Robinson works tirelessly each year to organize Century’s annual Martin Luther King Day celebration. She is a board member of the Century/Flomaton Improvement Association, where she acts as a mentor to citizens providing services to local residents in the area of finance, education and housing improvement.
Robinson is active in the Community Action Program, assisting citizens with financial necessities and works with Farm Share to organize events to provide tens of thousands of pounds of food and necessities to the community.
During 2013, Robinson and the Center were presented The President’s Volunteer Service Award. Established in 2003, the President’s Council on Service and Civic Participation encourages citizens to volunteer in their communities. Congressman Jeff Miller honored the Center and Robinson with a Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition. And the Carver Community Center Association was presented Gulf Power Company’s prestigious Power of Service Award.
During the past 15 months, during Robinson’s tenure as director, a widespread group of people across the region have given back to the Carver Community Center.
After a December 2012 article about the Florida Department of Children and Families statewide “Operation Santa Cause” campaign featuring the needs of the Carver Community Center, people stepped up to help.
The Center’s needs included internet service (about $100 per month) and at least 15 computers to replace current computers that are old, slow and sometimes non-functioning. A man in St. Petersburg volunteered to cover the internet service for one year, according to DCF. And the Escambia County Board of County Commissioners donated 20 refurbished computers for the children.
A small army of volunteers organized by Americorps worked during the 2013 National Day of Service to paint the Carver Community Center. Nearly 100 volunteers painted inside the community center, a much needed facelift covering flaking and peeling paint in hallways and classrooms. The volunteers were from groups like Pensacola State College’s Student Government Association, DCF, Northwest Florida College, Americorps Coalition of Escambia and Santa Rosa Counties, the Ministry Village from Olive Baptist Church, Chain Reaction and Habitat for Humanity.
Word of the Carver Community Center spread to Georgia and the Rivertown Church of Columbus. They spent a portion of their summer working and volunteering in Century, and church members returned to provide a free Thanksgiving dinner for the town.
And UF IFAS/Extension Escambia County Agents teamed up with Robinson during the summer to offer lessons to about 50 children related to nutrition, preparing healthy food, water resources, insects, livestock, discovering where originates, and healthy choices for the youth of Century.
Pictured top: Marilyn Robinson is honored during 2013 by the Century Town Council. Pictured middle inset: The Carver Community Center. Pictured bottom inset: Children learn about nutrition during a summer event at the Carver Community Center. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
68 Acres Off Nine Mile Rezoned For 570 Single, Multi Family Dwellings
January 4, 2014
The Escambia County Commission has approved rezoning about 68 acres behind the John R. Jones Athletic Complex on Nine Mile Road from outdoor recreational to urban residential.
Smart Living, LLC of Huntsville wants to build 570 single and multifamily units on the land — which will require further permits and reviews from the county before construction can begin.
The entrance to the development, if approved, will be on Topeka Road.
Name Released Of Bicyclist Killed By Hit And Run Driver
January 4, 2014
The Florida Highway Patrol has released the name of a bicyclist killed Wednesday morning in Pensacola, and the FHP is still searching for the hit and run driver that struck him.
Michael J. Fowler, 60, was killed on West Jackson Street near Wiggins Avenue about 2:25 a.m. Wednesday when he was hit by an unknown model red Dodge pickup. The pickup was involved in a second hit and run crash and was last seen traveling north on W. Street.
The truck is believed to have extensive front end damage. Anyone with information is asked to call Cpl. M Collins at (850) 471-6924 or dial *FHP.
FWC Law Enforcement Report
January 4, 2014
Florida FWC Division of Law Enforcement reported the following activity during the weekend ending January 2:
Escambia County
Officer Hoomes received a complaint of two overdue boaters. With the assistance of the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office, the individuals’ vehicle and boat trailer were located at Navy Point Boat Ramp. Officers Livesay and Cushing responded to assist with the search. A short time later, the individuals’ vessel, a 14‑foot Jon boat, was found washed up near Fort Pickens Pier. A short distance away, one victim was located deceased. A short time later, an Escambia County Sheriff’s Deputy called to report they were picking up the second individual at a convenience store several miles away. Officer Hoomes spoke to the second occupant and determined the two individuals were fishing near the Pensacola Pass and their vessel partially sank after a large wave washed over the bow. The surviving occupant reportedly was in the water several hours before making it to shore. He then walked several miles before he was able to report what had happened. Investigator Goley is investigating the accident.
Santa Rosa County
While working on the Eglin Reservation, Officer Jones was checking hunters who were walking out of a still-hunt area. After conversing with the hunters, Officer Jones was told that a couple of shots were heard across a nearby creek moments earlier. Officer Jones observed a vehicle parked at a trail head in the vicinity of where the shots were heard. Officer Jones went to the vehicle and waited for the hunter’s return. Well after dark, the hunter arrived carrying a deer on a pack frame. The deer was a short-antlered buck with its longest antler approximately one inch in length. The hunter was cited with a notice to appear in county court for taking an antlerless deer. Eglin Range Patrol Officers arrived and issued a notice of violation suspending the hunter’s Eglin privileges.
County Appoints Barry To Elections Canvassing Board
January 4, 2014
The Escambia County Commission is set to appoint District 5 member Steven Barry to the Escambia County Canvassing Board for the 2014 elections.
Barry will serve during the Primary Election on August 26, 2014, and the General Election on November 4, 2014.
If Barry’s appointment is approved, the Escambia County Supervisor of Elections office will fund the $60 registration fee for Barry to attend a canvassing board workshop in Orlando on January 31. The county commission will fund his travel expenses.
2013 In Photos: August And September
January 4, 2014
Florida is not always the “Sunshine State” as seen on Highway 97 in Davisville.
Multiple dump trucks were destroyed by fire at Roads, Inc. on Stone Boulevard in Cantonment.
The Northview Chiefs beat Bozeman 34-14.
West Florida downed Tate.
Jay beat Cottage Hill 18-12.
Groundbreaking was held for the new Ernest Ward Middle School.
Sheriff David Morgan sang the praises of neighborhood watch programs during a Molino meeting.
An empty desk were computers once sat following a burglary at Molino Park Elementary.
Jake Clayton of Molino proposed to his girlfriend Jenna Peoples of Milton during a weekend Pensacola Blue Wahoos game…and she said “yes”.
A Back to School Bash helped the needy in Century prepare for the start of school.
Tate Aggie fans.
Blue Angels at the end of the rainbow, courtesy US Navy.
Marty White marked 40 years on the radio on his “Hometown Morning Show” on WXBM.
The Ernest Ward Middle School Eagles beat the Panthers of Excel.
A pickup truck plummeted into a rain-swollen creek in Bratt. The driver escaped without injuries.
Hundreds of students gathered at their schools across the area in September during the annual See You at the Pole event.
Northview beat Jay on the volleyball court.
Bailey Burk was crowned homecoming queen at Tate High School.
Tate High School homecoming parade.
There was a big change of address for a home that was located on North Highway 99 in Bratt as it was moved about 10 miles to its new location.
“It literally takes your heart and breaks it” is how one Northview student described the 9/11 Memorial.
Students learn fire safety at the Cantonment fire station.
The Dollar General in Molino was the scene of an armed robbery.
The Young Marines of Pensacola honor LCpl. Travis M. Nelson at the park named in his honor in Bratt.
The Sonic restaurant on Highway 29 in Cantonment closed abruptly in early September.
Escambia Doctor Busted On Sex Charges; Thought Meeting Was With Teen Boy
January 3, 2014
An Escambia County doctor that thought he was meeting a young teen boy for sex was busted Thursday night by the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office.
Brian Mitchell Lee, 43, was charged with using a computer to solicit a juvenile for sex and using a two way communication device to facilitate a felony. He was booked into the Escambia County Jail without bond.
On December 22, Lee began communicating with a person he thought was a 14-year old boy that was actually an Escambia County Sheriff’s investigator. According to an arrest report, Lee engaged in sexually explicit conversation and agreed to mee the 14-year old for the purpose of having sex.
On January 1, Lee drove from his place of business, Perdido Bay Family Care, to another location in Escambia County with the intention of having sex with the boy, investigators said. When he arrived, he was taken into custody by the members of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.
“While investigators could not go into specifics of the communications,they did find the chats concerning,as they were relating to particularly young patients,” the Sheriff’s Office said.
Keep The Wreath Green Safety Campaign Ends With 13 Fires
January 3, 2014
The “Keep the Wreath Green” holiday fire safety campaign came to a close with 13 red bulbs representing residential fires in Escambia County. The 13 fires during the December 2013 month-long campaign was an increase over six fires in December 2012.
In the wreath campaign, each time firefighters responded to a residential fire in Escambia County that displaced a resident, a green light bulb was replaced with a red one to remind citizens of fire dangers.
One of the fires was on Christmas Day on Highway 4 in Bratt. The wood frame home suffered heavy smoke and water damage throughout following a fire that was believed to have been started by a wood burning heater.
Pictured top: One of the December Escambia County residential fires was this fire on Highway 4 in Bratt. Pictured inset: The wreath outside the Walnut Hill Fire Station on Highway 97. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Century Reschedules Council Meeting Due To BCS Game
January 3, 2014
The Town of Century has rescheduled their regular first Monday of the month council meeting from January 6 to Tuesday, January 7 at 7 p.m.
The meeting was rescheduled to encourage public participation and attendance — the regular Monday night meeting conflicted with the BCS National Championship Game between Auburn and Florida State.
NorthEscambia.com file photo.