Area Mourns Sudden Death Of Retired Assistant Fire Chief (With Arrangements)
April 17, 2013
Atmore and surrounding communities are mourning the loss of a longtime fireman who passed away suddenly Tuesday afternoon.
Atmore Fire Department retired Assistant Chief Mike Staples began his three decade career as a fireman and worked his way up through the ranks to assistant chief. He retired in August 2012.
He is survived by his wife and his children.
A wake will be held Friday from 5-8 p.m. at Mayberry Funeral Home in Atmore. The funeral will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday at Grace Fellowship in Atmore, with burial to follow at Fairview Cemetery.
Pictured: As assistant fire chief, Atmore fireman Mike Staples supervises a live burn exercise. NorthEscambia.com file photos, click to enlarge.
Moye, McCall Named Northview Prom King And Queen
April 17, 2013
Seniors Blake McCall and Maranda Moye were named the 2013 Junior-Senior Prom King and Queen last Saturday night for Northview High School. Courtesy photo by NHS Tribal Spirit for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Local Area Remembers, Prays For Boston
April 17, 2013
Residents across the area remembered Boston Tuesday and the tragic bombing at the finish line of the Boston Marathon on Monday. Pictured top: The 17th Avenue train trestle in Pensacola, commonly known as “Graffiti Bridge”, was painted with the message to “Pray for Boston”. And flags across the area were lowered to half staff upon an order from Gov. Rick Scott, including the Byrneville Community Center (pictured below). NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Northview Falls In District Tourney; Jay Advances To Finals
April 17, 2013
The Northview Lady Chiefs fell in the District 1 Class 1A softball tournament Tuesday, while the Jay Lady Royals advanced to the finals Thursday night.
Northview lost 7-1 to Chipley, a team the No. 1 seed Lady Chiefs had defeated twice during the regular season.
The Jay Lady Royals beat the Lady Gators of Baker 6-1. Syndney Lowery allowed jut three hits in seven innings on the mound. Taylor Moore went 4-4, Ashlynn Geck went 3-3, Olivia Wright was 2-3, and Camille Driver was 1-4 for Jay.
The Lady Royals will play the Baker Gators at 6 p.m. Thursday for the District 1 Class 1A championship.
NorthEscambia.com file photo, click to enlarge.
Escambia Man Charged With DUI Manslaughter
April 17, 2013
An Escambia County man is jailed for the DUI manslaughter death of a Milton man Tuesday afternoon.
The Florida Highway Patrol said 23-year old James William Barclay was northbound on Hollywood Avenue when he failed to stop for a stop sign at Blount Avenue. His 1999 Jeep Cherokee struck a 1989 Honda Civic driven by 28-year old Charles Allen Snow of Milton. The impact forced Snow’s vehicle into a utility pole before overturning. After the initial impact, Barclay’s Jeep continued north and vaulted over Snow’s Civic.
Barclay climbed out of his Jeep and fled the scene on foot. Escambia County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Mike Carr and his K-9 tracked Barclay and took him into custody nearby. He was transported to Baptist Hospital for treatment of minor injuries.
Snow was pronounced deceased following the crash. A two-year old toddler in his vehicle was transported to Sacred Heart Hospital in serious condition.
After being released from the hospital, Barclay was arrested on multiple charges including DUI manslaughter, vehicular manslaughter and driving with no driver’s license resulting in a death. Barclay was booked into the Escambia County Jail with bond set at $903,000.
Pensacola Wahoos Snap Skid With 6-3 Win Over Suns
April 17, 2013
The Pensacola Blue Wahoos offense awakened from its nearly weeklong slumber by pounding their way past the Jackonsville Suns 6-3 on Tuesday night in front of 3,358 fans at Pensacola Bayfront Stadium.
Pensacola rallied from an early 2-0 deficit to score six runs in their first three at-bats. In the last of the first inning, Donald Lutz launched a laser over the right field wall for a two-run homer, scoring Brodie Greene who had singled earlier in the frame. The blast was Lutz’s fourth of the season, the most in the Southern League in the young 2013 campaign, and it knotted the game at two apiece.
The Wahoos added to their lead with a four-run third inning against Jacksonville starter James Leverton. With one out, Ryan LaMarre and Greene singled before scampering home on a two-run opposite-field double from Bryson Smith to give Pensacola a 4-2 lead. Lutz was then hit by a pitch and after a lineout and a pitching change, Devin Lohman dropped a double down the left field line to score Smith and Lutz to give the Wahoos a four-run advantage.
That was more than enough for Pensacola starter Josh Smith (1-2) who had his best start of the season by giving up two runs on six hits over five frames. Smith’s lone mistake was yielding a two-out, two-run single in the first to Mark Canha to give the Suns a brief 2-0 lead. Smith was also able to wiggle out of a bases-loaded jam in the fourth by forcing Chris Gutierrez to pop up in foul territory to the catcher.
Jacksonville scored a run in the ninth on a single from Daniel Pertusati and brought the tying run to the plate with one out, but Lee Hyde struck out Derek Dietrich and Curtis Partch came on to earn his third save of the year by punching out Chris Gutierrez.
Leverton (0-1) picked up the loss in his first start of the season after his first three appearances of the year came out of the bullpen. The southpaw went just 2.2 innings, allowing six runs (all earned) on six hits. Jordan Conley, Scott McGough and Rett Varner kept Pensacola at bay the rest of the contest, limiting the Wahoos to just three hits over the final 5.1 frames.
The series continues on Wednesday night as Tim Crabbe looks for his second win of the season for Pensacola against Jacksonville southpaw Adam Conley. First pitch is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
Story by Kevin Burke
Pictured top: Donald Lutz smacked his league-leading fourth home run of the season on Tuesday night. Photo courtesy Emmele Photography for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Teen Crashes Into Circle K
April 16, 2013
A teen crashed into the Circle K on Nine Mile Road at University Parkway early this morning.
The Florida Highway Patrol said 18-year old Amber Cashman of Pensacola was in the parking lot of the store when she hit the gas instead of the brake and collided with the building. Her 1996 Jeep Cherokee traveled partially into the building before coming to a stop. There were no injuries inside the store.
Cashman and her passenger, 19-year old Rena Stackpole of Pensacola, also were not injured. Cashman was cited by the FHP for careless driving.
Century Takes Steps Forward To Repair Gas Leaks Under Highway 29
April 16, 2013
The Century Town Council took a step forward Monday night toward repairing an on-going natural gas leak under Highway 29 in the town.
It’s been over a year since the problem was first publicly revealed as a potential “major public safety issue”, but the leak has not gotten any worse according to the town’s engineering company. Routine checks are performed to ensure the problem does not worsen.
Monday night, the Century Town Council voted to give Mayor Freddie McCall and the council president the authority to negotiate and obtain the right-of-way easements that will be needed to install replacement pipe to eliminate the leak.
About 6,515 feet of 4-inch steel natural gas line was buried beneath the southbound lanes of Highway 29 when the road was widened to four lanes. Now, over 45 years since the almost 1.25 mile long pipe was put into the ground, the town believes the steel is corroding and leaking somewhere between West Highway 4 and McCurdy Street.
In April 2012, Century signed off on a $1.4 million USDA Rural Development loan to cover the cost of replacing the pipe. But, according to town officials, the town received the wrong form from the USDA, and as a result advertised the meetings incorrectly.
That meant heading back to the drawing board and starting the loan process again.
In March, the Century Town Council gave preliminary approval to a bond issue for just over $1.4 million. Once it is approved by the state, it will be sent back to the council for final approval. The total time until work might begin on the project should be about three months, according to town engineer Dale Long.
A new 4-inch pipe will be placed on the west side of Highway 29, while a new 2-inch pipe will be installed on the east side of the highway, eliminating the need to install pipes under the road to service natural gas customers.
The pipe will be installed where existing easements exist or can be obtained at no cost, otherwise, it will be installed under existing sidewalks.
Pictured above and below: Natural gas is leaking under Highway 29 in Century. Pictured inset: Century Mayor Freddie McCall signs documents in April 2012 for a $1.401 million USDA Rural Development loan to repair the leaky gas lines. The loan was later invalidated by the USDA due to the use of an incorrect form. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Locals Safe At Boston Marathon; North Escambia Pastor Recounts Experience
April 16, 2013
Rusty Branch, pastor of the Dogwood Park Baptist Church on Highway 97, had finished the Boston Marathon Monday in a respectable time just under three hours.
He had pickup up his medal, joined wife Melanie and headed toward the airport on the train. It had been a good run, a good day.
But then the news starting coming in. An explosion at the finish line of the Boston Marathon. By the time they reached the airport, the extent of Boston’s nightmare was becoming more apparent, with deaths and scores of injuries reported.
“It was Patriots Day, a holiday, in Boston,” Branch said from the Boston Airport. “At the start of the race, there were crowds everywhere, college kids out of the day. All the way to the finish line, it was packed with people. The number of people at the finish line really concerned me about the explosions. I’m surprised there were not more hurt.”
“I remember seeing this person wearing a t-shirt before the race started. It said ‘I had open heart surgery 10 months ago’, and there was one that said ‘I Beat Cancer’. These are the people that never got to finish the race; they were all turned away, the race was over, after the explosions. For these people, the marathon was celebration of life the never got to finish.
“Things could have been much worse for us. We were blessed,” he said.
Security at the airport was much higher Monday afternoon for the return trip, he said, with a no-fly zone over a portion of Boston delaying flights because of problems with incoming planes. But despite the delays, Branch and his wife were back in Pensacola by 10:30 Monday night.
Branch was among about a dozen North Escambia area residents that ran the Boston Marathon Monday. The local runners included Pensacola city councilman Brian Spencer and several other people with Paul Epstein, owner of Running Wild in Pensacola.
Mark Rice, administrator of the Atmore Vision Center, also ran today’s Boston Marathon and has checked in with friends and family.
Matt Dobson of Jay, who frequently runs the Boston Marathon, did not participate this year. He qualified and was registered, but chose not to participate due to schedule conflicts and a lack of long runs. In 2004, Dobson finished the Boston Marathon 49th overall as the 16th fastest American.
The following North Escambia/Pensacola area runners were reportedly at the Boston Marathon and have been reported safe:
- Heather Asmar, Pensacola Beach
- Russell “Rusty” Branch, Cantonment
- Nicholas Challen, Milton
- Kristen Corderman, Niceville
- Cherie Epstein, Pensacola
- Paul Epstein, Pensacola
- Steve Harris, Pensacola
- Evan Malone, Gulf Breeze
- Sarah Pritchard, Pensacola
- Stephanie Rafferty, Pensacola
- Mark Rice, Atmore
- Brian Spencer, Pensacola
Pictured top: The “Running Wild” group from Pensacola running the Boston Marathon today are reportedly safe, according to the business. Rusty Branch, pastor of the Dogwood Baptist Church, is on the far right in the photo. They are shown in a photo this morning prior to the race.
Heli-Chopper: Giant Saw, Helicopter Used For Big Trim Job
April 16, 2013
Call it a heli-chopper? Numerous residents spotted a helicopter using a giant saw to trim trees along a high voltage power line in the Walnut Hill and Bratt area Monday.
The giant patented aerial saw — with 10 gas-powered rotating 24-inch blades, hangs beneath a 1980 Hughes 369D helicopter on an 80-foot fixed pole that has swivel points at the copter and at the saw. Weighing in at over 800 pounds, the saw can swing forward and backwards, but not side to side as power line right of ways are trimmed.
Pictured: A helicopter and and a giant patented aerial saw are used to trim along high voltage power lines near Walnut Hill on Monday. Pictured top: The gas powered saw is refueled in a field near the intersection of Lambert Bridge Road and Pine Barren Road. Submitted photos by Gayle Brewton for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
