Sen. Evers Schedules Town Hall Meetings
July 12, 2011
Senator Greg Evers (R-Baker) has announced the dates and times for his Senate District 2 town hall meetings for the month of July.
The purpose of these town hall meetings is to provide the district with information on recent legislative changes, and discuss key issues facing Northwest Florida communities and the state going into the 2012 Legislative Session.
In the North Escambia area, meetings will be held:
Friday, July 15, 2011
6 p.m. to 8 p.m. CDT
Jay Community Center
5259 Booker Lane
Friday, July 29, 2011
6 p.m. to 8 p.m. CDT
Hadji Shrine Temple
800 W Nine Mile Rd
Town Pauses To Remember Late Council Member
July 12, 2011
The Century Town Council paused during their regular meeting Monday night to honor and remember Councilwoman Nadine McCaw who passed away last Thursday night. A black ribbon was placed on her empty chair at the council table.
At their next meeting on July 18, the council will begin the process of appointing a replacement for McCaw.
Pictured top: A black ribbon adorns the empty chair of Nadine McCaw at Monday night’s meeting of the Century Town Council. Pictured inset: Mayor Freddie McCall watches as the ribbon is placed on the chair. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Two Women Robbed At Gunpoint Outside Pensacola Walmart
July 12, 2011
Two women were robbed at gunpoint Monday afternoon in an Pensacola Walmart parking lot, and a transient is now facing multiple charges in connection with the crime.
The suspect – Karl Hill, 21, no permanent address – was charged with armed robbery, grand theft, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, and possession of a weapon by a convicted felon.
The incident occurred around 2:45 p.m. outside Walmart at 2650 Creighton Road.
Pensacola Police Officer David Huhn said the two women were in a parking lot outside Wal-Mart when Hill approached them.
Huhn said Hill, who lives on a wooded trail leading to the business, pointed a handgun at the women, ordered both of them to get onto their knees, and held the gun to the back of their heads while he demanded their possessions.
After getting a purse and wallet from the women, Hill fled toward a church. Hill was taken into custody a short time later behind a nearby car wash and booked into the Escambia County Jail with bond set at $68,000.
Former Molino Resident Gindl Cycles In Nashville Sounds Win
July 12, 2011
Former Molino resident Caleb Gindl hit for the cycle — a single, double, triple and a homer — Sunday night for the minor league Nashville Sounds.
Gindl became the third and most recent Sound to accomplish the feat in the team’s 34-year history. The right fielder ripped a triple in the second, homered in the third, doubled in the eighth, and completed the feat with a single in the ninth. Gindl went 4-for-5 with three runs scored to join J.R. House (2004) and Tike Redman (2001) as the only players to hit for the cycle in a Sounds uniform.
The victory gave Nashville (41-49) a 2-2 series split with Albuquerque.
Gindl, a 2007 Brewers’ fifth-round pick, played high school ball for the Pace Patriots. Before moving to Santa Rosa County, he lived in Molino, playing at both the Molino and Cantonment ballparks. He spends much of his off-time in North Escambia, where he still has family in Molino and Walnut Hill.
For video, click here.
Pictured top: Caleb Gindl at bat for the Nashville Sounds in Albuquerque Sunday night. Photo by Mike Stasinger, The Nashville Sounds for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Two Injured In Escambia Shooting
July 11, 2011
Two Escambia County men were injured this afternoon in a shooting in the Mayfair community.
The shooting occurred in the area of Belair Road and Rochelle Drive at around 12:59 p.m. Monday.
Shortly after the shooting, two men showed up at the Sacred Heart Hospital with non-life threatening injuries. One suffered a gunshot wound to the head, the other suffered gunshot wounds to the legs.
Deputies identified the men as Rayford Richardson III, 21, and Kamarcus Ldryan Jones, 20 (picture not available).
According to deputies Richardson and Jones were riding to the hospital in a 2010 Jeep Cherokee when it ran off the road on Bayou Boulevard near Springfield Street. The two were then picked up and driven to the hospital by a passing motorist.
Deputies seized a large amount of crack cocaine, marijuana and cash that was located in the vehicle.
“The investigation into the shooting is ongoing,” said Deputy Chris Welborn, Sheriff’s Office spokesman. “But the victims and witness are not cooperating and are refusing to assist us.”
Charges are pending against both the victims and a witness in this case, according to Welborn.
Anyone who may have information related to this case is asked to contact the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office at 850-436-9620 or Gulf Coast Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP.
Butcher Knife Violence: Man Arrested After Manhunt
July 11, 2011
A man that allegedly tried to attack another person in his household with a butcher knife was arrested after a brief manhunt in Century Sunday night.
Wyndell Dean Lowery, 49, was charged with aggravated assault and battery by strangulation after the domestic violence incident just before 10 p.m. near Lake Stone. Lowery reportedly ran into a wooded area behind his residence in the 1000 block of West Highway 4 to avoid behind arrested. A K-9 unit from Century Correctional Institution was called in to search for Lowery, and he was taken into custody a short time later.
Lowery was booked into the Escambia County Jail without bond.
There were no serious injuries reported in the incident.
Two Sentenced In Lake Meth Lab Case
July 11, 2011
Two Century men have been sentenced in connection with a case in which meth — not fish — was being cooked at a Century lake.
Mitchell Herman Dunsford, 25, of Else Davis Road, was sentenced to 30 days in jail with credit for time served, 24 months probation and ordered to pay $1,143 in court costs. Adjudication was withheld after Dunsford pleaded guilty to charges of possession of methamphetamine with the intent to sell, marijuana possession and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Shaunathon Wayne Qualls, 26, of Campbell Road, was also sentenced to 24 months probation and 50 hours community service. He pleaded no contest to charges of possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of a listed chemical.
In early April, Escambia County Sheriff’s Office deputies discovered an active methamphetamine lab in a wooded area on the shore of a gravel lake at the end of Cedar Street, just south of Old Flomaton Road. A portion of the meth lab — the bottle used in the actual manufacturing process — was tossed into a nearby stream.
Dunsford reportedly ran from deputies, leading to a brief, unsuccessful manhunt. While the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office Narcotics Unit was working to test and remove the meth lab, Dunsford returned to the scene with a relative.
Along with the drug paraphernalia, deputies also discovered fishing equipment — rods and reels and live bait.
Pictured top: Deputy David Bashore works to remove a bottle that was allegedly part of a meth lab thrown into a stream that feeds a gravel lake in Century. Pictured inset: The alleged active meth lab. Pictured below: Some of the items believed to have been used in connection with meth lab. NorthEscambia.com exclusive photos, click to enlarge.
Funeral Service Held For Century Councilwoman
July 11, 2011
Funeral services were held today for Nadine McCaw, a Century council woman that passed away last Thursday.
McCaw was born March 31, 1954, and was a lifelong resident of Century. She was elected to the Century town council in 2007, taking office in January 2008. She was an employee of the Century Branch Library, and active in Relay for Life, the American Cancer Society, and the Alger-Sullivan Historical Society. McCaw was a member of the First Baptist Church of Century.
“Town Council Member Nadine McCaw will be remembered for her dedicated service to her community. My condolences go to Nadine’s family and the town of Century,” Florida Gov. Rick Scott said Friday.
“Her day job was her work with the Century Branch Library, but Nadine’s passion was service to others. She worked to better the lives of those in her community. My wife Vicki and I offer our prayers for her husband, Eddie, her children, and her entire extended family. She will be missed by all of us,” Congressman Jeff Miller said.
To read more tributes to McCaw, click here.
McCaw is survived by her husband of 39 years Eddie McCaw of Century; two daughters, Juanita McCaw and Felicia McCaw, eight grandchildren, three brothers and six sisters.
Pictured: Nadine McCaw at her first Century Town Council meeting in January 2008. NorthEscambia.com file photo, click to enlarge.
NWE Senior Girls Win Sectional Softball Championship
July 11, 2011
The Northwest Escambia senior girls softball teams has claimed the sectional championship, and they are headed to state later this month.
NWE defeated Niceville 11-9 and 9-6 Saturday to claim the sectional title in Florida Section 1 Senior League Softball. They are the first Senior League team from Section 1 to make the state tournament.
Members of the NWE Senior Girls All-Star Team are Penny Banda, Kristen Byrd, Courtney Peebles, Kendal Cobb, Kyndall Hall, Danielle Steadham , Addy Lee, Samantha Bethea, Makayla Flowers and Cheyenne Schoonover. The team is managed by Ronald Peebles and coached by Jarrod Peebles and Danny Hall.
Northwest Escambia 11 Niceville 9
In the first match-up of the double elimination tournament, Northwest Escambia beat Niceville 11-9.
Scoring for NWE: Courtney Peebles and Cheyenne Schoonover each had a double and run; Makayla Flowers had a single and a run; Kristen Byrd added two singles, a double and three runs; Kendal Cobb and Danielle Steadham both had a single and a run; Addy Lee added a double, a triple and two runs; and Penny Banda had a single, two doubles and one run.
Peebles pitched all seven for Northwest Escambia, striking out nine and allowing just three walks.
Northwest Escambia 9 Niceville 6
In the second game, Northest Escambia beat Niceville 9-6.
For NWE, Cheyenne Schoonover had three singles and a run; Courtney Peebles added three singles, a double and a run, Kendal Cobb had two singles and two runs; Danielle Steaham had three singles,a double and three runs; Kyndall Hall contributed one single and one run; and Samantha Bethea had a single and a run.
Hall pitched the full game for NWE, striking out one and walking two.
Submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
BP: Gulf Coast Economy Has Recovered From The Oil Spill
July 11, 2011
After paying more than $4.6 billion to private citizens and businesses since the Deepwater Horizon spill, BP officials have told federal overseers that the Gulf coast economy is mostly back on its feet and therefore the company should not have to pay for most new losses going forward.
In a letter to the Gulf Coast Claims Facility, which has been set up to reimburse people and businesses for spill related costs, BP says that future claims should be limited to the small minority of applicants whose businesses have not rebounded.
“Multiple lines of evidence show that, to the extent certain portions of the Gulf economy were impacted by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the Gulf economy experienced a robust recovery in the fall of 2010, and that economic performance remains strong in 2011,” the company wrote in a letter to the GCCF dated Thursday.
“The current economic data do not suggest that individual and business claimants face a material risk of future loss caused by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill,” the company concludes.
Further, the company says that some of the payments already made go outside the boundaries for which it is required to pay under the federal Oil Pollution Act that governs the industry.
Florida’s cities and counties have collected more than $31 million from BP for efforts to respond to and clean up the worst oil spill in U.S. history, according to the latest figures tracked by the company, which has set aside $20 billion to pay for the damage.
Late Thursday, the company released its latest round of government payouts that indicates it may also be winding up its payments to cities, counties and the state. Thursday’s figures were identical to those released on June 23, and just $1.4 million higher than they were on June 9.
Escambia County led the state with $9.7 million in payments for removal costs, public services expenses and lost revenue. Nearby Bay County has so far collected $9 million from the company for damages incurred. The company has paid for damages as far south as the Keys, with Monroe County, Marathon and Key West combining for $81,075 in costs. Miami-Dade collected $28,000 for costs associated with the spill.
The payments, made by the oil company to reimburse governments for recovery costs and loss of revenue brought on by the April 20, 2010 explosion and fire aboard the rig that led to the biggest oil spill in U.S. history, come in addition to the payments made by the company to private residents and businesses for lost revenue related to the spill.
Private companies are required to go though the Gulf Coast Claims Facility, which as of Thursday had distributed more than $4.6 billion on 196,524 claims. Overall, the facility has received 502,177 claims. The private sector payout is running more slowly than the government paybacks, a lag likely caused by the sheer number of claims and the lack, in many cases, of corroborating documentation.
Many Florida Panhandle applicants, for example, have complained that much of their business was done on a cash basis, an informal and often unaudited system for which few records exist. Of the nearly half a million claims, about 47,000 are being handled through attorneys.
U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., will be in Pensacola on Monday as part of hearings held by the U.S Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship to get updates a year after the spill.
The discussion will include Florida Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, Capt. Bob Zales, president of the National Association of Charterboat Operators and Collier Merrill, chairman of the Pensacola Area Chamber of Commerce.
By Michael Peltier
The News Service of Florida