Wind Hampers Fight Against Quintette Field Fire
January 13, 2011
Firefighters were in a battle against the wind to control a field fire Thursday near Highway 29 and Quintette Road.
A resident’s trash fire reportedly got out of control shortly after 11 a.m., setting a field on fire. Changing winds kept firefighters busy as the fire was pushed in different directions. No structures were damaged, and there were no injuries reported.
For more photos from the scene, click here.
Pictured above and below: Firefighters battled a field fire near Highway 29 and Quintette Road late Thursday morning. NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Smith, click to enlarge.
Deputies, County Agencies Sweep Crime-Ridden Neighborhood
January 13, 2011
The Sheriff’s Office and several county agencies conducted an “Operation Clean Sweep” event on Frontera Circle in Warrington Thursday morning, and a similar sweep is planned for Cantonment.
Dozens of Escambia County Sheriff’s Office deputies, county workers and volunteers cleaned up the high crime, blighted area off Jackson Street. The Sheriff’s Office, probation officers, Escambia County’s roads and bridges department, the Escambia environmental services department and volunteers from the U.S. Navy physically worked to clean up the neighborhood, cleaning up and piling up mounds of trash.
There were four arrests during the event, 25 tickets issued and almost 25 tons of trash removed.
The focus of “Operation Clean Sweep” is to clean up neighborhoods and educate citizens on preventive measures that could be implemented to minimize possible crimes.
A similar Operation Clean Sweep event is planned for the Cantonment area on March 24.
Pictured above: Sheriff David Morgan (near horse) and deputies from the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office prepare for the clean up of Frontera Circle in Warrington Thursday morning. Pictured below: Volunteers collected mounds of trash from the neighborhood in just a short time. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Freezing Weather Closes Escambia Alabama School
January 13, 2011
An Escambia County, Alabama, school was closed Thursday due to our freezing weather.
Escambia Academy in Canoe, just outside Atmore, was closed because of no water in a portion of the campus. Officials with the private school believe that the school’s water pipes froze Wednesday night.
The school plans to be open again on Friday.
Woman Sentenced For Trying To Smuggle Pot Into Century Prison
January 13, 2011
An Alabama woman has been sentenced to probation for trying to sneak drugs into Century Correctional Institution.
Sandra Eloise Tompkins, 36, of Greenville, Ala., pleaded no contest to charges of possession of marijuana and felony introduction of contraband into a state facility. She was sentenced to 18 months probation, including 25 hours of community service.
A CCI K-9 alerted to the presence of drugs in Tompkins’ car in the prison parking lot while she was inside for visitation during October 2010. She was escorted back to her vehicle where she signed a search consent.
Inside Tompkins’ car, prison officials “found personal lubrication, plastic wrap and a torn condom in the car”, according to an Escambia County Sheriff’s Office arrest report. Tompkins told deputies that she had a small amount of marijuana hidden internally, and she later removed the marijuana from her person at the county jail, according to the report.
U.S. Marshals Capture Wanted Child Sex Offender
January 13, 2011
A man wanted on child sex charges in Massachusetts was nabbed Wednesday afternoon in North Escambia by a U.S. Marshals task force.
Matthew Robert Brennon, 24, originally from Chicopee, MA, is wanted by the Chicopee (MA) Police for indecent assault and battery on a child under 14 years of age. Brennan also has outstanding warrants from Andover, MA for indecent assault and battery on a person 14 or over, assault to rape, open and gross lewdness, resisting arrest, and assault and battery.
The U.S. Marshals in Springfield, MA, working with the New England HIDTA (High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area) Task Force, contacted the Florida Regional Fugitive Task Force in Pensacola on Monday and asked for their help.
Around 1:30 Thursday afternoon, U.S. Marshals and Task Force Officers from Escambia County Sheriff’s Office captured Brennan after they observed him as a passenger in a car leaving a residence on Coweta Road in Cantonment.
The Task Force immediately stopped the car and arrested Brennan without any resistance. Brennan was booked into the Escambia County Jail as a fugitive from justice and will remain there until he is picked up by Massachusetts authorities.
Cantonment Woman Wins Fantasy 5
January 13, 2011
A Cantonment woman was one of three top prize winners in Monday night’s Fantasy 5 drawing.
Chrystal A. Brooks purchased the winning $69,986.84 ticket at the Budget Discount #2 at 10401 Chemstrand Road. Other winning tickets were sold in Merritt Island and Spring Hill.
The winning numbers were 04-09-12-20-34. There were also 308 tickets that matched four of five numbers for $109.50 each in Monday night’s drawing.
Oil Prices Jump, Gas Prices Follow
January 13, 2011
Crude oil was up over $1 in Wednesday trading as the government reported a larger than expected drop in supply, pushing gas prices higher.
The February benchmark for crude jumped $1.05 to $92 a barrel, while the national average gas price rose to $3.09. And analysts say it’s just a sign of things to come, with oil expected to push to $100 a barrel in coming weeks.
In Escambia County, the average price for a gallon of regular unleaded was at $3.06, up 12 cents from a month ago. In Molino, that gallon was gas was at $3.09 midday Wednesday.
Pictured above: Regular unleaded was $3.09 a gallon midday Wednesday in Molino. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Masland Carpets’ Dixie Group Sales Up 24 Percent
January 13, 2011
The owner of Masland Carpets, Dixie Group, said that the company’s fourth quarter sales were up 24 percent, boosting overall sales for the Tennessee company to more than $65 million during the last quarter of 2010.
The company, which employees 360 people in Atmore and 165 in Saraland estimates that total sales for the year would be up 14 percent to $232 million. Dixie also said it expects to make an operating profit during the fourth quarter, an “encouraging” market trend.
Volunteers Needed For Century Cold Shelter
January 13, 2011
With lows forecast to dip to near 20 the next few nights, the Town of Century is seeking volunteer groups to staff and manage a cold weather shelter.
The town will provide the building and pay the costs of operating the cold weather shelter on an as-needed basis, according to Mayor Freddie McCall. The town, he said, needs a church or other organization willing to manage the shelter and provided volunteers for staffing.
For more information, contact McCall at (850) 256-3208.
Fire Destroys Atmore Psychiatrist’s Office; 22nd Fire Of The Month
January 12, 2011
A late afternoon fire heavily damaged the office of an Atmore doctor — marking almost two dozen fires for the Atmore Fire Department so far this year.
Flames were shooting from the rear of the wood frame office of psychiatrist Dr. Jill Hall on 3rd Avenue near Church Street when the first firefighters arrived on scene just after 5 p.m. No one was in the building at the time of the blaze.
The cause of the fire was not immediately known, and there were no injuries reported.
According to Fire Chief Gerry McGhee, the fire was the 22nd of the year for the Atmore Fire Department and the seventh structure fire since January 1.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
