Crash Data Shows Hwy 29’s Worst Intersections
December 28, 2010
Crash data from the Florida Department of Transportation provides some interesting insight into how many crashes occur on Highway 29 and which intersections are the worst.
If you guessed the Highway 97 intersection is bad; you would be right. Crash data shows the Highway 97 and Highway 29 intersection in Molino experienced abnormally high crash rates compared to the statewide average for similar intersections.
Data from the most recently available five year period available shows that there were 1,521 crashes, 907 of which caused injury on Highway 29. The most common crash type on Highway 29 from Pensacola to the Alabama state line was rear-end (39 percent).
The most common crash day was Friday (18 percent), and about 30 percent of wrecks happened between 2 p.m. and 6 p.m.
Nine intersections along Highway 29 were identified as high crash locations — having more than eight crashes per year, or 40 over a five year period:
- Highway 97 — 38 crashes
- Ten Mile Road — 61 crashes
- Nine One Half Mile Road — 34 crashes
- Burgess Road — 68 crashes
- Diamond Dairy Road — 58 crashes
- Broad Street — 68 crashes
- Hannah Street — 49 crashes
- Hood Drive — 43 crashes
- Detroit Boulevard — 68 crashes
Statistics revealed more information about the three most northern high crash locations on Highway 29:
- Highway 97 — The most common crash type at the Highway 97 and Highway 29 intersection was rear-end at 63 percent. About two-thirds of all crashes resulted in at least one injury. About 58 percent of the at-fault vehicles were traveling east off Highway 97. During the five year period studied, there was one fatal crash in 2005.
- Ten Mile Road — Common crash types were split between rear-end at 36 percent and angle at 34 percent. Crashes most commonly occurred between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m., and about one-third of the crashes were at night. About two-thirds of the wrecks at the intersection resulted in an injury.
- Nine One Half Mile Road — About six out of ten wrecks at this intersection were from an angle, while 21 percent were rear-end. About one-third happened after dark. Over 70 percent of the at-fault vehicles were traveling on Nine One Half Mile Road.
Pictured top: Six people were injured in a two-vehicle accident in September, 2008, at the intersection of Highway 29 and Highway 97. NorthEscambia.com file photo, click to enlarge.
Escambia Property Tax Discount Ends Friday
December 28, 2010
If you want a three percent discount when paying your Escambia County real estate and tangible personal property taxes, you must make your payment by December 31.
All four tax collector offices will be open normal business hours on Friday, December 31, according to Escambia County Tax Collector Janet Holley.
In order to receive the three percent discount and have your tax payment posted with a December date, payment must be:
- received in the tax collector’s office by close of business December 31;
- made on the tax collector’s web site by midnight December 31; or
- made on the after-hours automated telephone (800) 601-1055 by midnight December 31.
In addition, payments mailed with a December 31 postmark or left in the tax collector’s 24‑hour drop boxes after hours on December 31 will receive the three discount but will be dated in January.
You may check the status of your taxes and pay online at www.escambiataxcollector.com. If you have any questions, call the tax collector’s office at 438-6500, ext. 252. (TTY users for the hearing impaired call 850-472-0031.)
Despite No Hurricanes, Floridians Facing $718 Million Insurance Hike
December 28, 2010
More than four million Florida homeowners are about to get hit with $718 million in insurance rate increases — despite five years with no hurricanes in the Sunshine State.
Insurers in Florida claimed they have been losing money. But, for many, their financial filings show profits that were paid to their own affiliated companies, according to an article published in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
Consumer advocates say the payments from Florida insurance companies to their own affiliates falsely adds hundreds of dollars to each individual homeowner’s property insurance bill.
More than two million homeowners in Florida have been dropped by their carriers, and the average premium in the state is up 44 percent.
Save Money While Staying Warm
December 28, 2010
Escambia River Electric Cooperative is offering some simple, low-cost ways to lower your power bill this winter:
- Lower your thermostat. Each degree you reduce your thermostat in the winter lowers your total bill by up to 4 percent. A five degree reduction could save up to 20 percent on your monthly heating cost. We recommend your thermostat be set at 68 degrees during the winter. Or, try keeping it set at a temperature where you will feel comfortable with a sweater on.
- Lower the temperature when you aren’t home and when you are sleeping. Extra covers on the bed will keep you warm. Helpful tip: Put a hook in the wall beside your thermostat and hang your keys on it. When you get your keys to leave home, you will remember to turn the temperature down.
- Close window shades and drapes at night to conserve heat and keep cold air out. Open them during the day to let the sunshine help heat your home. You can use blinds to block out the cold while still letting light in. Try tilting the slats at a 45 degree angle to the window.
- Add humidity. As we know in the South, humid air feels much warmer than dry air. (Think of those hot, summer days.) You can add a little humidity to your home by keeping plants indoors and by leaving the bathroom door open after a shower.
- Use your bathroom exhaust vent sparingly. It can draw out an entire houseful of heated air in about an hour.
- Keep the doors and vents closed in rooms you’re not using. Why heat an empty room?
- Reverse the spin of your ceiling fan and set it on the slowest speed to help send warm air down into the living area.
- Close your fireplace’s damper when not in use. Keeping it open is like having a full-sized window open all winter long, letting valuable warm air out. Also keep in mind that a fireplace is not an efficient source of heat for your home because heat escapes through the chimney with the smoke. You can minimize this by closing the doors to the room with the fireplace and lowering the thermostat.
- Keep filters clean. A dirty or clogged filter can make your heating unit work harder, costing you more money.
There are also several low-cost investments that can make your home more energy efficient.
- Caulk around windows and doors. By sealing all the gaps around doors and windows, you can keep out cold drafts. Be sure to caulk around your foundation and anywhere pipes pass through the walls.
- Close attic vents or fans during the winter and check the insulation. Much of the heat escaping your home is lost through the attic. Weather-strip and insulate your attic hatch or door.
- Install a programmable thermostat with temperature and time settings to save approximately $100 a year on energy costs.
Remember that you don’t have to spend money to save money. There are many easy, inexpensive things you can do this winter to reduce your energy consumption, and in turn, your power bill. You are the only one who can control how much energy you use.
2010’s Best Photos: May, June
December 28, 2010
All this week, we are looking back at some of our favorite and most interesting photos of 2010. Today, we are featuring photos from May and June.
(For January and February, click here.)
(For March and April, click here.)
June 23, 2010. It was the day that the World’s Whitest Beaches were no more. It was the day that the oil began to wash onto the shores of Pensacola Beach. It was the day the sands were stained black with oil; it was the day the tears of the locals stained the remaining sugar white sand.
A month after being found unresponsive and floating face down in a North Escambia pool, Maggie Scott, 3, was fully recovered.
Firefighters battle a barn fire near Bratt. The fire was believed to have been started by lightning.
A rare site: A passenger train travels through North Escambia during May as part of a railway group’s tour.
Northview and West Florida met in a Spring football game.
The Ernest Ward Middle School Drama Team reenacted the raising of the flag on Iwo Jima during Atmore’s Veterans Day Parade.
Brothers Victor and Austin Beck remember Billy G. Beck III during a memorial service on Pensacola Beach. Beck was struck by at least three vehicles while walking on Chemstrand Road.
Fishing boats sit idle at Joe Patti Seafood in Pensacola following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
A train caboose in Flomaton was moved from the town’s park to the Flomaton Area Railroad Museum.
The 36th annual Pen Wheels Fishing Rodeo was held in Walnut Hill, providing free fishing for disabled persons.
Joshua Herring, 23, of Pensacola was killed in this single vehicle accident on Pine Barren Road.
President Barack Obama defended his administration’s efforts in response to the Gulf of Mexico oil spill during a visit to the Florida Panhandle in June.
Dozens of children took part in the Summer Reading Series at the Century Branch Library.
Over 4,000 people braved the sweltering heat to attend the second annual Blueberry Jamboree Saturday at the Barrineau Park Community Center.
Oil boom stretches into Pensacola Bay in June.
Escambia County Sheriff’s Office Narcotics Unit agents question the occupants of a home on Highway 4A after serving a search warrant.
Escambia County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Wes Brown throws a lasso at a horse during the execution of a search warrant at the Highway 97 property.
130 members of the Northview High School Class of 2011 graduated in early June.
A K-9 team searches for a burglary suspect in Molino in early June.
Escambia County Sheriff’s Office Narcotics Division Investigators Rene Reguindin (left) and Heath Jackson (right) perform field tests on a suspected active meth lab found in Davisville.
Guard Unit To Deploy To Afghanistan
December 28, 2010
An area guard troop is preparing for deployment to Afghanistan just after the New Year.
The 1165th Military Police Company from Fairhope and Brewton will leave January 3 for about a month of training in Mississippi before deploying to Camp Eggars in Kabul Afghanistan.
Members of the 1165th have previously been deployed to Iraq twice and to the Olympics in Salt Lake City. They also assisted in Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina.
Nearly 200 members of the 1165th Military Police Company based in Fairhope are being deployed, including about 25 based at Brewton’s Don Bryant National Guard Armory.
There will be a farewell ceremony at noon, January 3 at the Fairhope Civic Center, 161 North Section Street.
Chumuckla Redneck Parade Buys Gifts For 45
December 28, 2010
The recent Chumuckla Redneck Christmas Parade was able to provide 45 children with Christmas presents.
The annual parade is sponsored by the Chumuckla Athletic Association, with proceeds from parade entry fees and t-shirt sales used to purchase the gifts for needy children in the Chumuckla community. Each child received about $100 worth of gifts.
Pictured: One of the floats in this year’s Chumuckla Redneck Christmas Parade on December 11.
Year In Review North Escambia’s Biggest Stories Of 2010: May, June
December 28, 2010
NorthEscambia.com is looking back at 2010 with our “Year in Review” series. Each day this week, we will review the biggest stories of 2010. Today, we take a look at the biggest stories of May and June.
(For January and February, click here.)
(For March and April, click here.)
MAY
A 48-year old McDavid woman died after being found floating face down in the Escambia River near McDavid.
Gas prices were up for Memorial Day travel.
A three-year old girl was found floating faced down in a pool in the Bay Springs community. She later made a full recovery.
A new Dollar General store was announced for Molino.
Tate High School’s Mock Trial Team was honored by the Escambia County Commission for winning state in the Florida High School Mock Trial Competition tournament and placing in the National High School Mock Trial Championship.
Longtime educator and Escambia County School Board member Peter R. (Pete) Gindl, Sr. of Barrineau Park passed away in mid-May.
An 11-year old boy faced a third degree felony charge of carrying a concealed weapon and a first degree misdemeanor charge of improperly exhibiting a firearm after he allegedly pulled an unloaded gun at Bradberry Park in Walnut Hill.
May brought a bit of disappointing news for movie fans in the area as Movie Gallery announced the closure of all of their stores, including Cantonment, Atmore and Flomaton.
Over 4,000 people applied for oil spill recover jobs during a hiring event, including hundreds that applied in Century.
Nearly 500 elementary school students took part in the annual Sunshine Math Competition held at Tate High School, including many from North Escambia.
Hundreds attended the annual Old Fashioned Day in Jay.
A Florida High School Athletic Association committee gave preliminary approval to creating a new division for for small, rural schools like Northview and Jay. Schools in the rural division would compete within their own division and have their own playoff series for boys and girls basketball, baseball, football, softball and girls volleyball.
The North Pensacola Relay for Life was held at Tate High School with over 1,000 people taking part.
JUNE
FCAT scores were released in June, with Northview, Tate, Ernest Ward and Ransom recording some of the highest scores in the county at some levels.
The Century Town Council held a public workshop to decide if a local man was operating a junkyard on his residential property and if what he claimed to do for a living was a business — all part of the process to determine if the council would vote to change the rezoning on his property to commercial.
Alex, the first tropical storm of the season, entered the Gulf of Mexico and later made landfall in Mexico.
June 23 — It was the day that the World’s Whitest Beaches were no more. It was the day that the oil began to wash onto the shores of Pensacola Beach. It was the day the sands were stained black with oil; it was the day the tears of the locals stained the remaining sugar white sand.
he Northview High School FFA’s Food For America program was named the best in Florida during the 82nd Florida FFA State Convention in Orlando.
The first health advisories for Escambia County’s beaches were issued June 23 due to the oil spill.
Escambia County deputies were called to a late night bash at the Century Community Center, four months after the Town Council said it would review its rental policy for the building.
Robert Grant Piehl was sentenced to 20 years in state prison after being found guilty of shooting into an elderly woman’s home in a dispute over $40 in fake crack cocaine.
Robin Brownie Floyd, 53, and Lynn Livingston Floyd, 43, both of Gilmore Road, Century, were both found guilty on seven of eight charges of confinement of animals without sufficient food or water.
The Barrineau Park 4-H Club was honored as the oldest continuing 4-H Club in Florida.
The International Paper plant in Cantonment was shut down for about two hours due to a fire in a powerhouse. There were no injuries.
Former Flomaton Police Chief Harold L. Stewart passed away in June from injuries he received in a May traffic accident in Century.
Over 4,000 people braved the sweltering heat to attend the second annual Blueberry Jamboree Saturday at the Barrineau Park Community Center.
There were 130 graduates in the Northview High School Class of 2010, while 75 graduated from Jay.
Former Century Town Council member Marie McMurray passed away. She was 84.
Gas Leak In Molino
December 27, 2010
A broken gas line leaked for about 40 minutes Monday morning in Molino.
A vehicle apparently hit a gas service line to a residence at 4569 Highway 95A, near Adams Lane about 7:45 a.m. The leak was reported to be secured at 8:22 a.m.There were no injuries reported.
Adams Lane is located just north of Barrineau Park Road on Highway 95A.
No Injuries In Hwy 97 Crash
December 27, 2010
There were no injuries in a single vehicle rollover accident on Highway 97 north of Walnut Hill this morning.
The driver of the pickup told first responders that he was northbound on Highway 97 when he fell asleep before striking a culvert and overturning. The truck came to rest on its side, blocking one lane of Highway 97 in the 6:50 a.m. crash.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
