Section Of Pineville Road Closing Monday
March 9, 2009
South Pineville Road at Brushy Creek is scheduled to close Monday for two weeks.
DKE Marine Services will replace bridge pilings and make other repairs on the bridge, which is located in an isolated area west of the Enon community.
The bridge is scheduled to be closed until March 24.
Unemployment Soars; 6,299 Jobs Lost In Escambia
March 8, 2009
The numbers are not good. Unemployment across the area continues to soar, with 6,299 people losing their jobs in Escambia County in the past year. Nearly 1 in 10 people in Escambia County’s workforce are now out of a job.
Escambia County’s numbers are the worst in the immediate region, and the rate at which people are losing their jobs is also higher than any surrounding county. The unemployment rate in the county has nearly doubled in the past year.
From December to January, Escambia County’s unemployment rate jumped from 7.9 percent to 9.1 percent. That represents 1,693 Escambia County residents losing their jobs in just one month.
In Santa Rosa County, the unemployment rate in Santa Rosa County is 8.2 percent. There are 5,690 people out of work in Santa Rosa County, up from 3,040 one year ago. In the past month, 703 people have lost their jobs in Santa Rosa County.
In Escambia County, Alabama, there were 1,229 people unemployed as of December. The county’s unemployment rate was at 8.5 percent, up 3.2 from December 2007.
Statewide in Florida, there are about 800,000 people out of work — the highest number since September 1992.
“Governor Crist has emphasized job creation and stimulating Florida’s economy by developing budget priorities that focus on these principles and translate federal stimulus dollars into action,” said Agency For Workforce Innovation Interim Director Cynthia R. Lorenzo. “We are working diligently to ensure federal stimulus funds are distributed quickly to have significant impact on increasing benefits and enhancing our services to Floridians. We are also working diligently to ensure our state and business partners are posting job openings on the Employ Florida Marketplace website.”
The Employ Florida Marketplace, provides employers, job seekers, students, training providers and workforce professionals with workforce services at no cost. Employers can post job openings and job seekers can post resumes at www.employflorida.com. Employ Florida Marketplace currently lists nearly 130,000 job opportunities in Florida.
Locally, job services are available from the Escarosa Career Center at 8120 North Century Boulevard in Century. The center is open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday-Thursday. The phone number is 256-6266.
Other locations are the Escarosa Career Centers at 3670-A North L Street in Pensacola and 5723 Highway 90 in Milton.
Pictured above: The most recent unemployment figures from each county across the region. The bottom number on each county represents the percentage increase in the past year. Numbers for Florida counties are from January 2009; numbers for Alabama counties are from December 2008. NorthEscambia.com graphic.
Photo Gallery: Jay Crowns Miss Cotton Bowl 2009
March 8, 2009
The Miss Cotton 2009 pageant was held Saturday night in Jay.
The annual womanless beauty pageant is sponsored by the Jay Medical Center Relay for Life team. Proceeds from the pageant go to the American Cancer Society.
For a photo gallery from the event, click here.
Pictured above: Don Ripley, Century Care Center director, as nurse “Anita Cocktail Smith”. Pictured below: Miss Cotton Boll 2009 is crowned. Submitted photos by Mae Hildreth for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Area Bank To Open New Branch
March 8, 2009
A bank with an Atmore location will break ground next week on a new location in Brewton.
Gulf Winds Federal Credit Union will hold an official groundbreaking ceremony at 1 p.m. Tuesday in front of the Super Wal-Mart in Brewton.
Gulf Winds’ board of directors, management and area officials will attend the short groundbreaking ceremony. The new branch in Brewton is expected to open in late-2009.
The Brewton branch will be the tenth for Gulf Winds and the second in Alabama. Atmore was the first. The new branch will be a full-service financial institution complete with a drive through lane, drive-up night deposit, an ATM and numerous technology upgrades that save time and add convenience.
Spring Forward; Change Battery In Your Fire Alarms?
March 8, 2009
As you “spring forward” with the change to daylight-saving time today, Escambia County Fire Rescue wants to remind residents to make another change that could save their lives — changing the batteries in their smoke alarms.
Officials say the peak time for home fire fatalities is between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. when most families are sleeping. Children and senior citizens are most at risk, and a working smoke alarm can give them the extra seconds they need to get out safely.
Fire officials also recommend residents test smoke alarms by pushing the test button, planning “two ways out” and practicing escape routes with the entire family. Families should also prepare a fire safety kit that includes working flashlights and fresh batteries.
Communities nationwide witness tragic home fire deaths each year. An average of three children per day die in home fires and 80 percent of those occur in homes without working smoke alarms. Non-working smoke alarms rob residents of the protective benefits home fire safety devices were designed to provide. The most commonly cited cause of non-working smoke alarms: worn or missing batteries.
Tragically, fire can kill selectively. Those most at risk include:
- Children — Approximately 1,000 children under the age of 20 die each year in home fires. Children under age five are at twice the risk of dying in a home fire. Eighty percent of fatal home fire victims who were children were killed in homes without working smoke alarms.
- Seniors — Adults over age 75 are three times more likely to die in home fires than the rest of the population; those over 85 are 4.5 times more likely to die in a home fire. Many seniors are unable to escape quickly.
- Low-Income Households — Many low-income families are unable to afford batteries for their smoke alarms. These same households often rely on poorly installed, maintained or misused portable or area heating equipment — a main cause of fatal home fires.
Changing smoke alarm batteries at least once a year is one of the simplest, most effective ways to reduce these tragic deaths and injuries. In fact, working smoke alarms nearly cut in half the risk of dying in a home fire. Additionally, the International Association of Fire Chiefs recommends replacing your smoke alarms every ten years.
For more information about fire safety, call Escambia County Fire Rescue at 850-475-5530 or visit our web site at www.myescambia.com
For information about obtaining a free home smoke alarm call 850-595-HERO (4376).
Large Brush Fire Destroys Area Mobile Home
March 8, 2009
What firefighters believe began as a brush fire in the Quintette area Saturday afternoon destroyed a mobile home.
The mobile home had been completely destroyed by fire when the first firefighters arrived on scene. The mobile home had been empty since it was damaged by Hurricane Ivan.
Firefighters from multiple departments responded to the fire about noon Saturday off Rocky Branch Road, north of Quintette Road.
The mobile home was located on a dirt road about two miles off Quintette Road in a very isolated area.
The fire also burned several vehicles and about 15 acres of wooded area. Trains on a nearby track were also stopped for a short time due to the fire.
Fire units from Molino, Cantonment, Ensley, Beulah and Pace responded to the fire along with Escambia County EMS, the State Fire Marshal and the Florida Division of Forestry.
There were no injuries reported.
Most fire units were complete by 2:30 Saturday afternoon.
Click here for more photos from the scene.
Pictured above and below: What apparently started as a brush fire destroyed this unoccupied mobile home in the Quintette area Saturday afternoon. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Did You Remember To Spring Forward?
March 8, 2009
Did you remember to Spring Forward? Today is the first day of Daylight Savings time. Pictured above: The clock at the Escambia County Bank in Flomaton is one of the largest clocks in the area. Bank officials say the clock is rather easy to “spring forward”; it is all electronic. NorthEscambia.com photo.
Meeting Malcolm: Thomas Pays Surprise Visit To Northview High School
March 7, 2009
For a few minutes Friday morning, Escambia School Superintendent Malcolm Thomas was not focused on the 40,000 students in the district, but on Northview High School senior Timeka Marshall and an assigned paper.
“You’ve got to persuade people with what you write,” Thomas told Marshall in the school’s media center. She was working to prove in her paper that television is harmful to people.
“How can you prove that? How can we find information to prove it?” the superintendent asked.
“I’m looking up a lot of facts,” she said. “I’ve got a lot so far.”
Thomas, sitting at a Northview media center table and reading over Marshall’s notes, asked what she planned to do after high school.
“Probation officer,” she responded. “I’ve been accepted to Faulkner State, and I plan to apply to others.”
“Good plan,” Thomas said. “This girl has got it together. I’d be proud to call her my daughter.”
That’s the way Thomas spends many of his mornings…visiting one of the district’s schools or centers. He’s not talking to just the administrators, but to the teachers, staff and the students. Northview made 53 schools he has visited since taking office.
In the school office, he met senior Ashley Snow (pictured left) who works for the school under a cooperative education program. She also works at the Movie Gallery and is looking at a job at the Atmore YMCA.
“Work her hard so she’ll know what the real world is like,” Thomas said.
In the media center, Thomas also met senior Shaquaina Lewis. She was also working on a paper. The subject? Helping mentally ill patients recover without pills.
“They should be able to,” she told the superintendent. “And if they can’t, I’m going to be the one to figure out how to make them recover one day.”
The smile on Thomas’ face was apparent. Later, outside the media center, he said it was students like Lewis that inspired him.
“She has a goal,” he said. “She’s going to do her paper, and if she finds out that it can’t be done, her goal is figure out how to get it done. She has a real future.”
That is Thomas’ goal…to get it done. But in order to meet that goal, he believes his school visits will help understand the way to accomplish his goal of building the best school district that he can.
At each of the schools he visits, he asks at least two teachers or staff members three questions: “How’s your family?” “Do you have the tools you need to get your job done?” and “Give me the name of somebody that has helped you do your job better or has improved the school.”
When he gets home at night, he hand writes those helpful people a thank-you letter and mails it to their homes. He even buys the stamp.
In these days of budget cutbacks, school closures and money, money, money — Thomas is not about to make the district pay for his early morning trips to the schools in the district.
In fact, he won’t let the district pay for any of this travel, whether it be to Northview or Gainesville.
“That’s what you do when you lead,” he said. “In these hard times, you have to lead the way.”
Thomas said the school visits are one of the best parts of his job.
“Everything we do is about the people in the schools,” he said. “I enjoy meeting them face to face.
Pictured top and bottom: Escambia School Superintendent Malcolm Thomas helps Northview Senior Timeka Marshall with an assignment. Pictured middle: Thomas meets NHS senior Ashley Snow. NorthEscambia.com exclusive photos, click to enlarge.
Authorities Search Area Near AL/FL Line For Missing Woman’s Body
March 7, 2009
Alabama authorities continued their search Friday for Melinda Wall McGhee, the Atmore area woman that has been missing for five years.
Escambia County (Ala.) Sheriff’s Department officials spent part of Friday searching an area off Perry Lane in Wawbeek for clues in McGhee’s disappearance. Perry Lane is about a mile north of Highway 31 off Sardis Church Road near Old Atmore Road. The location is about three miles north of the Florida/Alabama line and North Escambia.
On the last day of January, authorities searched a water-filled gravel pit off Jack Springs Roads near the Judson Cemetery between Atmore and Poarch, but they did not locate a body.
Melinda Wall McGhee was reported missing from her residence on Kent Road on March 24, 2003. She was 31 at the time.
Authorities said that they follow up on leads and recheck some locations involved in the case.
Anyone with information on McGhee’s disappearance is asked to call the Escambia County (Ala.) Sheriff’s Department at (251) 809-0741 or their local law enforcement agency.
Pictured above: Two photos of Melinda Wall McGhee who went missing in March 2003.
Carver/Century Students Pocket Hundreds Of Dollars In FCAT Cash
March 7, 2009
Carver/Century K-8 held their FCAT Cash Grab Thursday and Friday. Students were awarded dollar coins and $2 bill for their gains on the FCAT practice test.
“Remember the FCAT is next week, and we are going to work to do our best,” Principal Jeff Garthwaite told the students Friday morning. “What level do we want?”
“Three!”
“Four!”
“Five!”
The students around the cafeteria yelled the score they thought they would make on the FCAT.
“Are we going to do our very best next week?” the principal asked.
“Yeah!” the students yelled.
The school handed out almost $400 in their FCAT Cash Grab.
The money for the school’s cash grab was from the Foundation for Excellence in Education, a non-profit corporation committed to enhancing the quality of public education in Escambia County by encouraging innovation and excellence in the classroom.
During Friday morning’s FCAT Cash Grab, third grader Zynaisha Davis, fifth grader Joshua Tyus, third grader Nyk Gransision and fourth grader Markayla Bradley were the randomly chosen students that got to grab as much cash as they could with one hand from a bowl filled with coins.
Click here for more photos from the Carver/Century FCAT Cash Grab.
Pictured above: Fifth grader Joshua Tyus grabs all the money he can during the Carver/Century FCAT Cash Grab Friday morning at the school. NorthEscambia.com photo.