Boil Water Notice Issued In The Teleran, Kingsfield, Chemstrand Area
September 18, 2026
UPDATE…This boil notice has been lifted.
The Emerald Coast Utilities Authority has issued a boil water notice in the area of Teleran Street, Kingsfield Road, and Chemstrand Road following the repair of a 6-inch water main.
The boil water notice includes:
500-628 Rodney St.
11501-11645 Chemstrand Rd.
2619-2969 Kingsfield Rd.
11509-11611 Cabot St.
11000-11620 Joel St.
Pierpoint Ave.
Laura St.
Amy Ave.
Herschel St.
Temple St.
About 100 or more ECUA customers are affected.
The boil water notice follows an water outage due to broken 6-inch water main on Friday.
Residents located in the specified PBWN area are advised to boil water for one minute at a rolling boil or to use 8 drops of regular unscented household bleach per gallon of water (let sit for 30 minutes), for water to be used for drinking or cooking purposes. Bacteriological sampling has been initiated, and the advisory will be lifted as soon as possible. This process routinely takes 48 hours.
ECUA crews completed the repair work and have flushed out the lines. Residents within the PBWN area and nearby are advised that there is a possibility of discolored water as a result of the utility work, and to flush their home’s plumbing by running their taps for a few minutes. If problems persist, customers are asked to contact ECUA Customer Service at 850-476-0480 for assistance.
This story will be updated when the boil water notice is lifted.
Century Approves Tentative $8.48 Million Budget, Steady Property Tax Revenue
September 18, 2026
The Century Town Council on Thursday night gave tentative approval to a millage rate for steady property tax revenue and an $8.48 million budget.
The council approved a millage rate of 1.0405. While higher than the 0.9204 mills that have been in place for several years, 1.0405 is the “rolled-back” rate — the computed millage rate that will generate the same amount of ad valorem tax dollars as the prior fiscal year, or about $69,916.
The council approved a tentative budget of $8,477,476.56 for FY 2026-2027, which begins October 1, 2026. That is down from $9.2 million during the current fiscal year.
A final decision on the property tax rate and budget will be made at a public hearing at 6:15 p.m. on Tuesday, September 29.
Pictured top: Century Town Clerk Carrie Moore and consultant Jack Rowell, a retired CPA who is assisting the town, make final tweaks to balance the town’s $8.48 million budget. Pictured below: Rowell and council member John Bass review financial documents. Pictured bottom: Council members Sparkie Harrison (left) and Dynette Lewis look at the budget. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Tate High AJROTC Honors The Lives Lost On 9/11
September 18, 2026
On September 11, 2026, the J.M Tate High School AJROTC Aggie Battalion came together for their annual solemn march to commemorate September 11, 2001. The Cadets marched with purpose and respect, remembering the nearly 3,000 people who lost their lives, as well as the firefighters, law enforcement officers, first responders, military members, and citizens who displayed extraordinary courage and sacrifice in the face of tragedy.
For the Aggie Battalion, the march provided an opportunity for today’s cadets to pause, reflect, and honor those who never made it home exactly 25 years ago. Through their discipline, unity, and commitment to service, the J.M. Tate Cadets helped ensure that the sacrifices of September 11 are not forgotten.
Written by and photos by C/1LT Kiley Adams, Aggie Battalion, Public Relations Officer (S-5) for NorthEscambia.com. Click photos to enlarge.
Register Now For October 2 Northview Homecoming Parade
September 18, 2026
The Northview High School Homecoming Parade will take place Friday, October 2.
For free entry to participate in the parade, click here for an entry form and release (pdf). Registrations are due by Thursday, September 24.
The parade will line up at noon and roll at 12:30 p.m. from Northview High School. It will travel east on Highway 4 before turning on Bratt Road by the Travis Nelson Park, around the park to Ashcraft Road to Highway 99, travel north past Bratt Elementary School, turn back onto Highway 4 and end at Northview. (Note that Ashcraft Road has a very narrow shoulder with no place to park.)
Guidelines and rules for parade participants include:
- The parade will follow the same route used in recent years.
- Cheer stunts are strictly prohibited on floats.
- Candy and throws must be provided by each individual group and may not be thrown until floats reach Highway 4.
- All floats should be decorated prior to arriving at Northview; only minor touch-ups will be allowed on campus.
- Floats will line up and park in the field next to the Northview bus loop. No parking is permitted in the bus loop.
- Floats must depart campus before afternoon buses arrive, or they will be required to hold until after school dismissal at 3:20 p.m.
- Participant and parent parking, as well as drop-off and pickup for younger participants, is located behind the Northview baseball field.
- Chaperones are responsible for students until they are picked up by parents.
- Group leaders and parents must supervise all children brought to the pep rally in the gym.
- Participants should bring their own water.
Pictured: The 2025 Northview High School Homecoming Parade. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Escambia Postal Worker Pleads Guilty To Stealing Marijuana From Mail Packages
September 18, 2026
A 25-year-old postal worker has pleaded guilty in federal court to stealing marijuana from mail parcels at the processing facility in Pensacola.
Vincent M. Madison, Jr., of Pensacola, entered guilty pleas to one count of theft of mail by a postal employee, one count of delay or destruction of mail, and one count of possession with intent to distribute marijuana.
According to court documents, in July 2023, Madison was working at the United States Postal Service Processing and Distribution Center in Pensacola when he began smelling packages passing through the facility. After identifying parcels containing marijuana, he cut them open and stole the contents.
Federal agents intercepted Madison as he left work and discovered over 1,000 grams of marijuana inside his lunchbox, according to court documents. Later that day, Madison attempted to get another mail handler to help him retrieve an additional package containing 448 grams of marijuana that he had hidden inside the distribution center.
“This defendant sought to exploit his position with the USPS to facilitate a drug trafficking operation through the U.S. Mail, but thanks to the excellent investigative work by the USPS Inspector General that supported the successful prosecution by my office, he now faces federal prison time,” U.S. Attorney John P. Heekin said.
Madison faces up to five years of imprisonment on each count.
The case was investigated by the United States Postal Service – Office of Inspector General and the United States Postal Inspection Service.
Sentencing is scheduled for November 10.
Firefighters Battle Logging Equipment, Brush Fire Deep In Wooded Area Near Walnut Hill
September 18, 2026
Firefighters from multiple agencies spent Thursday afternoon battling a logging equipment blaze and a resulting brush fire deep in the woods off Highway 97A west of Walnut Hill.
The Walnut Hill and Molino stations of Escambia County Fire Rescue, the Florida Forest Service, and the Atmore Fire Department responded to the scene, located about two miles down logging trails near Corley Road.
Crews were hampered by the distance and terrain as they worked to shuttle water from the roadway back into the woods to extinguish the flames.
No injuries were reported.
Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Blue Wahoos Eliminated From Playoffs In 8-3 Loss To Shuckers
September 18, 2026
One of the most successful seasons in Blue Wahoos history ended in a most difficult way.
Their post-season fate against the Biloxi Shuckers continued to be the wrong kind, after the Shuckers jumped on Blue Wahoos’ reliable starter Eliazar Dishmey with a trio of 2-run homers in the first three innings en route to an 8-3 victory Thursday night and a two-game sweep of their Southern League divisional playoff series.
The Shuckers’ win, before a crowd of 3,500-plus at Keesler Federal Park that was the team’s largest for a playoff game, sent them into the Southern League Championship Series for the first time since 2019.
They will face the Rocket City Trash Pandas, the Los Angeles Angels’ affiliate, who blasted their way past the Knoxville Smokies 13-3 in Knoxville, Tennessee to sweep the Southern League North Division playoff series.
Both divisional winners will be seeking their first Southern League championship when the best-of-three series starts on Sunday.
Biloxi’s fast start Thursday continued its playoff success against the Blue Wahoos, who entered with the best overall record in the league this season.
The Shuckers, the Milwaukee Brewers’ affiliate since the team’s inception in 2015, are now 11-3 against Pensacola in the postseason. They have won all four playoff matchups across three different Blue Wahoos affiliations.
In 2019, the Shuckers last won the divisional series, which was then best-of-five, in a deciding fifth game in Biloxi against the Blue Wahoos in their only year as a Minnesota Twins affiliate.
After the dropping the first game Tuesday 6-3, the Blue Wahoos sought to extend the series with Dishmey on the mound. The 21-year-old had allowed just seven runs combined in July and August in becoming the Blue Wahoos’ top starter.
But the only blip in that stretch was against Biloxi on August 13 when he was tagged for eight hits and three runs in 4.2 innings. In August, the Shuckers were 5-20, but got hot when it counted most.
The Shuckers quickly got to him again Thursday. The Shuckers’ heralded prospect, 19-year-old shortstop Jesus Made – rated No. 1 overall in Minor League Baseball – followed leadoff batter Dylan O’Rae’s single in the first inning with an opposite-field homer over the left field wall for a 2-0 lead.
That was followed by a two-run homer by catcher Matthew Wood in the second inning. Wood later had a two-run single in the eighth inning to complete a four-RBI night, giving him six RBI in two playoff games.
In the third inning, Braylon Payne crushed a Dishmey pitch as a rocket liner over the right field wall. The ball exited at 117 mph—the hardest hit ball of the Shuckers’ season.
At that point, Biloxi was up 6-0 and already positioned for a celebration. The Shuckers’ loaded lineup set a Southern League record for most runs scored this season.
The Shuckers had edged out the Blue Wahoos to win the first half division race. The Blue Wahoos claimed the second half in a dominating way.
The Blue Wahoos’ 79-58 overall record matched their second-most wins and third-best winning percentage in their 14-year franchise history. It included a 17-10 record against Biloxi in the regular season and a 43-25 second-half finish that won the playoff spot by seven games.
In the process, the team set franchise records for home runs (184) and stolen bases (312).
But the bulk of the position players who built that success were no longer on the Blue Wahoos roster when the season ended.
Four of their top players – outfielders Cam Cannarella, Brendan Jones and top slugger Brandon Compton, along with infielder Juan Mathews, were all called up to the Miami Marlins Triple-A affiliate Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp during the final five weeks of the season.
In addition, shortstop Aiva Arquette, the Marlins’ top pick in the 2025 draft, was injured last week and unable to play in postseason.
As late as Sept.1, the Blue Wahoos batted Arquette-Mathews-Compton as No. 2-4 in the batting order and once had the Marlins’ top three draft picks from 2025 on the roster.
Having clinched their playoff spot on Sept. 6 in Columbus (Ga.), the Blue Wahoos split the final regular-season series against the Shuckers at Blue Wahoos Stadium and rested both playoff starting pitchers, Jacob Kisting and Dishmey,
But their offense couldn’t deliver comebacks like it had during the second half of the season.
The Blue Wahoos picked up a run in the fifth inning on Payton Green’s sacrifice fly to score Ethan O’Donnell.
They cut the deficit to 6-3 in the seventh inning on RBI singles by Fenwick Trimble and Max Williams. For Williams, it continued his big boost since the former Florida State star and 2025 Draft pick joined the team in late August.
Dillon Lewis had a chance to continue the rally with two runners on base, but his hard-hit grounder became a force-out and the Blue Wahoos didn’t have another big threat.
Ironically, the Blue Wahoos will begin their 2027 season back in Biloxi when they start a 3-game, weekend opening series against the Shuckers on April 2-4 in this same ballpark.
written by Bill Vilona
Deputies Search Cottage Hill Property In Connection With Active Missing Person Case
September 17, 2026
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant at a home in Cottage Hill on Thursday morning in connection with a missing person case.
Deputies searched a mobile home and property in the 1000 block of Wendy Drive. Multiple deputies, crime scene units and the Legacy K9 Search team were seen on the property during the morning.
For a photo gallery, click here.
According to the ECSO, the activity was in connection with an active missing person case, but neither the missing person nor a body was located on Thursday.
On March 20, the ECSO reported a missing, endangered man last seen months prior in the same area on Wendy Drive, a private road off Parker Road. Corey Shane McBride, 39, last made contact with his family on January 1, 2026, according to the sheriff’s office.
The ECSO stopped short of confirming that Thursday morning’s search was for McBride, other than confirming it was part of an active missing person investigation.
Anyone with information on the whereabouts of McBride is asked to call the Sheriff’s Office at (850) 436-9620.
This story will be updated with any additional details that become available.
NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Barbour, click to enlarge.
Woman Injured After Crashing Into Truck Near Molino
September 17, 2026
One person was seriously injured after crashing into the back of a truck on Thursday morning near Molino.
The crash occurred about 7:45 a.m. on Stout Road. The 22-year-old female driver of a passenger vehicle rear-ended a commercial vehicle that was stopped mostly in the roadway.
The woman was transported to an area hospital by Escambia County EMS.
The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating. The Molino Station of Escambia County Fire Rescue also responded.
NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Barbour, click to enlarge.
College Football Foundation, Sun Belt Award $1,000 To Tate High Teacher
September 17, 2026
A Tate High School educator received a big surprise, walking away with national recognition and extra funds to support her work.
Lauralee Best was surprised by representatives of the Sun Belt Conference with a $1,000 gift as part of the annual Extra Yard for Teachers “Big Day for Teachers” initiative. She was chosen from among all high school teachers in Escambia County.
The recognition is part of a nationwide effort spearheaded by the College Football Playoff (CFP) Foundation. Through its primary charitable platform, Extra Yard for Teachers, the foundation partners with collegiate athletic conferences—including the Sun Belt Conference—and university athletic departments each September to honor PK-12 educators who go above and beyond for their students.
During the dedicated celebration week, conferences and partner organizations surprise standout teachers across their regional footprints with grants, gift cards, and classroom project funding.
Tate High School celebrated Best’s achievement, thanking her for making a lasting difference each day and showing unwavering dedication to her Aggie students.
Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
