D1 Commissioner Bergosh To Hold Town Hall Meeting Next Week
February 17, 2022
District 1 Escambia County Commissioner and Chairman Jeff Bergosh will host a town hall Tuesday, February 22 from 5:30 until 7 p.m. at Beulah Middle School.
Attendees will include county staff; District 1 ECUA board member Vicki Campbell, Escambia County School Board District 1 member Kevin Adams, and Debbie Malsberger from State Rep. Michelle Salzman’s office.
Bergosh intends to discuss countywide issues including COVID-19 response and recovery, new redistricting boundaries, the budget, the county jail and staffing issues, Escambia County Fire Rescue and EMS, Triumph Gulf Coast, and the RESTORE Act. There will be topics of interest to District 1 discussed as well, including OLF-8, the Beulah Community Master Plan, the District 1 library and Beulah fire station, and an elevated walkway and sidewalks for Beulah. Bergosh will also give an update on the Mobile Highway road project, the Nine Mile/Beulah interchange and transportation projects including Longleaf Drive and Avondale Sidewalk
Bergosh will also utilize “agree” or “disagree” cards so residents can answer questions posed during the town hall. Comment cards will be available so county staff can address residents’ concerns.
Multiple Unlocked Vehicles Burglarized In Cottage Hill And Bellview; Weapons Stolen
February 16, 2022
Eighteen vehicles were broken into Monday night or Tuesday morning in Cottage Hill and Bellview.
All of them were unlocked, according to the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office. Multiple weapons, credit cards and other items were stolen.
Five vehicles were burglarized in the area of Hollow Point Drive off Williams Ditch Road in Cottage Hill. Another 13 vehicles were burglarized in the area of Apple Ridge Drive and Apple Ridge Circle in Bellview.
Credit cards stolen from an unlocked vehicle on Boat Tail Court in Cottage hill were later used by a black male at a gas station located at the Wilcox Road exit of I-10 in Baldwin County, according to the ECSO.
Anyone with any information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP or the ECSO at (850) 436-9620.
Pictured above and bottom: The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office investigates multiple vehicle burglaries Tuesday morning in Cottage Hill. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge. Pictured below: A suspect uses credit cards that were stolen from a vehicle on Boat Tail Court in Cottage Hill.
Tree Planted In Century To Mark Sixth Anniversary Of Destructive EF-3 Tornado
February 16, 2022
A new red maple tree now stands near the splash pad at Showalter Park in Century.
The tree was planted by the town and Florida Forest Service Tuesday morning — the sixth anniversary of an EF-3 tornado that struck Century on February 15, 2016.
As it grows, it will provide shade from summer sun for splash pad and playground visitors.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
One Injured In Century Rollover Crash
February 16, 2022
One person was injured in a single vehicle rollover Tuesday night in Century.
The driver was headed north on Highway 4A just off Highway 29 when they lost control, ran off the roadway and struck a culvert. The vehicle overturned and came to rest upside down in the intersection of Highway 4A and West Hecker Road at about 7:45 p.m.
The driver was transported to an area hospital by Escambia County EMS with injuries that were not considered life threatening. There were no passengers in the vehicle.
The Century and McDavid stations of Escambia County Fire Rescue responded and freed the adult male from the vehicle. The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating the wreck.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Escambia Man Gets Life In Prison For Stabbing Death
February 16, 2022
An Escambia County man has been sentenced to life in prison for a 2020 murder.
Circuit Court Judge Coleman Lee Robinson sentenced Cecil Dwayne Pulliam to life for the December 18, 2020, murder on North Hayne Street in Escambia County. Pulliam stabbed another man with a knife at least 13 times.
Pulliam previously served 24 years in a California prison for sexual offenses.
At sentencing, Assistant State Attorney Alexander Liebmann argued that the defendant’s violent actions, criminal history, and extreme lack of remorse demonstrated that a strong incarceration sentence was warranted.
ECAT Honors Bus Driver For 47 Years Of Service
February 16, 2022
Tuesday, Escambia County Area Transit (ECAT) honored bus driver Willie Carter for 47 years of service.
In celebration of Carter’s service and Black History Month, ECAT dedicated a bus wrap during a surprise ceremony.
Firefighters Rescue Trapped Cat
February 16, 2022
Escambia County Fire Rescue was called this week to rescue a kitty stuck in a tight spot.
The cat managed to get stuck between a hot water heater and a wall. The crew of Ensley’s Engine 6 was able to rescue the feline by slightly maneuvering the space heater and lifting the cat between the water lines.
The cat was not injured.
Dry Weather Prompts Fire Danger Warning
February 15, 2022
Officials with the Florida Forest Service’s Blackwater Forestry Center have issued a fire danger warning due to continued dry weather.
Officials have responded to nine wildfires in Escambia, Santa Rosa and Okaloosa counties during the past week. Those included a two acre fire Tuesday on Highway 168 near Tulip Road just west of Century. Wildfires were reported Monday on Sinclair Street in Cantonment and Dukes Drive, also in Cantonment.
Cold weather and a lack of rain in the past several days has left much of the thin, highly flammable vegetation available to burn as fuel for a wildfire. Low humidity also has increased the potential for fire activity. Residents are asked to be extremely cautious with any outdoor fires – burning yard debris, charcoal grills, campfires – and follow Florida’s outdoor burn laws.
Residents may burn yard debris in piles less than eight feet in diameter as long as they meet the setbacks and there are no city or county ordinances against it. There currently are no burn bans in effect in Escambia or Santa Rosa Okaloosa counties. In addition to meeting the required setbacks, it is recommended that those who chose to burn have a charged water hose and shovel or rake on hand, never burn on windy days and never leave a fire unattended. Residents must ensure their burn piles are completely extinguished before leaving them unattended as lingering heat from smoldering debris often is the cause for escaped fires.
Those wishing to conduct large pile burns or acreage burns must call (850) 957-5701 for an authorization and meet additional requirements which might include having heavy equipment on site.
Flomaton Man Wanted For 2021 Century Murder Arrested In Atmore
February 15, 2022
A Flomaton man wanted for a July 2021 murder in Century has been arrested in Alabama.
Timothy Lavon Johnson, 34, was arrested without incident as he walked along Howard Street in Atmore, according to Atmore Police.
Johnson is wanted for murder of a man that died less than two weeks after he was found unresponsive with head injuries in Century.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office responded to an aggravated battery report on Hilltop Road at Alger Road at 11:18 a.m. on Sunday, July 18, 2021. The man, identified by family as Chris Hunter, passed away July 28, 2021, 10 days after he was injured.
Family members told NorthEscambia.com that Chris Hunter was the brother of Greg Hunter, who died days after he was found injured outside a Century bar.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office responded to Odom’s Bar on North Century Boulevard about 10 p.m. on June 19, 2021, to find 60-year old Greg Hunter down in the parking lot. At the time, investigators said it was a homicide and that he had been seriously beaten and left unconscious. But the Medical Examiner’s Office later said Greg Hunter died of natural causes (click for an earlier story).
Johnson is in the Escambia County Detention Center in Brewton awaiting extradition to Florida to face the homicide charge in the death of Chris Hunter.
Editor’s note: The cause of death of Greg Hunter at Odom’s Bar remains as natural causes according to the Medical Examiner’s Office, and Johnson is in no way accused in his death.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Space Heater Sparks Tuesday Morning Fire That Destroyed Molino Home
February 15, 2022
Fire destroyed a home in Molino early Tuesday morning.
The fire was reported just before 8 a.m. in the 5200 block of Pilgrim Trail West off Highway 97. Firefighters arrived on scene to find smoke and flames coming from the 2,300 square foot bick home.
The occupants were able to escape the fire without injury.
The fire was caused by a space heater in the garage, according to ECFR.
The Molino, Walnut Hill, McDavid, Cantonment and Ensley stations of the Escambia County Fire Rescue, the Atmore Fire Department and Escambia County EMS responded.
Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
