Storms Blow Across Area; Some Damage Reported
May 12, 2009
A line of storms marched across the area Monday night, leaving a lot of downed trees and power lines in some areas and some structural damage near Flomaton.
After hitting the McCullough community north of Atmore, the storms continued southeast toward Flomaton where barns and a mobile home were damaged.
Trees and power lines were reported down in the areas of Phillips, Jordan, Upper Creek, Lambeth, Van Hoosen and Junction roads in the Flomaton area. There were no reports of injuries as the storms moved through the area about 7:30 p.m.
In the Jay area, Santa Rosa Emergency Management reported hail, and lightning started a minor fire.
Emergency officials from Flomaton and surrounding areas spent over two hours working to cut trees out of roadways.
Dozens of residents were without power in the impacted areas. Some were in the dark until after 10:00 Monday night.
Pictured above: The storms approaching Flomaton as seen from Highway 4 near Northview High School. Pictured inset: The radar image at the time the top photo was taken. Pictured below: Two more photos of the storms taken from North Highway 99 near Bratt Elementary School. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
NHS Baccalaureate Service Scheduled Despite ACLU, Court Order
May 12, 2009
The Class of 2009 at Northview High School is not going to let a federal judge and the ACLU put an end to the school’s history of holding a Baccalaureate service.
The Baccalaureate service for the Northview Class of 2009 will be held at 8 a.m. on Sunday, May 24 in the First Baptist Church of Bratt’s Family Life Center.
The school was unable to organize a Baccalaureate service due to a new Escambia School Board policy preventing the school from promoting any religious ceremony. That policy was implemented after a federal judge issued an order against any policy or practice where school district employees promote or take part prayer or religious services in the Santa Rosa County School District. Students are allowed to conduct their own religious events at school without school employee involvement or outside of school..
“We are making a statement,” said Luke Killam, president of the Northview senior class. “We are doing it so that God will be glorified, and we will give Him all of the glory.”
The senior class will hold a traditional Baccalaureate service, Killam said, including a message from Jason Oxodine, youth minister at the First Assembly of God in Atmore.
“The administration, faculty, and staff of Northview High School have been proud to sponsor all of the Baccalaureate services since the school’s inaugural 1996 graduating class. It is believed that the Senior Class of 2009 will rise to the challenge of having an off-campus Baccalaureate service and will not only have a wonderful service but also one which may serve as a model for future years,” NHS Principal Gayle Weaver said when it was announced that the school would be unable to sponsor the service.
Pictured above: The Class of 2008 Baccalaureate service at Northview High School. Pictured inset: Luke Killam, senior class president. Click to enlarge.
Driver Dies In Big Rig Crash, Explosion On I-65
May 12, 2009
A fiery 18-wheeler accident that left one person dead shutdown I-65 near Flomaton this morning.
The driver of the truck has been identified by Alabama State Troopers as David Scott Bentley, 38, of Greenville, Alabama.
Escambia County Emergency Management Director David Adams says Bentley was hauling steel coils when he lost control on I-65 northbound near mile marker 64 between Atmore and Flomaton at Big Escambia Creek. The truck went through a guardrail, struck the bridge, went over the side and exploded into flames under the bridge.
“The truck just exploded into this huge fireball in mid-air,” said Ray Zalce who witnessed the horrific crash. “It just blew up on the way down, and there was this huge cloud of black smoke.”
Zalce and other motorists tried to reach Bentley, but they were unable to save him.
Bentley was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident, which happened about 10:15 Monday morning.
Authorities say Bentley’s truck apparently blew a tire, causing him to lose control.
“Dave was such a good guy,” said Tommy White, a dispatcher for Richway Transporation in Mobile, the company that owned the truck and employed Bentley. “This is not the way it is suppose to be. This is just heartbreaking. My prayers are for his family.”
A second truck was hit by debris, Adams said, but the driver of that vehicle was not injured.
Northbound traffic from I-65 was diverted into Atmore and Flomaton via Highway 21, Highway 31 and Highway 113, creating traffic problems in both cities for hours.
It took crews hours to clean up debris and diesel fuel off the bridge. The Alabama Department of Transportation inspected the bridge for structural problems following the crash, and they determined it to be safe.
Click here for a NorthEscambia.com photo gallery from the scene.
Pictured above: A truck driver from Greenville, Alabama, was killed in a fiery explosion on I-65 this morning between Flomaton and Atmore. Pictured below (top): This is the remains of the cab of the truck. The seat from the cab can be seen near the large object, which is a steel core that was being hauled on the flatbed trailer. Pictured bottom: The engine and remains of the frame of the truck and trailer. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Sweet Sounds: NHS, EWMS Hold Band Concert
May 12, 2009
The Northview High and Ernest Ward Middle schools held their annual Spring Band Concert Monday night at Northview High School.
Members of the NHS Alumni Band, made up of former Northview, Ernest Ward and Century high band members, also performed.
For a NorthEscambia.com photo gallery from the concert, click here.
Pictured above and left: Students perform during the Northview and Ernest Ward Spring Band Concert Monday night at Northview. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
State Line Road Repaving Project Continues
May 12, 2009
If all goes as planned, a repaving project on a portion of State Line Road in Century is expected to be finished this week.
Century Mayor Freddie McCall said the contractor plans to put down a layer of asphalt today and finish the project by Friday — if the weather cooperates.
The Town of Century awarded a $128,437.30 paving contract to Roads, Inc. of NWF for West State Line Road back in early February. West State Line from Highway 29 at the Piggly Wiggly to Shady Lane will be resurfaced under the contract, a distance of about a half mile. The State Line repaving project is being funded by Local Option Sales Tax (LOST) funds.
Pictured: Work is underway to resurface a portion of West State Line Road in Century. NorthEscambia.com file photo, click to enlarge.
Board Votes To Close Another Escambia School
May 12, 2009
The Escambia County School Board has voted to close another school at the end of this school year.
The board voted Monday to close Edgewater Elementary School, a move that will send the approximately 350 students to three other elementary schools — Navy Point, Warrington or West Pensacola –depending on their address.
The closure is expected to save the district about $400,000 per year. It is the same redistricting method the board followed to close Carver/Century K-8 School.
The school board voted March 17 to close Carver/Century at the end of this school year to save another $600,000 plus. The Carver/Century attendance zone was deleted, sending the students to Bratt Elementary and Ernest Ward Middle School next year.The total savings from the two school closures is expected to top $1 million per year.
Severe Thunderstorm Warning
May 11, 2009
A severe thunderstorm warning is in effect until 8:45 for Escambia County.
BULLETIN – EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL
810 PM CDT MON MAY 11 2009
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MOBILE HAS ISSUED A
* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR…
CENTRAL ESCAMBIA COUNTY IN NORTHWEST FLORIDA…
WEST CENTRAL SANTA ROSA COUNTY IN NORTHWEST FLORIDA…
* UNTIL 845 PM CDT
* AT 808 PM CDT…NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING QUARTER SIZE HAIL…AND
DAMAGING WINDS OVER 60 MPH. THIS STORM WAS NEAR MOLINO…OR ABOUT
19 MILES NORTH OF PENSACOLA…MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 15 MPH.
* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR…
COTTAGE HILL AND CANTONMENT BY 820 PM CDT…
GONZALEZ BY 835 PM CDT…
ENSLEY AND FERRY PASS BY 845 PM CDT…
IN ADDITION TO LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS…CONTINUOUS CLOUD TO
GROUND LIGHTNING IS OCCURRING WITH THIS STORM. MOVE INDOORS
IMMEDIATELY! LIGHTNING IS ONE OF NATURES NUMBER ONE KILLERS.
REMEMBER…IF YOU CAN HEAR THUNDER…YOU ARE CLOSE ENOUGH TO BE
STRUCK BY LIGHTNING.
Deputies Investigating Drive-by Shooting In Century (Updated With Name)
May 11, 2009
(Updated) The Escambia County Sheriff’s Department is investigating a drive-by shooting that occurred Monday morning in Century.
Kevin Lamar Brown, 29, was shot in the arm on Ramar Street with a small caliber weapon, according to Lt. Carl Jones with the Escambia County Sheriff’s Department. Brown was driven in a private vehicle to Jay Hospital with non-life threatening injures just before 10 a.m.
Brown reported that he was shot from the passenger side of a four-door gray car as he walked down Ramar Street mid-morning. His mother, who lives on Ramar Street, reported that she heard three shots, Jones said.
“But no one else heard anything,” Jones said.
The shots were reportedly fired from a silver or gray four-door older model car, possible a Pontiac Grand Prix, Grand Am or Bonneville, occupied by at least two black males. Brown told deputies that he did not know the shooter.
According to court records, Brown is no stranger to the legal system. He is due to be in court later this week on drug charges from 2008, including possession of a control substance and marijuana possession.
Escambia County Rolls Out Redesigned Web Site
May 11, 2009
Escambia County has unveiled a new redesigned web site. The sites allows citizens and visitors alike to view information about county services and events. Click here to visit myescambia.com.
Pictured above: One of the photos on the newly redesigned Escambia County web site features Lake Stone near Century.
Making Blueberries Cool: Northview’s Lesson In Genetic Engineering
May 11, 2009
The agricultural students at Northview High School are growing blueberries the high tech way with a little genetic engineering, thanks to a teaching intern that likes to make plants “cool”.
“The key to teaching is making it grab their attention, and I’ve figured out that kids are interested in the weirdest stuff,” said Jennifer Nobles, a recent University of Florida graduate who spent 12 weeks as an intern in the agricultural department at Northview.
In a sterile lab-like environment, students planted blueberry snippets about 1-2 centimeters long into a sterile grown hormone gel packed with nutrients (pictured left). After about four weeks, the snippets will be little blueberry plants, transferred into pots and eventually ready to produce the popular fruit.
The growth process makes each plant a genetic clone of the others, producing even size plants that should yield a similar blueberry harvest. It’s the same method often used to create the perfect and identical plants found for sale at the local nursery, Nobles said.
“We have shown the students the cutting edge way to plant plants,” she said. “They found out that plants can be cool. It’s neat to watch them get excited about a subject that can be so plain.”
Nobles’ 12-week internship at Northview ended recently, and she just graduated from UF where she double majored in animal science and agricultural education. Her next step in life is to attend veterinary school.
Nobles said she will always treasure her 12 weeks at Northview.
“It was the coolest thing to see them get excited about planting blueberries, something that ordinarily can be so plain,” she said.
For photo gallery, click here.
Pictured top: Intern Jennifer Nobles show Northview agriculture students how to plant a blueberry snippet into a growth medium in a sterile environment. Pictured top inset: A blueberry snippet at about two weeks old. Pictured bottom inset: Jennifer Nobles. Submitted and NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.