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A Little Rain Tonight, Tuesday; Hot And Sunny Wednesday

 

There is still a chance of a few showers and thunderstorm tonight and a slight chance of rain continuing for Tuesday. By Wednesday, we’ll be sunny and much warmer, with a high around 90.

• Tonight: Cloudy, with a low around 67. South southeast wind between 5 and 10 mph becoming calm. Chance of precipitation is 70%.
• Tuesday: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 88. Calm wind becoming south southeast between 5 and 10 mph.
• Tuesday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 62. Calm wind becoming east southeast around 5 mph.
• Wednesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 90. South wind between 5 and 10 mph.
• Wednesday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 65. South wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
• Thursday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 89. Calm wind becoming south between 10 and 15 mph.
• Thursday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 67. South wind between 5 and 10 mph.
• Friday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 89. South wind between 5 and 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.
• Friday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 66. Southwest wind between 5 and 15 mph.
• Saturday: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 83.
• Saturday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 60.
• Sunday: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 84.
• Sunday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 62.
• Monday: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 85

FHSAA Considers New Division For Small, Rural Schools Like Northview, Jay

A Florida High School Athletic Association committee has given 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 recommendation from the FHSAA Urban/Rural Committee came about a year after Northview, Jay and nearly 20 other high schools in the Florida Panhandle met to discuss forming a new independent athletic league outside of the Florida High School Athletic Association.

“We all just want to see our teams have a level playing field,” Northview Principal Gayle Weaver told NorthEscambia.com at the time the smaller Panhandle schools were meeting. “Sometimes our students say we are playing for second best, because they know that they could never win state.”

The problem lies with smaller schools in the FHSAA that are forced to compete at the playoff level with private schools and academies located in cities like Pensacola. Those private schools are able to recruit the best players with scholarships and other incentives, making the chances of a small, rural public school winning a state playoff unlikely.

“It’s a good idea because it keeps these private schools out,” Northview Athletic Director Sammy Day said. “You’ve got a lot of private schools that recruit…if they get them coming to school because they live in their area, that would be fine. But they don’t.”

“A new division of participating schools (public and private) needs to be created,” the FHSAA Urban/Rural Committee wrote in a recommendation for full FHSAA board approval.

“We have a number of member schools that need issues addressed in terms of equitable competition,” said Executive Director Roger Dearing.  “We need to make sure people know this is not a public-private issue. This is an issue of small rural schools that do not draw their student populations from larger urban areas or outside the state or country, and have a difficult time competing against those that do. There is a way for all schools to exist and succeed with the advent of this new division.”

The committee, which was commissioned in Fall 2009, traveled throughout the state to gather feedback from parents, coaches and other stakeholders at public meetings about issues of concern regarding participation. From this feedback, the committee developed the following recommendations:

• to create a new division of participating schools, private and public, which have been designated as rural by the Office of Tourism, Trade and Economic Development, and whose student enrollments are 500 or less. This classification shall be limited to the following sports: boys and girls basketball, baseball, football, boys and girls soccer, softball and girls volleyball.
• to ensure penalties for an offense of recruiting, or any violation(s) of eligibility bylaws, are very severe, including but not limited to: program and/or school suspension from the Association; program and/or school restrictive probation, including exclusion from state series playoff events; and increased financial penalties.
• to investigate the use of a “clearinghouse” system for international student eligibility, with no more than one international student being eligible to participate on each varsity-level team.
• to seek input from member schools regarding reclassification and redistricting processes.

The Urban/Rural Committee noted in their full recommendation that the student population of 500 is an approximation with the actual number to be determined by the actual number of schools required t o create a competitive division.

To read the full FHSAA committee recommendation, click here (pdf).

Pictured top: Brandon Sheets tries to avoid Jay defender Chris Carrigan during last year’s meeting of two rural schools. NorthEscambia.com file photo, click to enlarge.

Rain Spells Early End For North Pensacola Relay; Goal Almost Reached

The North Pensacola Relay for Life was cut down to just four hours, but organizers say they have almost reached their $90,000 goal.

Over 1,000 people were taking part in the Relay event Friday night in Pete Gindl Stadium at Tate High School when lightning forced an end to the festivities about 10 p.m. The Relay had began at 6 p.m. with a “Thunder Lap” of motorcycles and Relay’s signature Survivors Lap that honors those that have defeated cancer.

The fundraiser for the American Cancer Society had raised about $85,000 before the Relay’s early end, but organizers said there is more money to be turned in and a few remaining fund raising events to go.

All proceeds from the North Pensacola Relay for Life benefit research by the American Cancer Society.

For a NorthEscambia.com photo gallery from the event, click here.

NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.

Tate FFA Rodeo This Weekend

The Tate Future Farmers of America (FFA) Alumni Foundation Rodeo will be held Friday and Saturday nights at the Escambia County Equestrian Center.

Admission is $10 for adults and $5 for children.

The FFA is an organization made up of middle and high school students who focus on agricultural education programs. The FFA Alumni Foundation holds events, such as the Tate FFA Alumni Rodeo, to raise money for these students and to give those students interested in the rodeo lifestyle a chance to compete.

The event is an open division competition. For more information, call John Kelley at 937-2308. The Equestrian Center is located at 7750 Mobile Highway in Beulah.

Weekend In Photos

There were lots of weekend events, and NorthEscambia.com has the photos.

• For photos from Mayfest in Atmore, click here.
• For photos from the Pen Wheels Fishing Rodeo in Walnut Hill, click here.
• For photos from the Atmore Community Hospital 5K, click here.
• For photos from the North Pensacola Relay for Life at Tate High, click here.
• For photos from Molino Park Elementary Arts Day, click here.

Oil Spill: Latest Escambia County Information

Here is the latest emergency operations center information for Escambia County:

Actions by Escambia County Board of County Commissioners and Staff

• Escambia County has ordered an 20,000 additional linear feet of boom for staging as gaps are identified.
• Officials continue to monitor coastlines.
• The volunteer pre-cleanups on Pensacola Beach and Perdido Key went well today.
• VeruTEK Technologies demonstrated an environmentally friendly solution that helps break up the oil to PBS&J, one of Escambia County’s contractors. The next step is for the company to present this to Unified Command as an option for oil spill cleanup.
• A community meeting of Escambia and Santa Rosa County staff, Santa Rosa Island Authority members and officials from DEP and BP will meet at the Pensacola Beach Community Church (916 Panferio Drive) on Monday at 2 p.m.
• SRIA lifeguards began a 24/7 watch for oil approaching the shoreline this afternoon, Sunday, May 2.
• The EOC will remain at level 2 activation for Monday, May 4. This is a minimal activation with only specifically involved agencies activating at this time.
• Meetings of all essential local emergency support agencies are being held daily.
• Pre-qualified contractors and consultants have begun coordinating with county staff on the disaster response
• Environmental staff is continuing assessments of pre-oil spill conditions and performing aerial assessment.
• Public Works staff is conducting a pre-assessment of roadways and parking areas near water access points, in the event of damages during long term recovery.
• Environmental staff are confirming pre-assesments on air and water quality, and identifying any gaps.
• County officials continue working through state and federal channels to establish a process for resources and equipment.
• Proactive efforts continue as contractors work to place deflective boom, large floating barriers that help contain floating oil, around sensitive shorelines in Escambia County.
• Emergency Management officials continue to communicate with the State of Florida liaison at unified command.
• County staff is continuing to coordinate with the Santa Rosa Island Authority on equipment necessary for the response effort.
• Geographic Information Systems (GIS) staff are mapping the locations to determine the amount of boom that is still needed.
• County staff is continuing to coordinate with the Escambia County Health Department on health and safety information.
• The Perdido Landfill coordinated with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and is prepared to accept oil contaminated sand and materials from commercial haulers.
• Emergency management has been in contact with the Visitor’s Information Center to encourage businesses to track losses.
• A local state of emergency was declared by the Board of County Commissioners at an emergency meeting at 2 p.m. Friday, April 30.
• The emergency operation center activated to a level 2 on Saturday, May 1.

Volunteer Opportunities & Training

• BRACE, United Way and First Call for Help are organizing volunteers for cleanup after the oil reaches the shores. To register to volunteer, please call 595-5905 betten 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday.
• Registration is required for a four-hour health and safety training classes for handling petroleum-contaminated materials.
• BP will hold two training classes on Monday and two on Tuesday. Due to the response, a waiting list has been established. Registrants will be notified about how to sign up for classes.

Safety Messages

• Boats
  • Boats should keep a safe distance from any of the booms – large floating barriers that help contain floating oil – seen in the water.
  • Boaters should not drive boats over any booms.
  • Boat owners are urged to dry-dock boats.
• Wildlife
  • The public is advised not to attempt to rescue oiled or injured birds or wildlife. Doing so can cause additional injuries.
  • If oiled wildlife are found, call the Oiled Wildlife hotline at 866-557-1401, please provide location of where the oiled wildlife was sighted.
  • An additional concern, May is the hatching season for many birds, reptiles, and shellfish. Please use the toll free number above.
• Beaches and Waterways
  • Citizens should take precautions to avoid contact with oil substances.
  • Citizens are urged to take caution around the waterways.
  • Officials are closely monitoring potential public health and environmental concerns.
• Personal Safety (If areas are affected by oil)
  • Avoid entering areas where oil can be seen or smelled. If you see or smell oil, leave the area right away.
  • Avoid direct skin contact with oil, oil-contaminated water and sediments.
  • Do not swim or ski in areas affected by the oil spill, and if you travel through the area by boat, take precautions when hoisting the boat anchor. If you get oil on your skin, wash it off immediately with soap and water.
  • Do not fish in the oil spill-affected waters.
  • Do not harvest and eat dead fish, fish with oily residue or fish that have a petroleum odor.
  • Do not drive your boat through slicks or sheens.
  • Young children, pregnant women, people with compromised immune systems, and individuals with underlying respiratory conditions should avoid the area.
  • Restrict pets from entering oil-contaminated areas.
  • Additional information and frequently asked questions from the Escambia County Health Department can be found at www.escambiadisasterresponse.com.

Businesses Information

• BP has established a claim system and toll free number, 800-440-0858. This system will allow people to being to process to recover lost income or recoup damage related expenses.
• If you are not satisfied with BP’s resolution, there is an additional avenue for assistance available through the Coast Guard once BP has finalized your claim. Those who have already pursued the BP claims process can call the Coast Guard at 1-800-280-7118.
• More information about what types of damages are eligible for compensation under the Oil Pollution Act as well as guidance on procedures to seek that compensation can be found below and at www.uscg.mil/npfc.
• To register as a consultant, contractor, vendor or submit information on alternative response technology, services products or suggestions, call BP at 281-366-5511.
• The Vessels of Opportunities Program is looking to contract shrimp boats, oyster boats and other vessels for hire to deploy boom in the Gulf of Mexico. Call 425-745-8017.
• Businesses, including hoteliers, sport fishing charters, watersports rental companies, etc., that may be negatively impacted are asked to keep detailed profit and loss records and track any cancellations, should a claim need to be presented.

Citizen Information

• The Citizen Information Center phone is open for questions from residents, (850) 471-6600.

BP Actions

• 18,000 feet were placed in Escambia County today
• Per BP, 80 percent of booming material has been placed, mostly in long sections. The remaining 20 percent will be placed in smaller areas.

Federal Actions

• NOAA is restricting fishing for a minimum of ten days in federal waters most affected by the BP oil spill, largely between Louisiana state waters at the mouth of the Mississippi River to waters off Florida’s Pensacola Bay. Effective immediately. Details: http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov.

Contact Numbers

• Transocean hotline: 832-587-8554
• MI Swaco hotline: 888-318-6765
• BP Investor Relations: 381-366-3123
• BP family hotline: 281-36-578
• BP third party contractor hotline: 281-366-5578

Actions by the State of Florida

• County Commissioners and staff participated in a DEP briefing with Governor Charlie Crist on Saturday, May 1.
• A state of emergency was declared by Governor Crist on Friday, April 30.
• The state emergency operations center has activated to a level 2.

Gulf Power May Help With Oil Cleanup

Gulf Power Company is organizing employees to help with any coastal cleanup operations should an oil slick in the Gulf of Mexico reach area beaches.

“We have offered our services to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and Escambia County if they need workers,” Sandy Sims, Public Affairs manager said.

Gulf Power has almost 800 employees in the area and the company could also call on additional resources from sister companies in Alabama, Mississippi and Georgia.

“With our experience in dealing with hurricanes, we know how to organize large-scale emergency operations, how to respond quickly and how to mobilize large numbers of people to get the job done,” Sims said. “We are willing to offer any and all of that expertise to help in this situation.”

The electric utility also has floating booms available if needed to capture surface oil. The company maintains a supply of these booms at their power plants where barges are unloaded.

“If the state and counties need us to walk the beaches and help clean up, we’re willing to roll up our pant legs and go to work,” said Sims.

Byrneville Students Check Out Hurricane Hunter Planes

A group of Byrneville Elementary School students toured two hurricane hunter aircraft at the Pensacola Gulf Coast Regional Airport last week.

The Byrneville fourth and fifth graders were able to see an an Air Force C-130J and  a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Lockheed WP-3D Orion aircraft — the first time the two hurricane hunter aircraft were on public display together.

With hurricane season beginning June 1, the hurricane hunters pushed hurricane preparedness while teaching the students about the science of hurricanes and hurricane hunting. From dropsondes — those devices dropped from the planes into hurricanes for measurements — to millibars and eyewalls, the students learned about how the hurricane hunters measure up a storm.

The NOAA hunter hunter plane has an airspeed of 210 knots and has flown into 88 different hurricanes with 713 eye wall penetrations.

Obama: Oil Spill A ‘Potentially Unprecedented’ Disaster

Calling the Gulf of Mexico oil spill a “potentially unprecedented” disaster, President Barack Obama pledged a “relentless” effort by the federal government to clean up. At the same time, Obama said the cost will be the responsibility of BP.

“BP is responsible for this leak. BP will be paying the bill,” Obama said Sunday afternoon in Louisiana after touring the slick over the Gulf — which is now only about nine miles offshore.

At the same time, Obama said, the federal government is working full steam to mitigate the oil’s impact.

“From day one, we have prepared and planned for the worst,” Obama said. ”Your government will do whatever it takes, for as long as it takes, to stop this crisis.”

“We’re dealing with a massive and potentially unprecedented environment disaster,” the president said. “It could extend for a long time. It could jeopardize the livelihoods of  thousands of Americans who call this place home.”

Commercial And Recreational Fishing Closed From Pensacola To Louisiana

NOAA is restricting fishing for a minimum of ten days in federal waters most affected by the BP oil spill, largely between Louisiana state waters at the mouth of the Mississippi River to waters off Florida’s Pensacola Bay. The closure was effective Sunday.

Fishermen who wish to contact BP about a claim should call (800) 440-0858.

“NOAA scientists are on the ground in the area of the oil spill taking water and seafood samples in an effort to ensure the safety of the seafood and fishing activities,” said Dr. Jane Lubchenco, NOAA Administrator, who met with more than 100 fishermen in Louisiana’s Plaquemines Parish on Friday night. “I heard the concerns of the Plaquemines Parish fishermen as well other fishermen and state fishery managers about potential economic impacts of a closure. Balancing economic and health concerns, this order closes just those areas that are affected by oil. There should be no health risk in seafood currently in the marketplace.”

“We stand with America’s fisherman, their families and businesses in impacted coastal communities during this very challenging time. Fishing is vital to our economy and our quality of life and we will work tirelessly protect to it,” said Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke. NOAA is a bureau of the U.S. Department of Commerce.

The federal and state governments have strong systems in place to test and monitor seafood safety and to prohibit harvesting from affected areas and keeping oiled products out of the marketplace. NOAA Fisheries is working closely with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the States to ensure seafood safety, by assessing whether seafood is tainted or contaminated to levels that pose a risk to human health.

“There are finfish, crabs, oysters and shrimp in the Gulf of Mexico near the area of the oil spill,” said Roy Crabtree, NOAA Fisheries Southeast Regional Administrator. “The Gulf is such an important biologic and economic area in terms of seafood production and recreational fishing.”

According to NOAA, there are 3.2 million recreational fishermen in the Gulf of Mexico region who took 24 million fishing trips in 2008. Commercial fishermen in the Gulf harvested more than 1 billion pounds of finfish and shellfish in 2008.

NOAA is working with the state governors to evaluate the need to declare a fisheries disaster in order to facilitate federal aid to fishermen in these areas. NOAA fisheries representatives in the region will be meeting with fishermen this week to assist them. The states of Louisiana and Mississippi have requested NOAA to declare a federal fisheries disaster. BP will be hiring fishermen to help clean up from the spill and deploy boom in the Gulf of Mexico. Interested fishermen should call (425) 745-8017.

NOAA will continue to evaluate the need for fisheries closures based on the evolving nature of the spill and will re-open the fisheries as appropriate. NOAA will also re-evaluate the closure areas as new information that would change the dimension of these closed areas becomes available.

Details can be found here: http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/

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