McDavid Man Details Storm’s Destruction Of His Home
March 10, 2011
James Milstead was a remarkably calm man Wednesday morning, considering that as he huddled in the hallway of his McDavid home, the roof was ripped from over his head and the entire house was moved from its foundation.
“I could tell something; you could feel something in the air,” Milstead said as he stood outside the Main Street home that had been in his family for 60 years. “It happened real quick. The windows started blowing out…the roof. And I’m trying to hold the doors, and it just pulls the doors out of my hands.”
He said he just dropped to the floor and pulled a jacket over his head for protection. The howling winds, he said, only lasted for five to 10 seconds.
But during the ordeal, he said his primary concern was not his home, but the mobile home and safety of his next door neighbors. The trailer survived intact, but the roof was severely damaged, wood and tin from other homes sticking out.
Milstead, 58, did not immediately know where he would spend Wednesday night, but he was considering the small shed behind his home. It survived mostly intact.
“I have a generator,” he said. “I might just stay in there until I get this cleaned up.”
Milstead’s home was one of nine homes damaged or destroyed in small area either side of Highway 29 on Highway 164 or Main Street in McDavid. The American Red Cross worked to provide shelter to those that had no where to go after the storm.
Pictured top: The roof was ripped from James Milstead’s McDavid home as the entire house shift several inches off its foundation. Pictured top inset: Milstead details his ordeal. Pictured bottom inset: Looking through a broken window of Milstead’s home into a room and up into the open sky. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
National Weather Service To Determine If Damage Was Tornado
March 10, 2011
Officials with the National Weather Service Office in Mobile will survey damage in McDavid today to determine if a tornado was responsible for destroying several homes Wednesday.
Even with all of the technology available to meteorologists today, the weather service still relies on a personal visit to ground zero to analyze the damage to make a final determination. The technical data will be combined with the eyes-on-the-ground observations, using the criteria of the Fujita Scale, to classify the strength of a tornado – or determine if the damage was from just thunderstorm winds.
They will work to determine if all of the debris is running in one line or scattered. With the damage in a line across McDavid preliminary data would lean toward a possible minor tornado.
Once the National Weather Service determines the cause of Wednesday’s damage, we will post their findings here on NorthEscambia.com.
Photos: ‘The Sky Was Boiling’
March 10, 2011
Professional storm chaser Jim Edds of Pensacola captured these unique images of Wednesday’s storms as they moved across Pensacola Bay.
“The sky was boiling,” is how Edds described what he saw.
Edds’ storm chasing footage has been aired on the National Geographic Channel, The Weather Channel, the Travel Channel and more. For more photos of the Pensacola storm, click here.
Pictured above and below: A line of storms moves across Pensacola Bay Wednesday morning. Photos by Jim Edds for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Century Plans To Post Town Ordinances Online
March 10, 2011
The Town of Century is in the process of publishing its municipal codes online.
The town will spend $1,418 for the Municipal Code Corporation to publish seven copies of a printed supplement containing updates to the town’s ordinances. The town will also spend $500 per year for Municode.com to publish those ordinances online in a searchable format for the public. The yearly fee will includes updates each time a new ordinance is approved.
The Municipal Code Corporation is one of the nation’s largest municipal code publication companies. The company currently provides code services for hundreds of governments, including Escambia and Santa Rosa counties and Pensacola.
Evers’ Gun Bill Changed To Remove College Campus Carry
March 10, 2011
The National Rifle Association and Sen. Greg Evers were handed defeat Wednesday when Florida Senate Republicans decided that guns have no place on college campuses.
Robert Cowie, father of a Florida State University student who died in an accidental shooting, gave emotional testimony in a Florida Senate committee two weeks ago about the death of his daughter, Ashley Cowie, 20, who died on January 9 after another student’s rifle accidentally discharged at a party.
When that same committee met Wednesday, it voted to dramatically change Evers’ open carry bill. The measure (SB 234) allowed concealed weapons permit owners to “open carry” their weapons. Until Wednesday, it would have also allowed carrying of weapons on college campuses.
The intent of the bill, explained Evers, who represents the North Escambia area, was to make it so someone with a concealed weapons permit would not get in trouble for accidentally allowing glimpses of their gun.
Evers said he was saddened by Cowie’s testimony earlier, but pointed out the bill wouldn’t have changed the circumstances of Cowie’s death. What he meant was the student who allegedly shot her was under 21, the minimum age for someone to have a concealed weapons permit.
Evers has said in previous media interviews that he believes bringing guns on to school campuses actually improves safety. He told the Tallahassee Democrat that he had “no reservations about pushing the bill.”
Sen. Paula Dockery, R-Lakeland, offered an amendment during the Senate Criminal Justice Committee meeting on Wednesday that essentially keeps current law as it applies to campuses, banning the carrying of guns at colleges.
Dockery said she had heard from many universities and parents of college students who were opposed to the bill. She doesn’t like the concept of allowing guns on college campuses because of the “maturity level,” she said.
“This bill has caused a lot of anguish for parents and college students,” Dockery said.
Prior to the amendment by Dockery, the bill was opposed by many Florida university police forces and business groups, but backed by the powerful National Rifle Association.
Now the bill allows people with concealed license permits to carry their guns in full view in stores but not at schools and other prohibited areas. Randy Miller, a lobbyist for the Florida Retail Federation, said he is still opposed to the bill because it allows concealed weapons permit holders to openly carry weapons in stores.
Cowie’s Senate testimony two weeks ago was so emotional it moved some in the audience to tears.
“Allowing guns in an atmosphere of college parties puts everyone involved at increased and undue risk,” Cowie told senators. “Would you feel more or less at risk today if I were carrying a gun?”
The committee ran out of time Wednesday and didn’t take a vote on the bill, though Evers said he would bring it up again at the committee’s next meeting.
Tornado Hits McDavid; 9 Houses Damaged, 7 Homeless (With Photo Gallery)
March 10, 2011
Nine homes were damaged or destroyed as an EF1 tornado hit McDavid Wednesday morning. There were no injuries reported.
Four of the homes were demolished, two had moderate damage, while three suffered minor damage, according to an on-scene emergency command. A total of seven people in three structures were left homeless by the storm.
Three of the homes were Highway 164 just east of Highway 29, and six were on Main Street in McDavid.
FOR A PHOTO GALLERY FROM THE SCENE, CLICK HERE.
The first report of the possible tornado came from an Escambia County Sheriff’s deputy at Highway 99 and Mayhaw Road in Walnut Hill as he observed a possible funnel cloud picking up debris in a field. Minor damage was reported a short distance away, with trees down and a few windows broken at homes on Velor Road and Lambert Bridge Road. Trees were downed along Highway 164 several miles east of Highway 29.
But most of the damage was concentrated in McDavid, along Highway 164 near Highway 29 and on Main Street.
The American Red Cross is working to assist those that were left homeless by the storm.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Today’s Jay, Northview Baseball Game Moved To Jay
March 10, 2011
Today’s planned baseball games between Northview and Jay high schools have been moved from Bratt to Jay.
The games were scheduled to take place at Northview, but school officials were unsure if Northview’s field would be ready for play after Wednesday’s rains. The JV game between the Chiefs and the Royals will begin at 4:00, while the varsity game will begin at 6:00 in Jay.
An April 15 game between Jay and Northview has also been moved — the game will now be played at Northview rather than Jay at 6 p.m.
EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: Watch As Possible Tornado Begins To Form
March 10, 2011
NorthEscambia.com shot video of storm clouds swirling and rotating Wednesday morning in Walnut Hill. The video was shot on Highway 97 near, and almost directly over, Ernest Ward Middle School. Moments later, an Escambia County Sheriff’s deputy reported a funnel cloud on the ground near North Highway 99 and Mayhaw Road, about one mile away.
Within minutes, the storm with an unconfirmed tornado had damaged or destroyed several homes near McDavid.
If you do not see the video at the top of the page, it is because your home, work or school firewall is blocking external YouTube videos.
NorthEscambia.com exclusive video.
Teacher Merit Pay Bill Ready For Senate Vote
March 10, 2011
The Florida Senate is likely to approve a bill this week that offers sweeping changes to how Florida pays and evaluates its public school teachers.
The measure (SB 736), brought to the Senate floor on Wednesday and put in position for a vote as early as Thursday, sets up an evaluation system for teachers that depends on student test scores and eliminates the use of multi-year teacher contracts.
“Our current teacher evaluation system is broken,” said Sen. Stephen Wise, R-Jacksonville, the sponsor of the bill.”We need to measure effectiveness of a classroom teacher based on what a student learns.”
It is expected to easily win approval in the Senate and with approval also expected in the House, it could be one of the earliest measures to go this year to the desk of Gov. Rick Scott, who has indicated his willingness to sign it.
The Florida Education Association, the statewide teachers’ union, opposes the bill because it eliminates teacher tenure, requires one-year contracts, mandates more tests and gauges teacher performance on those tests “using some value-added model that is untrustworthy,” said FEA spokesman Mark Pudlow.
The bill reverses a long tradition in public schools of basing salary on seniority.
Senators spent hours on Wednesday discussing the measure on the floor, though formally, debate is scheduled for Thursday.
Sen. Eleanor Sobel, D-Hollywood, pressed Wise on whether Florida could afford a plan that requires the development of more tests and promises better salaries for test score improvement.
Wise said the cost of developing new tests would be paid for with money from the federal Race to the Top program. Florida was awarded $700 million in Race to the Top funds.
Sen. Bill Montford, D-Tallahassee, tried to amend the bill so that teachers who are rated highly within a certain time frame are allowed to receive three-year-contracts.
His amendment was voted down. “To me, this was a good compromise that allowed those teachers who have been highly effective to be given a sense of job security over a three-year period,” Montford said. “We need to recognize that the vast majority of teachers do a great job.”
This teacher merit pay bill is similar to a controversial measure passed by the Florida Legislature last year that tied teacher pay to test scores. That bill was vetoed by then-Gov. Charlie Crist after his office was inundated with calls, e-mails and letters from thousands of angry educators and Crist expressed doubts about the fairness of linking pay to the test scores of students whose difficulties may be beyond the control of the classroom teacher.
This year, there has been a more muted response from teachers and the FEA.
That’s due in part to the participation of the FEA and local school districts in submitting Florida’s Race to the Top application. Part of that application included attaching more significance to a teacher’s performance through test scores. There is some overlap between what Race to the Top and the teacher merit pay bill are trying to achieve.
The bill would grandfather in current teacher pay plans, but set up a new merit-based plan for teachers hired after July 1, 2014. More immediately, teachers hired after July 1, 2011 will not be able to receive multi-year contracts and instead will have one-year contracts.
The bill also establishes an evaluation process in which 50 percent of a teacher’s performance evaluation is based on test scores and whether students had “learning gains” from previous school years. Teachers are ranked anywhere from “highly effective” down to “unsatisfactory.”
A breakdown of each school’s teacher ratings will be posted annually on the Department of Education website and parents will learn the rating of their children’s teachers. The bill would also strengthen a principal’s ability to refuse to hire or not renew a teacher’s contract based upon unsatisfactory ratings.
Local school boards, are given some leeway in determining how teachers are evaluated. Unlike last year’s bill, other factors such as student attendance and disciplinary factors can be considered.
The bill is not only backed by many Republicans in the Legislature, but also powerful groups such as the Florida Chamber of Commerce and former Gov. Jeb Bush’s education advocacy group, the Foundation for Florida’s Future.
By Lilly Rockwell
The News Service of Florida
Three Years In Prison For McDavid Man That Sold Gun For $40 In Marijuana
March 10, 2011
A McDavid man was sentenced to three years in state prison Wednesday for selling a firearm to a 16-year old in exchange for $40 in marijuana, eventually leading to a shot being fired into a deputy’s tire.
David Dewayne Simmons, 49, was sentenced by Judge Ronald Swanson to three years in state prison for selling a firearm to a minor and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
In July, 2010, Simmons sold a .22 caliber handgun to Ladarrious Tamiraye Lett, 16, of Ivey Street, Century. Lett was later found guilty of possession of a firearm by a convicted delinquent under 24 years of age, tampering with evidence and culpable negligence. Lett was sentenced to nine months in the county jail.
The incident began at 3:23 a.m. on July 14, 2010, when Deputy Scott Rivkin conducted a traffic stop on a black Eagle Talon with no headlights near North Century Boulevard and Henry Streets. The driver of the vehicle was given a warning for failing to use his headlights. Lett was the passenger in the vehicle. Both left the area.
About five minutes later, Rivkin was traveling on North Century Boulevard in the same area as the traffic stop when when he heard what he believed to be a gunshot. Upon investigation, he discovered a .22 caliber pistol in the middle of North Century Boulevard. When the right rear wheel of the deputy’s cruiser rolled over the weapon, it had fired a round, flattening the tire. Next to the revolver, the deputy discovered one empty shell casing and five live rounds of ammunition.
While Deputy Rivkin was still parked on North Century Boulevard, he noticed the driver from the previous traffic stop and Lett approaching him on foot. The two were separated and questioned as the Flomaton Police Department responded for backup.
The driver told authorities that Lett had dropped the gun out of the vehicle’s window just prior to the traffic stop and that the pair had returned to the area to retrieve the gun. The 16-year old told deputies that he had purchased the gun from Simmons with a $40 bag of marijuana, and he provided a bill of sale. Lett admitted to dropping the gun out of the vehicle window, according to his arrest report.
Lett was originally charged as a juvenile in connection with the incident, but he was tried and convicted as an adult in Escambia County Circuit Court.