What Can Escambia County Expect From Isaac?
August 27, 2012
The North Escambia area can expect strong winds and heavy rains if Isaac makes landfall near New Orleans as forecast.
Forecasts are below for both the northern half and the southern half (scroll down) of Escambia County.
Here is the current North Escambia area forecast for Isaac:
- Tonight: Tropical storm conditions possible with hurricane conditions also possible. Cloudy. Showers and thunderstorms likely. Lows in the mid 70s. Northeast winds 10 to 15 mph becoming 25 to 30 mph with gusts to around 40 mph after midnight. Chance of precipitation 70 percent.
- Tuesday: Tropical storm conditions expected with hurricane conditions possible. Showers and thunderstorms. Locally heavy rainfall possible. Highs in the mid 80s. East winds 30 to 35 mph becoming 25 to 35 mph in the afternoon. Gusts up to 50 mph. Chance of precipitation 80 percent.
- Tuesday Night: Tropical storm conditions expected with hurricane conditions possible. Showers and thunderstorms. Locally heavy rainfall possible. Near steady temperature in the upper 70s. Southeast winds 30 to 40 mph with gusts to around 50 mph. Chance of precipitation 80 percent.
- Wednesday: Tropical storm conditions possible. Showers and thunderstorms. Locally heavy rainfall possible. Highs in the mid 80s. Southeast winds 30 to 40 mph with gusts to around 50 mph. Chance of precipitation 80 percent.
- Wednesday Night: Breezy…cloudy. Showers and thunderstorms likely. Near steady temperature in the upper 70s. Chance of precipitation 60 percent.
- Thursday: Mostly cloudy. Showers and thunderstorms likely. Highs in the upper 80s. Chance of precipitation 70 percent.
- Thursday Night: Mostly cloudy. Chance of showers and thunderstorms. Lows in the mid 70s. Chance of precipitation 40 percent.
Here is the current southern Escambia forecast for Isaac:
- Tonight: Tropical storm conditions expected with hurricane conditions possible. Showers and thunderstorms. Near steady temperature around 80. Inland…northeast winds 20 to 25 mph becoming east 30 to 35 mph after midnight. Along the coast… Northeast winds 25 to 30 mph becoming east 25 to 35 mph after midnight. Gusts up to 40 mph becoming 45 mph after midnight. Chance of precipitation 90 percent.
- Tuesday: Tropical storm conditions expected with hurricane conditions possible. Showers and thunderstorms. Locally heavy rainfall possible. Highs in the mid 80s. Inland…east winds 25 to 35 mph becoming 30 to 40 mph in the afternoon. Along the coast…east winds 30 to 40 mph becoming 35 to 45 mph in the afternoon. Gusts up to 55 mph. Chance of precipitation 80 percent.
- Tuesday Night: Tropical storm conditions expected with hurricane conditions possible. Showers and thunderstorms. Locally heavy rainfall possible. Near steady temperature around 80. Southeast winds 30 to 40 mph inland…southeast 35 to 45 mph along the coast. Gusts up to 55 mph. Chance of precipitation 80 percent.
- Wednesday: Tropical storm conditions possible. Showers and thunderstorms. Locally heavy rainfall possible. Near steady temperature in the lower 80s. Inland…south winds 30 to 40 mph. Along the coast…southeast winds 35 to 45 mph becoming south 30 to 40 mph in the afternoon. Gusts up to 55 mph. Chance of precipitation 80 percent.
- Wednesday Night: Windy…cloudy. Showers and thunderstorms likely. Near steady temperature in the upper 70s. Chance of precipitation 60 percent.
- Thursday: Mostly cloudy. Showers and thunderstorms likely. Highs in the upper 80s. Chance of precipitation 70 percent.
- Thursday Night: Mostly cloudy. Chance of showers and thunderstorms. Near steady temperature around 80. Chance of precipitation 40 percent.
- Friday: Mostly cloudy. Chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs around 90. Chance of precipitation 50 percent.
- Friday Night: Mostly cloudy. Slight chance of showers and thunderstorms. Lows in the mid 70s. Chance of precipitation 20 percent.
- Saturday: Mostly cloudy. Chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs around 90. Chance of precipitation 40 percent.
- Saturday Night: Mostly cloudy. Slight chance of showers and thunderstorms. Lows in the mid 70s. Chance of precipitation 20 percent.
- Sunday: Mostly cloudy. Chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the upper 80s. Chance of precipitation 40 percent.
Race Against Time To Save Area Corn Crop
August 27, 2012
North Escambia area farmers are in a race against time to save their corn crops.
With the approach of Isaac, Escambia Grain in Walnut Hill has been open 24 hours a day for most of the past week to accept the harvesting corn for storage or market.
“There is still a considerable amount of corn in the field and chances are that high winds will blow the corn over and make it hard or impossible to harvest,” said Escambia Grain manager James Formby.
With a plentiful harvest, Formby said his grain elevator as well as most other grain facilities in the area are almost at capacity.
Corn prices reached an all-time high in June of this year, and the drought across large portions of the U.S. has keep prices high.
Pictured above: A load of corn is weighed Sunday morning at Escambia Grain in Walnut Hill. Pictured below: Trucks line up along Arthur Brown Road waiting to unload. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Update: Only Two Shelters To Remain Open In Escambia County
August 27, 2012
Only two shelters are to remain open in Escambia County. They are at Pensacola and West Florida high schools.
Cantonment Ballpark Cancels All Practices
August 27, 2012
There will be no practices at the Cantonment Ballpark until further notice.
The park will be secured Monday and an assessment will be done on the property and fields on Thursday.
Gulf Power, EREC Ready With Extra Crews To Restore Power Quickly
August 27, 2012
Both Gulf Power Company and Escambia River Electric Cooperative are ready to respond quickly to power outages should they occur as a result of Isaac.
Escambia River Electric
“EREC has additional crews available should their assistance be needed if the storm impacts the EREC power system,” said EREC spokesperson Sabrina Owens. “As a Touchstone Energy cooperative, EREC is part of a vast network ready and able to assist their fellow cooperatives in time of need. Members can be assured EREC is prepared to restore power as quickly and efficiently as possible if Isaac causes damage in the EREC service area.”
Gulf Power
Hundreds of crews from Gulf Power Company’s sister companies, which include Alabama Power, Mississippi Power and Georgia Power, are at the ready to mobilize to Northwest Florida to help restore electric service should Isaac make landfall here.
In addition, almost a thousand workers from neighboring utilities also have been recruited.
“We can always count on the strength of Southern Company to bolster our power restoration efforts,” said Jeff Rogers with Gulf Power. “We’re prepared for widespread power outages if Isaac makes landfall anywhere in our service area, and it’s great to have the experienced crews from our sister companies on standby to help.”
If Isaac should make landfall further to the west and Northwest Florida has minimum impact from the storm, Gulf Power and Southern Company will assist utilities in those areas.
Gulf Power is preparing as if the looming storm will make a direct hit and asks that its customers be prepared as well. Rogers said a direct hit by a category three hurricane could mean power outages of up to two weeks for the hardest hit areas.
“We’re prepared and every Gulf Power employee has a special storm assignment which helps us restore power as quickly and safely as possible,” said Rogers. “If Isaac does indeed make landfall in Northwest Florida, we ask our customers to be prepared for widespread, lengthy outages.
The company’s preparations include making arrangements with vendors to bring in large inventories of poles, wires, transformers and other equipment; planning to set up staging sites where workers can sleep, eat, wash their clothes, refuel their trucks and have tools repaired and making sure aircraft will be available to perform damage assessments immediately after the storm.
“Should we be impacted by the storm, we thank our customers in advance for their patience as our crews work hard to restore everyone’s power,” Rogers said. “Our crews have kept sharp assisting other utilities throughout the year, so we’re ready to get out there and make a difference.”
Pensacola NAS Evacuates Aircraft, Operations Continue
August 27, 2012
In preparation for Tropical Storm Isaac, Naval Air Station Pensacola has evacuated all aircraft that could not be placed in hangars on base. Navy boats able to be placed on trailers have been moved from port operations to safe areas.
There is currently no plan to evacuate base personnel. All NASP military and civilian personnel will report to work at regular duty times on Monday, August 27th.
The National Naval Aviation Museum located aboard the base will be open for normal hours
Wahoos Split Twin Bill With Mississippi
August 27, 2012
Pensacola scored four runs in the sixth inning to top Mississippi 5-2 and shortstop Billy Hamilton stole his 150th base of the year in game one, while Braves starting pitcher J.R. Graham shut down the Blue Wahoos bats in a 1-0 shutout victory in the nightcap as the two teams split their double header on Sunday evening at Trustmark Park in Pearl, Mississippi.
With the split, the Fish now own a 32-31 record in the second half and are two games out of first place in the Southern League’s South Division. The Braves have recorded a 29-34 mark since the midpoint of the season.
The Blue Wahoos struck first in the opening contest after loading the bases. CF Ryan LaMarre and C Tucker Barnhart each reached on a free pass, while 3B David Vidal was hit by a pitch, to bring up 2B Miguel Rojas. The second baseman would draw a free pass to send in LaMarre and push Pensacola ahead.
Mississippi however, would answer with a two-run bottom of the frame. Following walks from 1B Joe Terdoslavich and 3B Joe Leonard, RF Alden Carrithers singled to load the bases for CF Bobby Stevens. Stevens drove in both Terdoslavich and Leonard to give the Braves a 2-1 advantage.
Pensacola then put up a four-spot in the sixth to snag the lead for good. Pinch hitter Bryson Smith brought home a run with a sacrifice fly to right, while RF Josh Fellhauer and 1B Beau Mills each collected RBI base knocks to help the Blue Wahoos’ cause.
Blue Wahoos reliever Michael Griffin (1.0 IP, 1 H, 1 SO) earned his first victory at the Double-A level after firing a perfect inning of relief, while closer Justin Freeman (2.0 IP, 1 H, 2 SO) notched his 16th save. Braves RHP Erik Cordier (0.2 IP, 2 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 BB) suffered the loss and the blown save.
Mississippi starter J.R. Graham (6.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 8 SO) silenced Pensacola batters throughout much of the nightcap, yielding just three hits while fanning eight in his six scoreless innings of work. Graham retired 15 of his first 16 batters, including 14 straight at one point. Fish starter Chad Rogers (5.0 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 SO) suffered the loss, while Braves RHP Cory Rasmus (1.0 IP, 1 BB, 2 SO) collected his fifth save of the year.
The second game’s lone tally came in the third and proved to be all that Mississippi needed. 2B Phil Gosselin singled and stole second , prior to subsequently scoring on 1B Joe Terdoslavich’s run-scoring base hit.
Gosselin (2-3, 1 R) and Terdoslavich (2-3, 1 RBI) each recorded multi-hit efforts in the second game, while Blue Wahoos RF Josh Fellhauer accrued two of the Fish’s three hits. RF Alden Carrithers (2-2, 1 BB) was the only hitter from either side with two hits in the first contest. Blue Wahoos SS Billy Hamilton stole his 150thh base of the year in the first game, extending his single-season steals record after breaking Vince Coleman’s top mark of 145 on August 21 against Montgomery.
The two teams are scheduled to play the fourth game of their series Monday evening at 7:00 p.m., with RHP Mark Serrano expected to take the hill for Pensacola. Mississippi is scheduled to counter by giving the nod to RHP Gary Moran.
The final Blue Wahoos homestand of the season begins on Thursday, August 30 at 7:00 p.m., with Pensacola hosting the Tennessee Smokies, the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs.
By Andrew Green
Photo by Chris Nelson for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
UWF Closed Through Wednesday
August 26, 2012
Due to the threat posed by Tropical Storm Isaac, all University of West Florida campuses, including main campus and the Emerald Coast, will close on Monday, August 27. The university has cancelled all classes, events and related campus activities through Wednesday, August 29.
UWF employees are to report to campus on Monday, August 27 through 12 p.m. at which time campus will close. Employees should use this time to secure office spaces and conduct limited business activity. Faculty and staff should continue to monitor WUWF after the storm for information on resumption of business activities and reporting to work.
If possible, students who live on campus are encouraged to return home to their permanent residences. Students that remain on campus should stay in their assigned residence halls unless otherwise notified by the UWF Housing department.
“The safety of the UWF community is the university’s first priority, and all decisions about how UWF will deal with the storm and when the campuses will reopen will be made with that priority in mind,” said UWF President Dr. Judy Bense.
Man Dies In Pensacola Accident
August 26, 2012
Excessive speed is believed to have contributed to a single-vehicle crash that claimed the life of a Pensacola man late Saturday night.
David J. Potorski II, 30, of the 100 block of West Moreno Street, died at the scene of the crash, which occurred just before midnight at 17th Avenue and Bayfront Parkway, said Officer
Melinda Ply.
Potorski was driving a red Honda Civic westbound on Gregory Street just west of 17th Avenue when he drove off the north side of the road, re-entered the road and crossed Gregory Street. The car then struck a short brick retaining wall and came to a stop on the south side of the wall.
Potorski was wearing a seatbelt. He was the third traffic fatality this year within city limits.
Escambia Schools Closed Monday And Tuesday
August 26, 2012
Superintendent Malcolm Thomas has made the decision to close the Escambia County School District on Monday, August 27, 2012, and Tuesday, August 28, 2012.
The Escambia Emergency Operations Center has informed Thomas of the need to open hurricane shelters on Monday morning.
“Because our community relies heavily on the use of our schools for evacuation shelters, it is imperative that schools are made available during the evacuation order. This decision allows parents, employees and the community adequate time to prepare and evacuate as appropriate,” Thomas said.
Only administrative and maintenance personnel are to report to work on Monday, August 27, 2012. Other essential personnel as notified by their supervisor will report to work on Monday to assist with pre-storm preparation.
All remaining employees and all students should not report to work or school on Monday and Tuesday and await further instructions concerning Wednesday and beyond.
All extra-curricular activities scheduled for Monday and Tuesday have been canceled.
For recorded up-to-date information, call (850) 469-5306.