Cottage Hill Water Works Rescinds Boil Water Notice
February 28, 2014
Cottage Hill Water Works has issued a rescinded aboil water notice for McKenzie Road, Handy Road, Chavers Road, Smyers Road, Grenelefe Drive, Cottage Park Raod, Elna Road and the Huntington Subdivision.
This notice was issued Tuesday following a water main leak. Bacterial sampling indicated that the water is now safe to drink. For more information, contact Cottage Hill Water Works at (850) 968-5485.
Claude Howard Weaver
February 28, 2014
Claude Howard Weaver, 83 of Atmore,. passed away on Wednesday February 26, 2014, at his residence. He worked for Truckers Association and retired from the City of Atmore, also from the Army National Guard with 25 years of service, and was a member of the McCullough Christian Center. He was born in Escambia County, AL, on April 18, 1930, to the late Stiner and Grace Phillips Weaver.
He is preceded in death by a son, Kenneth Mack Weaver, a brother, Cecil Weaver, and a sister, Louise Wilson.
Survivors are his wife of 62 years, Frances Goodson Weaver of Atmore; three sons, Howard (Jeanette) Weaver, Ricky (Cathy) Weaver all of Atmore, Rodney (Anna) Weaver of Pace; one daughter, Cindy (Allen) Cobb of Atmore; two brothers, Clarence Weaver and Donald Ray (Peggy) Weaver all of Atmore ; two sisters, Earline (James) Burkett of Atmore, Alice (Dick) Walsh of Pensacola; nine grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
Services will be Saturday March 1, 2014, at 2:30 p.m. from Johnson-Quimby Funeral Home Chapel with Rev.C.P. Phillips officiating. Interment will follow in McCullough Cemetery.
Active Pallbearers will be Earl Weaver, Cameron Cobb, Blake Weaver, Don Wooten, Scott Drew and Carl Ward.
Family will receive friends Friday evening February 28, 2014, at Johnson-Quimby Funeral Home from 6-8 p.m.
Feds Warn They Are Cracking Down On Local Tax Fraud
February 28, 2014
United States Attorney Pamela C. Marsh and Special Agent in Charge James D. Robnett of the Tampa Field Office of Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation jointly announced Thursday their increased local efforts to enforce federal income tax laws as the tax-filing season is underway.
From Pensacola to Gainesville, legal actions for violations of tax and monetary laws have surged. Recent trials found two guilty in Panama City of more than $500,000 in stolen identity refund fraud; six defendants throughout the district pleaded guilty in separate cases involving more than $3 million in tax fraud; and judgments of eight defendants in Pensacola, Panama City, and Tallahassee netted sentences ranging from 24 to 78 months, more than $6 million in forfeiture, and an estimated $900,000 in restitution.
These recent activities, along with the indictment of five more individuals, make up part of the increased enforcement efforts over the recent weeks.
“As the number of crooks willing to steal identities and tax dollars has grown, so has our ability to track, investigate, arrest, and prosecute these cases. We will pursue criminal prosecutions of all who engage in these illegal activities, with intensity,” Marsh said. “Further, to those who contemplate filing fraudulent tax returns, the recent sentences handed down by our courts should serve as a warning that offenders face serious punishment. Honest, hardworking taxpayers are entitled to this protection by law enforcement. We are ready for tax season.”
“Our office, in partnership with prosecutors and law enforcement officers throughout the state, will dedicate the necessary resources to make an impact in the fight against fraud. You, the taxpaying members of the public, should have confidence that those who do not pay their fair share of taxes, and who steal your hard earned money, will be held accountable,” said Robnett.
Baseball Roundup
February 28, 2014
Here are scores from some area games Thursday night:
The 9th grade Tate Aggies beat Escambia 10-0 to improve to 3-2. The JV Aggies beat the Gators 6-5 upping their record to 5-2-1.
In the Escambia County (Ala.) Tournament, W.S. Neal beat the Flomaton Hurricanes 16-3 in five innings. Play resumes Friday afternoon at 4:00 as W.S. Neal takes on Escambia County High School (Atmore), and T.R. Miller will play Flomaton at 6:30 p.m.
Dying Man’s Missing Dog Has Been Found
February 27, 2014
The story of Max, the missing St. Bernard from Molino, has come to a bittersweet end…..he has been found and is now safely at home.
Tuesday, we first published the story of Max….he went missing Sunday morning when the wind blew open a gate at his home on North 95A near Highway 97. A desperate search followed because Max’s owner was at the time in the very end stages of a terminal illness and was thought to only have a few days to live.
The family made the plea for help in finding Max so the owner and Max could be reunited, but the owner passed away Tuesday afternoon before Max was found Wednesday afternoon.
After our story and after it was shared hundreds and hundreds of times on Facebook, a community came together to look for Max.
Here is our original story:
Update: Max’s owner passed away Tuesday afternoon, a few hours after this story was published. The search for Max continues.
The Molino community is being asked to keep an eye out for Max, a large St. Bernard dog that’s missing.
It’s a bit urgent that Max be returned home quickly…his owner is in the very end stages of a terminal illness and may only have a few days to live. The owner desperately wants to be reunited with Max during his remaining days.
Max was last seen Sunday morning. The wind blew open a gate at his home on North Highway 95A near Highway 97 and he wandered away.
Anyone that sees Max should call Mike at (850) 232-0329 or call (850) 712-2452.
Only Two Citizens Register Barnyard Animals Under Century Ordinance
February 27, 2014
Only two Century citizens voluntarily registered their non-conforming barnyard animals with town hall during a 60 day grace period following the passage of a strict animal control ordinance.
Residents of the 7900 block of Jefferson Avenue registered 2.5 miniature horses, explaining that one is pregnant and due in June, and a resident of the 9300 block of Old Flomaton Road registered one horse, according to town records.
As of December 23, it became illegal to keep a horse, mule, donkey, goat, sheep, or cow within the town limits except in areas that are zoned agricultural or rural residential. Hogs were already prohibited in all areas of the town.
One horse or cow is now allowed for every two acres, one donkey or mule per acre and one goat or sheep per one-half acre. The animals and their pens must be 200 feet or greater from a dwelling or property line.
Anyone with the regulated animals in an area not zoned agricultural or rural residential within the town limits, was required to register their animals at the Century Town Hall within 60 days from the passage of the ordinance. Anyone with nonconforming animals must apply for and be granted a variance from the town council within six months or get rid of their animals.
Century Mayor Freddie McCall, the town’s planner and an Escambia County Animal Control officer plan to start making site visits Thursday to properties where they believe non-conforming barnyard animals should have been registered to urge compliance.
Pictured inset: Council member Jacke Johnston reads the new animal control ordinance during a December 23 meeting. NorthEscambia.com file photos, click to enlarge.
Florida Man Executed For Killing Trooper With Pipe Bomb
February 27, 2014
Paul Augustus Howell, who was sent to Death Row for the 1992 murder of a Florida Highway Patrol trooper, was executed Wednesday at Florida State Prison near Stark. Howell, 48, was pronounced dead at 6:32 p.m., according to the Gov. Rick Scott’s office.
Howell, who had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich as his final meal, was the 15th Death Row inmate executed in Florida since Scott took office in 2011. There were five executions during former Gov. Charlie Crist’s single term and 21 during the two terms of former Gov. Jeb Bush.
Howell was convicted in January 1995 in the death of FHP trooper Jimmy Fulford during a traffic stop three years earlier. Fulford was killed by a pipe bomb that Howell had put inside a microwave oven and placed in a gift-wrapped package. The bomb was intended for a Marianna woman who could identify Howell, who with his brother was involved in a South Florida drug ring, for a prior murder.
On Feb. 13 of this year, Circuit Judge Angela Dempsey ruled that a new lethal-injection drug used by the state would not violate Howell’s rights. The hearing, held in Jefferson County Circuit Court at the direction of the Florida Supreme Court, focused on the state’s use of midazolam hydrochloride as the first drug in a three-drug cocktail in executions. Midazolam, which the state began using last year, is supposed to anesthetize prisoners before the other drugs are administered.
Howell’s attorneys contended that the inmate has medical conditions that would lead to the drug not working properly, violating the constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment.
FHP: No Positive ID On Fiery Century Crash Victim; Family Holds Memorial Service
February 27, 2014
The Florida Highway Patrol said Wednesday that it may be a month or more before they are able to positively identify the victim of a fiery single vehicle accident early Saturday morning in Century.
The FHP said the vehicle was burned so badly that no identifying information remained. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is also working on the case, attempting to use DNA for positive identification of the victim’s remains. That process could take several weeks.
Foul play was not suspected in the crash, according the FHP.
Friends and family members have identified the victim as Tara Valinda Ferguson Moore, age 40 of Flomaton. Moore was a LPN and substitute teacher in the Escambia County (Ala.) School System. A memorial service was held in her honor Wednesday afternoon at the Brewton First Baptist Church.
The burning vehicle was discovered by a passing Escambia County Sheriff’s deputy about 3:55 a.m. on Fannie Road just northeast of Campbell Road, across from the Happy Valley Holiness Church.
After the Century Station of Escambia Fire Rescue extinguished the blaze, the victim was discovered in the driver’s seat area of the vehicle.
The Florida Highway Patrol has identified the vehicle as an unknown year model Toyota sedan.
The driver was apparently headed east on Fannie Road when they failed to negotiate a curve, ran off the roadway, down an embankment and struck several trees on the shore of a gravel lake. A post-crash fire completely gutted the vehicle.
The Florida Highway Patrol was unable to identify the driver of the vehicle at the scene. Further details have not yet been released as the FHP continues their investigation.
Pictured top and inset: One person was killed in this fiery crash in Century early Saturday morning. Pictured below: The vehicle shortly after the fire department extinguished the blaze. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Deputies Seek Two Arsonists
February 27, 2014
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office is looking for at least two people that intentionally set fire to the Alfred Washburn Center at 31 Murphy Lane in Pensacola back on December 9.. The facility provides food, clothing, shelter, and other items to the homeless population in the area.
At least two people were involved with this arson, according to investigators.
Wednesday, investigators released a photo that shows one suspect in the case.
Anyone with information on the crime is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP. An additional 5,000 reward is available through the State Fire Marshal’s Office.
UF: Consumer Confidence Remains Stable In Florida
February 27, 2014
The state’s consumer confidence held steady the first two months of the year, according to a University of Florida report. On a scale that ranges from two to 150, confidence among Floridians sat at 78 in February, the same as in January and a point higher than the final month of 2013, according to numbers released Tuesday.
“We expected little change to the February index given the agreement in Congress that averted another shutdown and debate over the debt ceiling,” Chris McCarty, director of UF’s Survey Research Center in the Bureau of Economic and Business Research, said in a news release.
The monthly survey found that Floridians have slightly increased faith that the U.S. economy will improve over the next year, are more pessimistic about their personal finances, yet believe that now is the best time since before the recession to buy big-ticket items such as automobiles.
by The News Service of Florida