• Home
• News
• Events
• Features
• Sports
• About
• Contact
• Advertise

Free Classifieds | Obituaries |

Health Dept. Urges Precautions To Avoid Carbon Monoxide Poisoning

The Florida Department of Health urges Floridians to take precautions to prevent carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning.

Carbon monoxide poisoning is a year round threat, however as temperatures drop, the potential for CO poisonings rise.  CO is a highly poisonous gas produced by burning fuels such as gasoline, natural gas, propane, kerosene, charcoal, and wood.  CO from these sources can build up in enclosed or partially enclosed spaces. The risk of illness or death increases with the level of CO in the air and the amount of time exposed. Dangerous CO levels can result when home appliances are not properly maintained or when used incorrectly.

“Carbon monoxide is a silent poisonous gas that can cause illness and death within minutes of exposure,” said Dr. Kendra Goff, state toxicologist for the Florida Department of Health. “It is invisible, tasteless, odorless and non-irritating, which is why taking precautions is vital and having sufficient working CO alarms in your home is critical. Proper use of generators, portable space heaters or gas grills can protect you and your family from the potential tragedy of an accidental poisoning.”

Since symptoms of CO poisoning are similar to those of the flu, food poisoning, or other illnesses, you may not think CO poisoning is the cause.  The common signs and symptoms include headache, nausea, weakness, abdominal discomfort/pain, dizziness, and confusion.  Other signs and symptoms may include blurred vision, numbness and tingling, ataxia (loss or lack of muscular coordination), irritability, agitation, chest pain, shortness of breath, palpitations, seizures, and loss of consciousness.

Anyone who suspects symptoms of CO poisoning should go outside the home or building without delay and seek prompt medical attention. If a person has collapsed or is not breathing, call 911 for emergency medical assistance immediately from a safer location such as outside or from a neighbor’s home. Children, pregnant women, and individuals with heart conditions are most vulnerable.

Tips to help prevent CO poisoning:

• Never use a gas stove or oven to heat the home.
• Never burn charcoal inside a house, garage, vehicle, or tent, including in a fireplace.
• Avoid using unvented gas, propane, or kerosene heaters in enclosed spaces, especially sleeping areas.
• Install and use fuel-burning appliances according to manufacturer instructions, the Florida Building Code, and the Florida Fire Prevention Code.
• Inspect the exhaust system of each fuel burning appliance every year, including chimneys, flues, and vents. Check for blockage, holes, and disconnections.
• Have fuel-burning appliances inspected and serviced annually by a licensed contractor.
• Never leave an automobile running in a garage, even with the garage door open.
• Do not leave the rear window or tailgate of a vehicle open while driving. CO from the exhaust can be pulled inside the car, van, or camper.
• Never use a portable generator or a fuel-powered tool indoors or in other enclosed or partially enclosed areas.
• Always place portable generators outdoors on a dry surface far away from doors, windows, vents, and air conditioning equipment that could allow CO to enter. Orient the generator so that it is placed with the exhaust port pointing away from the home.
• Install battery operated CO alarms or plug-in CO alarms with battery backup inside a house according to manufacturer’s installation instructions or NFPA (National Fire Protection Association) 720: Standard for the Installation of Carbon Monoxide (CO) Detection and Warning Equipment.
• Install only CO alarms that meet the UL (Underwriter Laboratories) 2034 or the CSA (Canadian Standards Association) 6.19 standards.
• Replace CO alarm batteries once a year and test alarms frequently.
• Replace CO alarms every five years or as often as recommended by the alarm manufacturer.

State: Old Medicaid System For Kids ‘No Longer Exists’

Arguing that Medicaid has undergone a transformation, state officials pushed back Wednesday against a federal judge’s finding that Florida has not properly provided health care to low-income children.

“Everything around the program has changed,” state Medicaid director Justin Senior told the Senate Health and Human Services Appropriations Subcommittee. “He (the judge) is critiquing a situation on the ground that no longer exists, and that’s unfortunate.”

After nearly a decade of litigation, federal Judge Adalberto Jordan last week issued a 153-page decision that pointed to wide-ranging problems in how the Medicaid program has served children. In part, Jordan found that low physician reimbursement rates led to a lack of access to care and that children had been improperly dropped from the program.

It remains unclear what changes or actions Jordan might require the state to take. Jordan, who serves on the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals but heard much of the case while a district judge in Miami, indicated he will hold a hearing in late January to prepare for what he called the “remedy phase” of the case.

The state, however, will argue that the case is effectively moot because of a recently completed overhaul of the Medicaid system, which now enrolls almost all beneficiaries in managed-care plans. The lawsuit, filed in 2005, dealt primarily with issues in the Medicaid system from 2005 to 2009, Stuart Williams, general counsel for the state Agency for Health Care Administration, told the Senate panel Wednesday.

As an example of the changes, Senior said Medicaid managed-care plans are required to have adequate networks of doctors and other types of providers to serve children.

But Tallahassee physician Louis St. Petery, executive vice president of the Florida Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, took issue with Senior’s explanation about how managed care has resolved issues in the Medicaid system.

“From on the ground, those of us who are actually taking care of children on Medicaid, it really doesn’t work exactly like that,” said St. Petery, whose group has helped spearhead the lawsuit against the state.

For instance, St. Petery said children still lose eligibility improperly. Also, he questioned statements by Senior that the managed-care system will lead to fee increases for physicians. Low payments have long been a major issue in Medicaid, with many doctors saying it doesn’t make financial sense to care for Medicaid patients.

St. Petery also told lawmakers that Agency for Health Care Administration officials have declined to talk with pediatricians about fixing problems in the Medicaid system.

“In every instance, we have been refused,” St. Petery said. “They will not meet with us.”

But Senate Health and Human Services Appropriations Chairman Rene Garcia, R-Hialeah, defended the agency’s decision not to meet with pediatricians while the legal battle continues.

“I don’t blame the agency for not wanting to meet or rejecting these meetings until that litigation has been resolved,” Garcia said.

by Jim Saunders, The News Service of Florida

International Paper Grant Application Deadline Near

International Paper (IP) Pensacola Mill will award $50,000 in Foundation Grants in 2015, and the deadline for all grant applications in Monday, January 12.

Grants are awarded by the IP Foundation in Memphis, TN, and will  focus on environmental education, literacy, employee involvement and critical community needs. Applicants must be a registered 501c3 non-profit organization, school, or qualifying government entity to apply.

For more information about the Foundation, visit www.ipgiving.com.  For more information about the grant process, contact Janice Cooper Holmes, communications manager, by email janice.holmes@ipaper.com or call (850) 968-4203.

Century Seeks To Hire Someone To Coordinate Disaster, Emergency Training

The Town of Century is looking for a person or company to help them be ready in the event of a public emergency.

The town is currently seeking someone to develop and implement Citizens Corps and Community Emergency Response TEAM (CERT) programs.

The Citizen Corps mission is to harness the power of every individual through education, training, and volunteer service to make communities safer, tronger, and better prepared to respond to the threats of terrorism, crime, public health issues, and disasters of all kinds.

The Community Emergency Response Team program educates people about disaster preparedness for hazards that may impact their area and  trains them in basic disaster response skills, such as fire safety, light search and rescue,  team organization, and disaster medical operations.

The  Be Ready Alliance Coordinating for Emergencies  (BRACE) in Pensacola has coordinated such efforts in Century. But now the implementation must now be open for public proposals, according to Debbie Nickels, town consultant.

The implementations will be funded by just over $11,000 in grant money provided by a federal grant through the Florida Division of Emergency Management.

Pictured: A mock CERT training disaster drill held in Century in February 2011. NorthEscambia.com file photos, click to enlarge.

Money Saving Cold Weather Tips

Gulf Power Company is offering some cold weather energy savings tips for everyone, including customers of other utilities. Gulf Power offers the following tips to stay warm, safe and conserve energy.

Things you can do right now to save money and energy

• Set your thermostat to 68 degrees or lower to conserve energy.
• Reverse the direction of your ceiling fans so they rotate clockwise as you look up at them. This will force warm air down from the ceiling.
• During the middle of the day, open blinds and curtains on the sunny side of the house. Also, where possible, reduce the traffic in and out of the house.
• Don’t use your oven to heat your home — it’s not efficient and most important, it’s not safe.
• A fireplace is not always an efficient heat source. If not used properly it can actually make the rest of the house cooler because airflow up the chimney removes the heated air. When using the fireplace, close all doors and warm air ducts to the room where the fireplace is located. Glass doors on a fireplace will reduce the outflow of warm air. And a fireplace with a blower system is ever better because it actually blows the warm air around the firebox back into the room.
• An electric blanket is more economical than heating the entire house all night long.
• Use a portable electric heater to heat only a small area. Buy models that are thermostatically controlled. Keep it at least three feet from items that could catch fire like curtains or furniture. Make sure you have working smoke detectors on every floor and in every sleeping room of your house.
• Make sure vents and return air registers are not blocked by furniture, draperies, doors or other obstacles.
• Use “draft stoppers” or towels/blankets to block drafts at foot of door.
• If you should lose power, go to your thermostat and turn off your heating system. Please wait 10 to 15 minutes after power has been restored before turning it back on. This prevents a power surge from shutting down electricity again.
• If you should lose power, please do not connect portable generators to your household electrical wiring. This can cause serious injury to you and to Gulf Power employees who are restoring electricity. Instead, plug appliances into the generator. Never use a generator in enclosed or partially-enclosed spaces because of the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.

Things you can do to prepare your home for the whole winter season

Temperature settings

• Heating a house makes up about half of your electricity bill so set your thermostat to 68 degrees or lower in the winter. Did you know that you can decrease the amount of energy you buy for heating by three percent or more for every degree below 68 degrees you set your thermostat?
• Programmable thermostats are a good investment, or you can take advantage of Gulf Power’s Energy Select. Energy Select is Gulf Power’s advanced energy management program that offers a lower price for electricity 87 percent of the time. Energy Select features a programmable thermostat and a special rate of four price periods based upon time of day, day of week and season. Installation and meter-based surge protection are both free with Energy Select. Only $4.95 per month.

Heating and cooling equipment

• The system heating the home is extremely important. If it’s an older, less efficient unit, upgrading to a geothermal heating and cooling system — or a high efficiency air-source heat pump may be a wise choice. Contact Gulf Power at 1-877-655-4001 for a free Energy Check-Up.

Routine maintenance

• A well-maintained heating system runs more efficiently. A complete tune-up of the home heating system can cost anywhere from $50 to $100 and more, but this is a very worthwhile investment and can reduce your heating bill from 3 to 10 percent. Some companies offer regular service contracts, which are a convenience if you tend to forget system maintenance. Remember to replace the filter every month.

Ductwork

• Duct leakage can account for 20 percent of the heating and cooling cost. Getting ducts sealed up should be at the top of the list for making your home energy efficient.

Insulation

• Adding insulation to your attic is one of the most cost-effective energy saving measures. Different types of insulation material have different R-values. The recommended level is R-38 in the attic.

Weather-stripping and caulking

• Weather-strip door jambs and caulk any cracks around windows to prevent cool air from entering your home.

Window units

• If you have a window air conditioning unit, remove it for the winter months to prevent heat from escaping through and around the unit. If it can’t be moved, put a cover over it to prevent drafts.

Humidifier

• Use a humidifier to keep your home more comfortable. Adding moisture allows you to reduce the thermostat setting without feeling colder.

John Frank Warren

John Frank Warren, 73, a former resident of Century, went to be with his Lord on Sunday, January 4, 2015, at his residence in Sneads, FL, surrounded by his loving family.

Frank was born in Pensacola on September 8, 1941, to Willie and Mary Cooper Warren of the Century area. Mr. Warren had resided in Jackson since 1987, he was a former employee of Chipola Airtronics, an active member of Bogia Hunting Club, attended Evangel Worship Center. Frank was an avid hunter and sportsman.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Willie and Mary Cooper Warren; one sister Eloise Simmons; a brother in-law, Mike Pace.

He is survived by his five children, Debbie Maines and husband Jim of Blountstown, Helen Adkins and husband Jimmy of Bascom, James Warren and his wife Tammy of Conway, SC, Merry Warren of Marianna, John Warren of Marianna; by one brother Jerry Warren and wife Pamela of Conway, SC, and his three sisters Janice Locklin of Mobile, Maxine Pace of Brewton, Kemp Soule and husband David of Pensacola; one brother-in-law, Doug Simmons of Jay, three grandchildren, Kevin Warren and wife Kayla of Greenwood, Cody Adkins and wife Katherine of Bascom, and Micheal Warren of Conway, SC; and one great grandchild Conner Adkins of Bascom.

A service of remembrance will be at 1 pm Saturday, January 10, 2015, at James & Sikes Funeral Home Maddox Chapel in Marianna with Rev. Roland Rabon officiating.

Memorialization will be by cremation with James & Sikes Funeral Home Maddox Chapel directing.

In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting donations be made in memory of John Frank Warren to their favorite charity.

Marvin Ralph Bone

Marvin Ralph Bone, age 82, of Pensacola, died on Tuesday, January 6, 2015, after a long battle with renal cell lung cancer.

Ralph Bone, a resident of Pensacola since 1959, was born in Union City, TN. He served in the US Air Force. During this time, in Germany, he met and married Irmgard Bone (1955-1970). Together they had Brenda Coston (Glen) and Melissa Cherry (Richard). In his second marriage to Sandra Stilwell, his third daughter Renee Lassiter (Troy) was born. He spent the last 28 years of his life with his best friend and companion Jeannie Smith. He was an air traffic controller and supervisor for 32 years at Pensacola Regional Airport.

Ralph was preceded in death by his parents, LA and Eva Monema Bone; and his brother, Adron Bone.

Along with his three daughters, he is survived by his brother, Dalton Bone (Ann); his nephew, Charles Bone; his grandson, Richard Cherry II; his granddaughter, Madison Lassitter; and many other nieces and nephews.

Special thanks to Dr. Thomas Sunnenburg and staff for the special care they gave to our father. A funeral service will be held at Faith Chapel North, Saturday, January 10, 2015, at 1:30 p.m. Burial will follow in Eastern Gate Memorial Park Cemetery.

Faith Chapel Funeral Home North is in charge of arrangements.

Cold Weather: Schools Open As Usual On Thursday

Thursday will be a normal school day in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties despite the anticipated cold weather.

The school district announced that all schools will be open regular times, and all bus routes will run as usual.  The district is asking parent to make sure their children are dressed in layers and at their bus stops on time. Parent drop off times will be as usual.

Santa Rosa County School have also announced that it will be school as usual on Thursday.

“We know it will be cold, but they are not predicting ice, so our schools will operate as usual,” said Escambia County School Superintendent Malcolm Thomas, “We know many families do not live right next to their child’s bus stop. Parents are asked to be extra vigilant to minimize the amount of time students are exposed to the cold before school or while waiting for their bus to arrive.”

The school district offered the following additional reminders:

• Dressing in layers will allow children to remove the extra layers after they get inside so they can be comfortable in their classrooms.
• Physical Education teachers will monitor temperatures and the wind chill and keep classes inside as necessary. PE classes, as well as any team practices, scheduled later in the day will most likely continue as usual. For elementary schools, recess will also be held indoors until the temperatures rise.
• If your child has a special health concern affected by cold weather, sending a note or calling the school to remind them, is recommended.

Additionally, all soccer games scheduled for Wednesday night will continue.

Hard Freeze Tonight, Lows In The Teens

A hard freeze is expected for Wednesday night with lows dropping into the teens. Wind chills will likely be in the single digits all the way to coast.

For cold weather tips, click here.

Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:

• Wednesday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 17. Wind chill values between 5 and 15. North wind 10 to 15 mph.
• Thursday Sunny, with a high near 39. Wind chill values between 5 and 15. Northeast wind 5 to 10 mph.
• Thursday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 22. Southeast wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
• Friday A 20 percent chance of rain after noon. Partly sunny, with a high near 46. Wind chill values between 15 and 25 early. North wind around 5 mph.
• Friday Night Mostly cloudy, with a low around 25. North wind around 5 mph.
• Saturday Mostly sunny, with a high near 48. Northeast wind around 5 mph.
• Saturday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 34. Northeast wind around 5 mph.
• Sunday A 20 percent chance of rain. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 55. East wind around 5 mph.
• Sunday Night A 40 percent chance of rain. Cloudy, with a low around 47. East wind around 5 mph.
• Monday A 50 percent chance of rain. Cloudy, with a high near 62.
• Monday Night A 20 percent chance of rain. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 51.
• Tuesday A 30 percent chance of rain. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 63.
• Tuesday Night A 30 percent chance of rain. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 48.
• Wednesday A 40 percent chance of rain. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 59.

Man Charged With Escambia Shooting

An Escambia County man has been charged with shooting what he believed to be a burglar outside a Lanettt Drive home Tuesday.

Shortly before 1:00 p.m., deputies responded to the 4000 block of Lanett Drive in reference to a shots fired disturbance. They located victim Christopher Lee Russell, 25, on the ground suffering from apparent gunshot wounds. Russell was transported to a local hospital for treatment.

Trey O’Neal Johnson, 21, was taken into custody at the scene and an extensive investigation was conducted. According to Johnson, while he and his brother were checking property belonging to their father on Wickford Drive, they observed Russell running from the area behind the residence. Johnson, believing that Russell had broken into the building, fired a warning shot from his pistol in his direction.

The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office said Russell was not an imminent threat at the time that Johnson fired his weapon. Johnson was arrested and charged with aggravated battery and firing a weapon.

« Previous Page — Next Page »

Copyright © 2007-2019 NorthEscambia.com · P.O. Box 1207 · Century, FL 32535 · All Rights Reserved.