FWC To Adjust Sights On Future Black Bear Hunts
October 27, 2015
State wildlife officials will take some time to review the first bear hunt in 21 years — shut down Sunday night quicker than they expected — to make adjustments before the next one.
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officials, who acknowledged Sunday that the agency “underestimated the hunter success for the first day,” said a number of scenarios from the planned week-long hunt — cut down to two days — will have to be factored into future planning.
Black bears hadn’t been hunted in Florida for 21 years and they’re relatively naive about being prey. The weather was ideal for hunting over the weekend. There was an abundance of hunters, and some went out ahead of time to scout for bears. The population of bears —- the state expects to have updated statewide projections next year — has been growing.
“We’re going to take all the information from this year, and take a look at it, and consider everything we’ve got, and learn as we go, and consider how to adjust the management for the future,” said Diane Eggeman, commission director of hunting and game management.
The commission has been pursuing other methods of reducing human-bear conflicts for years, such as getting more communities to require bear-proof trash containers. But state officials remain adamant that the hunt is a “management tool” for the increasing bear population, estimated around 3,000 in Florida.
Opponents, who called the hunt a “disaster” for the state’s recently threatened black-bear population, said the commission should limit who is allowed back in the field for future hunts and better define future targets.
Chuck O’Neal, director of the Seminole County group Speak Up Wekiva, which failed earlier this month to persuade a circuit judge to block the hunt, said the agency needs to first determine if the hunt “adversely impacted” the state’s black-bear population.
“I can’t see any point of this hunt being successful by any means,” said O’Neal, whose group has filed suit challenging the commission’s ability to approve bear hunts. “The 320 quota was supposed to be over in seven days. How can they rejoice over that? It’s just one spin after another.”
O’Neal said the state needs to impose a lottery system to limit the number of hunters, prohibit female bears from being killed, increase the minimum weight limit of bears that can be killed from 100 pounds to 200 pounds and prohibit anyone who killed a bear in this year’s hunt from being able to get a permit for a future hunt.
A total of 3,778 bear-hunt permits were issued at a cost of $100 to Florida residents and $300 for out-of-state hunters.
Each permit allowed a hunter a single kill.
The sales brought the agency more than $376,900, which will be used to reduce human-bear conflicts.
“When we started this, we started with harvest objectives that were very conservative and very mindful that we are doing this for the first time in 21 years,” said commission Executive Director Nick Wiley. “There are uncertainties. But we put many good buffers in place, because it was those uncertainties and we’re still very confident we’re within those sustainable limits.”
Fish and Wildlife officials said Sunday that though the projected one-week hunt went quicker than expected, the numbers remain within the 10 percent “harvest” objective.
“From biological sustainable population perspective, none of these numbers are worrying to us,” said Thomas Eason, director of the commission’s Division of Habitat and Species Conservation. “We have large, resilient growing bear populations.”
Most of the bears killed in the hunt were taken Saturday in the East Panhandle and Central Florida bear-management regions, which were both closed to hunters on Sunday.
The state divides Florida in to seven bear management units. Four with the largest bear populations were opened to the hunt.
Officials had used a 2002 estimate of 600 bears living in the East Panhandle region to set a quota of 40 bears. That area includes the northwestern Big Bend area to west of Apalachicola Bay. With 112 bears reported killed as of Sunday in the East Panhandle, Eason said that’s a sign that there are more bears in the woods.
Eason also noted that hunters were reported to have been scouting for bears in the East Panhandle prior to the start of the hunt.
Other areas where the hunt was allowed were the South region, which includes Broward, Collier, Hendry, Lee, Miami-Dade, Monroe, and Palm Beach counties; the Central region, which includes the St. Johns River watershed to the Ocala National Forest; and the North region, which goes from Jacksonville west to Hamilton and Suwannee counties.
As of Monday afternoon, 22 bears were reported killed in the South region and 25 in the North region.
Wiley noted that in the South region, Big Cypress National Preserve was closed to bear hunting and a number of large private land owners had not opened their land to hunters.
“That’s a factor that I believe does figure, just availability of places to go, that figures into this,” Wiley said.
Commission Division of Law Enforcement Maj. Craig Duval said officers issued two citations Saturday.
A hunter in the East Panhandle region was issued a citation for killing a cub that weighed just over 40 pounds. To prohibit the killing of cubs, the rules for the hunt required targeted bears to weigh more than 100 pounds.
The other citation went to a hunter in the Central region for using bait to lure a bear.
The penalties in both cases are second-degree misdemeanors if the hunter is a first-time offender.
A warning was also issued to a hunter in the Central region for killing an 88-pound bear, while investigations are underway into other cases of baiting bears.
Several hunters were also found hunting without their permits. Duval said those hunters were “educated” on the law that requires hunters to carry their permits.
Duval said there were no reports of hunters being injured.
by Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida
Two Trapped When Tree Crashes Into Home
October 26, 2015
Two adult females were trapped in a home about three miles west of Flomaton this afternoon after a large tree came crashing down into the home.
The tree fell about 5:15 p.m. in the 2200 block of old Atmore Road near Kadeee Lane. The women were rescued from the home by the Flomaton Fire Department and the Century Station of Escambia Fire Rescue. There occupants were not injured.
Atmore Ambulance and the Escambia County (AL) Sheriff’s Office also responded to the incident.
Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Deputies Seek Clues In Early Morning Murder
October 26, 2015
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office is investigating an early morning shooting that left one man dead.
Deputies responded to a shots fired disturbance in the 600 block of Rue Max Street about 2:50 a.m. Monday. That’s where they found the victim, 28-year old Alvin Don Anderson deceased from gunshot wounds.
During the preliminary investigation, it was discovered that the victim confronted two suspicious males who were outside at an adjacent residence. The victim got into a verbal altercation with the two males at which time the victim was shot, according to the Sheriff’s Office. The two males were seen fleeing the scene.
A witness described the men, a white male and a black male, as “young looking” with short hair. The investigation is ongoing.
Anyone with information on this investigation is asked to call Crime Stoppers (850) 433-STOP.
State Charges Couple With Insurance Fraud Over $15K Engagement Ring
October 26, 2015
A Cantonment man and his former fiancee have been charged with insurance fraud by the state for alleged false claims over a custom-made engagement ring.
Zian Scott Snyder, 29, and Alicia Maria Hill, 26, were charged with scheme to defraud, insurance fraud, grand theft, and conspiracy to commit insurance fraud by the Florida Division of Insurance Fraud. Both were released from the Escambia County Jail on $15,000 bond each. Snyder was also charged with petit theft and burglary by Pensacola Police.
According to arrest affidavit, the couple filed a false claim on a $15,000 ring that Hill claimed she lost swimming in the Gulf and was also recorded claiming she lost the ring on a boat in the Gulf.
Four days after filing the claim with an insurance company, Hill entered the Ft. Walton Beach Marks and Morgan Jewelry store to have the ring repaired, a different store location that where the ring was purchased on a finance plan. The custom-made ring was identified by photographs taken at the Ft. Walton Beach store.
About the time the insurance claim was made, a jewelry store manager told authorities she witnessed the ring for sale on Craig’s List, and she was positive it was the ring in question because she had custom made the ring herself. She said the couple changed their story about the ring being stolen, saying it had been ate by a dog and later recovered.
The couple ended their relationship, but Snyder then burglarized Hill’s home, stealing back the ring, according to Pensacola Police.
About a month later, Hill called the insurance company to report that the ring had been recovered, with the insurance company telling her that the ring or the check must be returned. Three days later, according to investigators, she reported that it was actually a different ring that was recovered.
The insurance company told state investigators that neither the ring or insurance proceeds were ever returned.
On The Road Again: Giant Equipment Makes Final Leg Of Trip
October 26, 2015
A giant piece of equipment being moved from the port of Pensacola to the Georgia Pacific Mill in Brewton was on the road again Sunday night, reaching its final destination about 1:45 Monday morning.
The generator turbine was parked all weekend in Century, having made the slow, methodical trek from the Port of Pensacola over several nights. It had been parked about 5:30 Friday morning, with state officials not allowing it to move during the weekend.
As the trailer passed through Escambia County, FL, a small number of people lost electrical power as lines were moved out of the way. It was estimated that some 400 or more obstructions were moved, including up to 100 power, cable and phone lines in Century.
Electrical power was cut for much of Flomaton late Sunday night as the equipment crossed into Alabama from Century because of electrical lines that had to be removed or pulled up and out of the way. Along the route in Flomaton, numerous residents gathered along Sidney Manning Boulevard to watch the turbine pass on a trailer that is 18-feet wide, almost 25-feet tall and 173.5-feet long. Some posed for selfies or took photos of their kids with the giant turbine in the background.
For additional photos from the turbine’s trip through Century early Friday morning, click here.
A second large trailer with a generator was to make the same trip from the Port of Pensacola to Brewton. Local media was not notified of the generator’s movement or transportation plans, but it was reported to be parked at the former Winn Dixie in Cantonment over the weekend.
Pictured: A giant generator turbine passes through Flomaton late Sunday night, seen at Highway 31 and Highway 29 (top) and at Highway 29 and Poplar Street (below). Photos by Katie Fowler for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
UPDATED: Road Closures – Nokomis, Pine Forest, North Pineville, Highway 168
October 26, 2015
Road closures are planned this week on Nokomis Road, Pine Forest Road, North Pineville Road and Highway 168 in the North Escambia area. The closures are for repair and construction and unrelated to forecasted rain.
Nokomis Road in Davisville is set to be closed Wednesday at 7 a.m. through Thursday at 4:30 p.m. for railroad crossing repairs. Drivers may detour on Meadows Lane.
Pine Forest Road in Walnut Hill is set to be closed Tuesday, November 3 at 7 a.m. through Thursday, November 4 at 4:30 p.m. for railroad crossing repairs. Drivers may detour on Rockaway Creek and Pelt Roads.
Highway 168 will experience single lane closures on the Hobbs Branch Bridge (between Pine Barren Road and Wiggins Road) through Wednesday, November 25. Lane closures will be from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m.
North Pineville Road work has been canceled.
Work may be rescheduled or prolonged due to inclement weather. Any updates will be posted on NorthEscambia.com.
Florida’s Black Bear Hunt Is Now Over
October 26, 2015
Florida’s 2015 black bear hunt was declared closed Sunday night.
More than 3,500 people armed with guns and bows were expected to take to the woods across four swaths of the state starting Saturday morning to begin a quest to kill formerly threatened Florida black bears.
Taking aim at bears is something hunters haven’t been permitted to do anywhere in Florida since 1994.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission closed the beat hunt with a total of 295 bears taken, approaching the statewide objective of 320. The total harvest count was subject to rise as check stations remained opened after the hunt was closed, with hunters having up to 12 hours to check their bears.
The harvest success was higher than expect in the Eastern Panhandle, likely reflecting a higher bear population in that area. FWC expects the 2016 survey to show populations to be significantly higher than the East Panhandle’s 2002 population estimate of 600 bears.
In addition to updated population information expected in 2016 for three additional BMUs (East Panhandle, West Panhandle and South), FWC also will use information from the 2015 hunt to guide management efforts in subsequent years.
Regulated hunting has a long, successful history of contributing to wildlife conservation in North America. Of the 41 states with resident bear populations, 33 of them conduct hunts and all have stable to increasing bear populations, according to FWC.
Some opponents turned out Friday at protests across the state.
“We’re concerned that too many of the bears will be taken,” said Sally Sanders, organizer of a “Stop the Bear Hunt” protest Friday that drew about 70 people outside the commission’s Tallahassee headquarters. “We’re concerned that the population could drop down below a level that it can recover.”
But, state officials remain adamant that the hunt, which limits each permit holder to killing a single bear weighing at least 100 pounds, won’t exceed the overall 320 bears targeted for what the commission calls a “harvest.”
NorthEscambia.com file photo.
Ray’s Chapel Baptist Church Celebrates 125th Anniversary
October 26, 2015
Ray’s Chapel Baptist Church on West Bogia Road in McDavid celebrated 125 years Sunday during the church’s annual homecoming services. Courtesy photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Heavy Rain Possible Today; Flash Flood Watch In Effect
October 26, 2015
There is a flash flood watch in effect through Monday. There is also a wind advisory in effect for gusty southeast winds. Winds of 15-25 mph can be expected with frequent gusts of 30-35 mph in widespread showers and thunderstorms.
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
Tonight: Showers and possibly a thunderstorm before 7pm, then showers likely. Some of the storms could produce heavy rainfall. Low around 66. East wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%.
Tuesday: A 50 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 76. South wind around 10 mph.
Tuesday Night: A 30 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 62. South wind around 5 mph.
Wednesday: A 20 percent chance of showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 77. West wind around 5 mph.
Wednesday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 57. Southwest wind around 5 mph.
Thursday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 79. Southwest wind around 5 mph.
Thursday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 57. Southwest wind around 5 mph.
Friday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 79. Southeast wind around 5 mph.
Friday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 59. East wind around 5 mph.
Saturday: A 20 percent chance of showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 77.
Saturday Night: A 50 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 63.
Sunday: A 50 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 78.
Sunday Night: A 30 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 63.
Monday: A 40 percent chance of showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 77.
Highway 97 Driver Overturns
October 26, 2015
There were no known injuries when a driver lost control and overturned a pickup truck off Highway 97 in Walnut Hill Sunday night.
The accident was reported about 10:15 p.m. on Highway south of Howell Road
Firefighters arrived to find the Ford F150 on its side, but no one was around the truck. The accident remains under investigation by the Florida Highway Patrol. The Walnut Hill Station of Escambia Fire Rescue and Atmore Ambulance also responded to the call.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
