Century Church Building Destroyed By Fire; Arson Suspected
October 9, 2016
A fire that destroyed a Century church building early Sunday morning is under investigation as a possible case of arson.
Neighbors reported hearing an explosion before looking outside to see the Wesley Chapel Church on Jefferson Avenue fully involved in flames. The building was a complete and total loss. There were no injuries reported.
The church building had sat empty since a February 15 EF-3 tornado ripped through Century, causing significant damage to the building. The congregation had continued to meet each Sunday in the local County on Aging building. A church member said they had recently decided to dismantle the old building board by board, hoping to salvage and use as much of the wood as possible from the 1934 structure.
The cause of the fire is under investigation by the Florida State Fire Marshal’s Office. The building reportedly had no utility service.
The blaze also damaged a neighboring house, melting away the vinyl siding.
The Century, Walnut Hill and McDavid stations of Escambia Fire Rescue, the Flomaton Fire Department, the Jay Fire Department, Escambia County Sheriff’s Office and Escambia EMS responded to the blaze.
Pictured above: Fire destroyed the Wesley Chapel Church building in Century Sunday morning. Pictured below: The cause of the fire is under investigation. Pictured bottom: A photo showing the church before the fire and before February tornado damage. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Teen Airlifted After Nokomis Rollover Crash
October 9, 2016
A Northview High School student was airlifted to a Pensacola hospital after a single vehicle crash in Nokomis Saturday afternoon.
The 17-year old female lost control of her vehicle on Albritton Road, just north of Nokomis Road. The vehicle overturned, coming to rest upright. She was briefly trapped in the vehicle, with firefighters forced to use the Jaws of Life to free her.
She was transported by Atmore Ambulance to the Walnut Hill Fire Station and then airlifted as a “trauma alert” by LifeFlight helicopter to Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola. An update on her condition was not available.
The accident remains under investigation by the Florida Highway Patrol.
Pictured: Firefighters use the Jaws of Life to extricate a teen trapped in a single vehicle accident Saturday in Nokomis. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Editor’s note: The driver is covered with a sheet as protection from glass as the Jaws of Life were used.
Sunny Today, Low 50’s Tonight
October 9, 2016
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
Sunday: Sunny, with a high near 85. North wind 5 to 10 mph.
Sunday Night: Clear, with a low around 51. North wind 5 to 10 mph.
Columbus Day: Sunny, with a high near 83. Northeast wind 5 to 10 mph.
Monday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 49. East wind around 5 mph.
Tuesday: Sunny, with a high near 80. Northeast wind around 5 mph.
Tuesday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 50. East wind around 5 mph.
Wednesday: Sunny, with a high near 83. Northeast wind around 5 mph.
Wednesday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 52. Northeast wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
Thursday: Sunny, with a high near 87.
Thursday Night: Clear, with a low around 57.
Friday: Sunny, with a high near 86.
Friday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 59.
Saturday: Sunny, with a high near 85.
Scott: Trump Remarks ‘Absolutely Wrong’
October 9, 2016
Gov. Rick Scott expressed disapproval of lewd comments by Donald Trump that emerged Friday, but stopped short of condemning the Republican presidential hopeful.
Scott chairs a super PAC backing the GOP nominee.
“I think what he said was wrong,” Scott said while making an appearance at Jacksonville’s Cecil Field to discuss Hurricane Matthew recovery efforts. “I don’t know why anybody would say things like that. I think it’s absolutely wrong.”
But when asked if he still supported Trump, Scott turned back to Hurricane Matthew recovery.
“There is going to be a time for politics,” Scott said. “Right now we’ve got one million people, I think, still without power. We’re working hard to get everybody back to work. There will still be plenty of time for politics when this is over.”
Trump was recorded making lewd and sexually aggressive remarks in 2005 while taking part in an unaired segment for “Access Hollywood.” Video of his recorded remarks was released Friday, causing a firestorm throughout the political arena.
After issuing a statement on Friday in which he “apologized if anyone was offended,” Trump, who has struggled to attract female voters, issued a defiant 90-second video early Saturday, apologizing and calling the 2005 tape a “distraction.”
“I’ve never said I’m a perfect person nor pretended to be someone that I’m not. I’ve said and done things I regret and the words released today, on this more than a decade old video, are one of them,” he said in the video released by his campaign. “I was wrong and I apologize,” he added.
Trump also attempted to shift from his own gaffe, which elicited condemnation from numerous fellow Republicans, to the conduct of former President Bill Clinton and his wife Hillary, the Democratic presidential nominee.
“I’ve said some foolish things but there is a big difference between the words and actions of other people. Bill Clinton has actually abused women,” he asserted.
For Scott, the question about Trump’s recorded comment is the second political issue he’s sidestepped this week by focusing on Matthew.
Scott said Thursday and Friday he had no intention of extending the state’s voter registration period, despite being urged to do so by the Clinton campaign, Democratic members of Florida’s Congressional delegation, the League of Women Voters of Florida and the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida.
Tuesday is the last day to register in Florida for the Nov. 8 election.
by Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida
IP Pensacola Mill Celebrates 75 Years Of Operations
October 9, 2016
The International Paper Pensacola Mill in Cantonment celebrated 75 years of operation on Saturday. The front lawn of the plant transformed into a day of fun for retirees, employees and their families with games, kids activities, arts and crafts, music, food and more.
The Pensacola Mill started operations with one paper machine on a 600 acre site in 1941. The new mill was built at a cost of $2.5 million and was owned by Florida Pulp and Paper Company. The mill produced 75 tons of paper, or 20,000 tons per year. The mill provided jobs for about 620 people — 370 in the mill and 250 in forestry or related positions.
A second machine came on line with a daily production of 75 tons of paper in 1944 to produce ammunition container board.
The Pensacola Mill became a wholly owned subsidiary of the St. Regis Paper Company in 1946 and merged with St. Regis in 1949.
Champion International Corporation and St. Regis merged in 1984, and International Paper acquired Champion in 2000.
NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Barbour, click to enlarge.
Matthew Recovery Underway In Florida
October 9, 2016
After being pelted by a brutal storm that killed at least five Floridians, the state has shifted into recovery mode while still keeping tabs on deadly Hurricane Matthew.
The massive hurricane wiped out power to more than 1 million customers in the Sunshine State as it inched it way up the East Coast Thursday and Friday.
But the eye of Matthew, which caused massive flooding and hundreds of deaths in Haiti, did not make landfall until the storm approached the Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge in South Carolina on Saturday.
For that, Gov. Rick Scott — who traveled throughout Florida in anticipation of Matthew’s arrival, calling for people to evacuate with the warning that the storm “is going to kill people” — said during a press conference at Jacksonville’s Cecil Field on Saturday that Florida was “blessed.”
“If it had a direct impact hit, it would have been a lot worse for our families,” Scott said.
Scott thanked those who heeded his warnings and said he hoped they would obey orders to evacuate in the future.
“That’s what I worry about now,” Scott said. “You look at the loop of this thing. It’s going to come back around, maybe. Are people going to take it seriously enough?”
Forecast models from the National Hurricane Center on Friday had the path of Matthew possibly looping back to South Florida, as a depression or tropical storm, by the middle of next week. On Saturday, updated tracking models still showed the storm making a southern turn in the open Atlantic, but much further offshore than originally predicted.
After a helicopter tour along the Atlantic coast from Daytona Beach to Jacksonville on Saturday morning, Scott described seeing “mucky” waters, “unbelievable” beach erosion, pockets of damaged coastal roads, downed trees and downed power lines, and flooding.
“From the helicopter, you can’t see the downed power lines as easy, but you can see the beach erosion. It’s really bad,” Scott said.
Inspections were of barrier-island bridges were underway, and tolls remained suspended through at least Sunday night, to allow evacuees to return home. About 5,900 people remained in 70 shelters throughout early Saturday afternoon.
Law enforcement agencies and members of the Florida National Guard continued search and rescue operations Saturday. Scott has deployed 3,500 members of the Guard for the hurricane.
All airports except the Northeast Florida Regional Airport in Saint Augustine have reopened, along with all seaports except JAXPort and the Port of Fernandina.
“Boy this state is a resilient state,” Scott said. “We know there is a lot of work to do, but this state is going to come back.”
Three deaths linked to the storm were reported in St. Lucie County, along with one fatality each in Putnam and Volusia counties.
The number is far short of reports from Haiti, where Matthew is blamed for the deaths of at least 271 by the island’s Civil Protection Agency. Reuters, citing local officials, has reported the number could surpass 842 deaths.
By mid-day Saturday, the number of Florida homes and businesses without power was down from a peak of 1.13 million —11 percent of all utility customers — late Friday to 763,828, about 7 percent of the state’s utility customers.
The largest number of power outages remained in Duval, Volusia and Brevard counties.
As of Saturday morning, Jacksonville Electric Authority reported that 227,000 customers, mostly in Duval County, were without power and 3,500 lacked water.
Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry promised that the city would work as quickly as possible to restore services.
“There’s a lot of people in pain right now, people without electricity. People are hungry. They’re tired,” Curry, appearing with Scott Saturday morning, said. “We’re going to ride each other hard. We’re going to ride our utility. We’re going to ride all of our workers to get this community back together as quickly and as a safely as possible.”
Juno Beach-based Florida Power & Light, the state’s largest utility, pledged that power would be restored to all essential customers by the end of Sunday, while pockets that have been flooded and severely damaged may take until Monday.
“We have made significant progress restoring power to our customers in the southern and western parts of the state, and we won’t stop working around the clock until everyone’s lights are back on,” FPL President & CEO Eric Silagy said in a statement.
The company reported that power had been restored to 725,000 homes impacted by the storm, while another 400,000 were still in the dark.
Duke Energy Florida also expected to have the bulk of its customers back on-line by Sunday after a little more than 200,000 — mostly in Orange, Seminole, Volusia and Lake counties — customers lost power this week.
by Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida
Driver Uninjured In Highway 97 Crash
October 9, 2016
A driver avoided injury late Saturday morning when he crashed his recently purchased car on Highway 97 in Walnut Hill.
The driver lost control of his Chevrolet Camaro on Highway 97 at Howell Road. The vehicle came to rest against several trees on Howell Road. The driver refused medical treatment. The accident is under investigation by the Florida Highway Patrol. Atmore Ambulance and the Walnut Hill Station of Escambia Fire Rescue also responded to the crash.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Escambia Sheriff’s Office Seeks Robbery Suspect
October 9, 2016
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office is searching for a Saturday robbery suspect. The man, see here in a surveillance photo, robbed the Advance America Check Cashing store in the 400 block of Navy Boulevard, the ECSO said. Anyone knowing his whereabouts should call the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office at (850) 436-9620.
Gonzalez UMC Holds Annual Fall Festival (With Photo Gallery)
October 9, 2016
Gonzalez United Methodist Church held their 8th Annual Fall Festival on Saturday.
The family-friendly event featured an indoor arts and crafts show, a variety of free outdoor activities for kids, a hayride and live music.
NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Barbour, click to enlarge.
UWF Argos Win At Mississippi College
October 9, 2016
Led by another strong offensive performance and a stingy first-half defense, the University of West Florida improved to 4-2 on the season after a 42-28 victory over Mississippi College on Saturday.
The receiving trio of Antoine Griffin, Ishmel Morrow and Caleb Robinson helped quarterback Kaleb Nobles go 22-for-32 passing with 282 yards and four touchdowns. Griffin, Morrow and Robinson each posted at least 60 yards receiving, with Griffin leading the way with eight receptions for 108 yards and two touchdowns.
Defensively, Trent Archie led the way with seven solo tackles and his team-leading third interception of the season. UWF limited MC to 186 yards of offense in the first half, and posted five tackles for a loss and two sacks in the contest.
UWF (4-2, 2-1 GSC) made the most of its first drive, as Nobles connected with Griffin with a 52-yard strike to jump out to a 7-0 lead after a four-play, 54-second opening drive.
Mississippi College (2-4, 0-4 GSC) appeared to have something working on the next drive, but an ill-advised throw from Sharone Wright was picked off by Archie and returned 52 yards to the MC 22-yard line.
West Florida would make the most of the turnover, needing six plays to eventually post its second Nobles-to-Griffin connection to put UWF up 14-0 just over halfway through the first quarter.
As the first quarter was winding down, Chris Manning was able to intercept a Nobles pass and return it 27 yards for the Choctaws’ first touchdown of the contest.
The second quarter followed a similar script for UWF, as a 35-yard pass interference penalty gave the Argos prime field position at the opponent’s 21 yard-line. Nobles would connect with Morrow on back-to-back plays, including a drive-capping 15-yard touchdown to put UWF up 20-7.
Before the end of the half, Andrew Bogaenko split the uprights on a 32-yard attempt to send the teams into the locker room with a 23-7 Argonaut lead.
Bogaenko converted on another field goal shortly into the third quarter, and after MC responded with a touchdown to make the score 26-14, Marcus Clayton returned it 73 yards to give the Argos prime field position at the 11-yard line.
With that field position, UWF used a two-play, 36-second yard drive that was finished with Anas Hasic’s GSC-leading seventh receiving touchdown of the year. Nobles recorded his fourth scoring pass of the game with the nine-yard strike to Hasic.
With the score at 36-21, Grey Jackson led an eight-play, 83-yard drive using that took off 4:51 on the clock. Jackson, who posted a 23-yard run and a 31-yard pass to Caleb Robinson during the drive, pushed the score to 42-21 after he scampered for his first rushing touchdown of the year on a 13-yard run to the end zone.
Mississippi College would take it to the end zone with just under two minutes remaining, but the 14-point advantage proved to be too much after Clayton recovered a Choctaw on-side kick at the UWF 49-yard line.
West Florida scored in all six of its red zone attempts, which totaled 32 points for the Argonauts. UWF went 11-for-14 in third down attempts, while holding MC to an 8-for-13 success rate.
Clayton was a dynamic presence on special teams, totaling 143 yards on four kick returns. West Florida held Mississippi College to less than half that average, as the Choctaws only accumulated 15 yards per kick return.
UWF’s 499 yards of total offense is just a single yard shy of the team’s season best. UWF utilized 170 yards on the ground, led by Jemari Ford who rushed for 70 yards on 18 attempts. Jackson had six rushing attempts, including his touchdown, and garnered 41 yards for a 6.8 yards per carry average.
West Florida returns to the state of Mississippi next weekend, looking for its third consecutive GSC win when it faces Delta State (3-3, 2-2). The Argos and Statesmen are set to kick off at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 15 in Cleveland, Miss.
Courtesy photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.