OSHA Won’t Cite IP For Paper Mill Explosion
June 14, 2017
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) says International Paper won’t be cited of fined for the January explosion at their mill on Highway 29 in Cantonment.
A letter from OSHA says a digester at IP exploded when gases built up inside.
OSHA acknowledged the mill’s plan to reduce the introduction of gases into the digester. They also encouraged IP to share information about the risk of explosion throughout the industry.
The plant resumed full operations in April after the January 22, 2017, explosion. The explosion caused significant structural damage to the largest pulp digester and the power house, bringing operations at the mill to a halt for just over a week.
The explosion caused an estimated $50 million in damage, most of which IP said was covered by insurance.
Pictured top: Emergency crews on the scene following an explosion January 22 at International Paper in Cantonment. Pictured below: First responders coordinate their response efforts from a command post at IP shortly after the explosion. Pictured bottom: A vehicle that was passing the mill at the time of the explosion covered in black liquor from the explosion. NorthEscambia.com file photos.
Keep The Umbrella Handy
June 14, 2017
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
Wednesday: Showers and thunderstorms likely. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 87. Calm wind becoming south around 5 mph in the morning. Chance of precipitation is 70%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.
Wednesday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms before 1am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 71. Southwest wind around 5 mph becoming calm after midnight.
Thursday: A 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 89. Southwest wind around 5 mph.
Thursday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 72. Southwest wind around 5 mph.
Friday: Showers and thunderstorms likely. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 87. West wind around 5 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%.
Friday Night: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 72. Southwest wind around 5 mph.
Saturday: A 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 88. Calm wind becoming southwest around 5 mph in the afternoon.
Saturday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 73. Southwest wind around 5 mph.
Sunday: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 89.
Sunday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 72.
Monday: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly sunny, with a high near 90.
Monday Night: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 72.
Tuesday: A 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 87.
Scott Signs Budget With $3.1 Million For ‘The Bluffs’ In Cantonment
June 14, 2017
Tuesday, the FloridaWest Economic Development Alliance announced The Bluffs, Northwest Florida’s Industrial Campus has received $3.1 million in funding for site connectivity and infrastructure improvements as part of the 2017-2018 State of Florida budget signed by Governor Rick Scott last week.
“We are thankful to Governor Scott, Senator Broxson and Representative Frank White for their constant commitment to economic development in our Greater Pensacola region,” said Scott Luth, President & CEO of the FloridaWest Economic Development Alliance. “This infrastructure funding is another piece of the puzzle to make sure we have the assets and workforce needed to recruit new companies to the region.”
The funding, sponsored by Senator Doug Broxson, Representative Frank White and supported by the entire NWFL legislative delegation, will be used for the detailed design and permitting associated with critical site transportation connectivity. This connectivity features a new Industrial Boulevard within the master planned industrial campus. The funding builds upon infrastructure funds received in the 2016-2017 budget which were used by PEDC to develop transportation infrastructure priorities and construction criteria.
Strategic investments, in infrastructure and site development at The Bluffs, aids FloridaWest in their mission to facilitate job creation and capital investment and improve the economic prosperity of residents in the Greater Pensacola community. The Bluffs campus contains more than 1,700 acres of developable land, rail and barge access. The shovel ready site also features all the needed utility infrastructure including electric transmission service, natural gas, reclaimed water from Emerald Coast Utilities Authority, steam production, wastewater treatment ready for manufacturing and industrial customers.
“Access to markets is a vital component of any economic development project,” said Lewis Bear, Chairman of Pensacola Escambia Development Commission. “This funding will ensure The Bluffs provides adequate infrastructure within the campus to allow companies to deliver their products via our region’s rail, roadways, ports or airports.”
The Bluffs which is partnership between the Emerald Coast Utilities Authority, Ascend Performance Materials, Gulf Power and the University of West Florida has the capacity for as many as 60 manufacturing and industrial tenants and could create as many as 15,000 jobs for the community.
The 6,000 acre master-planned development area includes about 1,700 acres of land that can be developed in an area east of Highway 29 bordered by the Escambia River to the east, Becks Lake Road near International Paper to the north, and the University of West Florida to the south. Although located along the Escambia River, most of the property to be developed is at a high elevation, about 100 feet above sea level, and not in a flood plain. Minimally, the project is expected to recruit approximately 10 companies that would occupy more than 3.9 million square feet of building space on 295 acres of land which will be significant to Escambia County and the regional economy.
Century Calls Special Meeting To Discuss ‘Purchases And Funding’
June 14, 2017
The Century Town Council has called a special council meeting for Wednesday to discuss “purchases and funding”.
Further information on the meeting was not provided.
The meeting will be held at 5 p.m. in council chambers at the Century Town Hall, 7995 North Century Boulevard. The meeting is open to the public.
Troutman Launches Bid For Florida Agriculture Commissioner
June 14, 2017
Former state Rep. Baxter Troutman entered the race for state agriculture commissioner on Monday, priming his Republican bid for a Cabinet seat with $2.5 million of his own money.
“For two decades, I’ve been building a business and continuing my work in Florida agriculture,” Troutman, of Winter Haven, said in a statement. “Real experience and success in the private sector is what we need more than ever.”
Troutman, 50, who runs Labor Services Inc., a Winter Haven company that provides temporary workers, said he would emphasize keeping “taxes low” and growing the state’s economy.
Troutman, who served four terms in the Florida House until term limits forced him out in 2010, enters a crowded field of candidates seeking to replace Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, who is running for governor next year.
Troutman joined a Republican primary campaign that includes state Sen. Denise Grimsley of Sebring, state Rep. Matt Caldwell of North Fort Myers and Paul Paulson, an Orlando businessman. Michael Christine, a University of Miami law student, is running in the Democratic primary.
Troutman comes from a wealthy and politically connected family. His grandfather, Ben Hill Griffin Jr., created an agriculture enterprise that included citrus, cattle, sugar cane and major land holdings.
Troutman, who is an heir to the Griffin fortune, is starting his campaign with a $2.5 million personal contribution. Troutman, who will have to file a new financial disclosure when he formally qualifies for the Cabinet race next year, listed his net worth at $40 million in 2009 while he was a member of the Florida House.
And in an indication the Cabinet race may be an expensive one, Grimsley’s campaign announced on Monday that she has raised a total of $875,000 for the race, including $386,000 in her agriculture commissioner’s campaign account and $488,500 in her Saving Florida’s Heartland political committee.
“Denise is building a broad-based coalition of support in the agriculture commissioner race,” said Ryan Smith, her campaign manager. “We will continue our aggressive efforts to travel the state, grow our social media audience and build our grassroots conservative network in the weeks and months ahead.”
Caldwell’s political committee, Friends of Matt Caldwell, has raised more than $700,000 since January, and he was expected later Monday to report additional contributions raised since he formally announced his campaign on May 1.
Troutman said his wife Becky, whom he proposed to on the House floor in 2008, will be the co-chairman of his campaign.
Two of Troutman’s cousins have played prominent political roles in Florida, including former state Sen. JD Alexander of Lake Wales, a former Senate budget chairman, and former U.S. Rep. Katherine Harris of Sarasota, who also served on the state Cabinet as the secretary of state, which is no longer an elected position.
The agriculture commissioner’s post will be on the ballot next year along with the other two Cabinet seats for attorney general and chief financial officer.
The 2018 primary election will be held on Aug. 28, followed by the general election on Nov. 6.
by Lloyd Dunkelberger, The News Service Florida
Both Sides Pressure Scott On Schools Bill
June 14, 2017
With a controversial and wide-ranging education bill now on his desk, Gov. Rick Scott faces intense pressure from both sides as he weighs whether to sign or veto the legislation.
Rumors have begun floating that Scott will sign HB 7069 later this week, but officially the governor maintains that he hasn’t made a final decision.
Scott received the bill late Monday; he has until June 27 to sign the proposal, veto it or allow it to become law without his signature.
The 278-page bill, which emerged in the closing days of the regular legislative session, deals with everything from charter schools and standardized tests to sunscreen and school uniforms.
The legislation was a priority of House Speaker Richard Corcoran, R-Land O’ Lakes, and opponents fear that Scott agreed to sign the bill in exchange for having his priorities approved during a special session last week.
But at an event Tuesday to celebrate the outcome of the special session, Scott told reporters he was still considering the measure.
“We all want school choice,” Scott said. “We want to make sure our kids go to the best schools. … With regard to 7069, I’m still reviewing it. I know the speaker’s very passionate about it. It was something that was very important to him.”
The Legislature’s passage of the bill was greeted by a firestorm of protest from school boards, superintendents, the state’s main teachers and other education advocates. Scott even made comments that hinted that he was considering a veto.
Critics of the bill said provisions meant to help charter schools move into neighborhoods with academically struggling schools, as well as a portion of the bill that would allow charter schools to tap local property-tax dollars for school construction, would lead to the privatization of Florida’s education system. They also slammed the last-minute appearance of the legislation, which folded together a slate of education bills that had been debated separately.
In recent weeks, though, supporters of the legislation have cranked up their efforts to promote the bill. Some conservative groups and school-choice supporters have worked to get parents of students served by choice programs involved in the fight.
They point to the proposal’s more popular components, like teacher bonuses and mandatory recess for elementary students.
Backers also emphasize that, while charter schools are often operated by private groups, they are public schools that might help turn around troubled school districts.
The result has been a deluge of tens of thousands of messages for and against the bill pouring into Scott’s office. As of Tuesday afternoon, the governor’s office said it had received 23,440 phone calls, emails, letters or petition signatures backing the legislation. Opponents had generated 22,734 messages against it.
Opponents have dominated in phone calls and emails, while supporters of the bill seem to favor letters, perhaps because of letter-writing campaigns by schools that would be helped by the legislation.
Those who support the bill concede that they were slower than opponents to organize for the legislation.
Shawn Frost, president of the conservative Florida Coalition of School Board Members, said supporters have now managed to rally parents affected by the legislation.
“What I’ve seen is, parents have been alerted to the fact of what it would mean to them. … I think a big part has been educating parent groups about the truth of 7069,” said Frost, whose group supports the measure.
The LIBRE Initiative, a conservative Hispanic group tied to the Koch brothers, has launched an online email drive and sent out mail pieces in English and Spanish promoting the bill. In a statement last month, the group’s coalitions director, Cesar Grajales, said the bill “aims to free Florida’s neediest students from this unacceptable education status-quo.”
“We urge Gov. Scott to quickly sign this bill and remove unnecessary barriers to new charter schools so our students don’t have to remain stuck in schools that are failing to provide a quality education,” Grajales said.
Those fighting the bill question the outpouring of support, suggesting that misinformation and so-called “astroturfing” efforts might be behind some of it. They also highlight reports that some charter schools have offered extra credit or other benefits for families that sent messages of support for the bill to Scott.
“I think that what we’re seeing is sort of a manufactured situation,” said Kathleen Oropeza, co-founder of the advocacy group Fund Education Now, which opposes the measure.
And opponents have not backed off. Two Democratic lawmakers issued letters Monday renewing calls for Scott to veto the bill.
“While there are small pockets of good policy hidden within this bill, it is a monstrosity when coupled with the multitude of bad policies that have been included,” wrote Sen. Gary Farmer, D-Fort Lauderdale.
by Brandon Larrabee, The News Service of Florida
ECUA Helps Prepare 4-H Students For Mock Legislative Session
June 14, 2017
Escambia County 4-H students are scheduled to take part in a mock legislative program at the state capitol late this month. In preparation for that week, Larry Walker, ECUA District 5 board member, hosted the students Tuesday in the ECUA board room to allow the students to practice their legislative skills in a governmental chamber environment.
The training prepared the students for the upcoming 4-H Legislature and gain an understanding of board proceedings similar to legislative committees that happen in organizations in all forms of government and private corporate enterprise.
The local students have participated in an intensive five-part training program, which was directed by 4-H agents and adult volunteers, who contributed their knowledge of parliamentary procedure, research, debating, the art of persuasion, and formal presentation in committee and chamber sessions.
This year’s 4-H Legislature is set for Monday, June 26 through Friday, June 30.
The civic education event allows students to write bills, act as lobbyists, pass the bills through various committees and debate the potential laws on the Capitol House and/or Senate Floor as acting representatives and senators. This exercise provides the 4-H’ers an opportunity to debate issues and experience the legislative process first-hand.
Pictured: Escambia County 4-H mock legislative students practice their skills in the ECUA board room Tuesday. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Wahoos Beat The Braves
June 14, 2017
Baseball experts may want to rethink sticking Pensacola Blue Wahoos hurler Luis Castillo in the bullpen.
All he did Tuesday was throw a two-hitter over eight scoreless innings, walk one and strike out a career-high 13 as Pensacola beat the Mississippi Braves, 5-0, in front of 3,989 at Blue Wahoos Stadium.
The Blue Wahoos captured the series, 4-1, by earning its eighth shutout of the season. It was Pensacola’s seventh consecutive series win, which ties a franchise record.
Pensacola manager Pat Kelly said the pitching coach Danny Darwin is good at teaching the slider, which Castillo attested to after Tuesday’s game through Blue Wahoos catcher Adrian Nieto who served as the interpreter for the Dominican right-hander.
“He’s been traded a couple times and we wonder why?” Kelly said. “The Marlins told us they didn’t think he was a starter that he was a reliever. That (slider) is going to make the difference. He can start in any league.”
Castillo laughed and said “hands down” that he wants to be a starter, not a reliever. The Cincinnati Reds picked him up from the Miami Marlins in January after he was named that organization’s Minor League Pitcher of the Year in 2016.
“I’m very happy about it,” he said about his outing Tuesday. “I felt locked in from the beginning with all my pitches working. I was very focused on having a good outing.”
Castillo, ranked by MLB Pipeline.com as the seventh best prospect in the Cincinnati Reds organization, struck out five hitters in a row at one point. Pensacola’s record for strikeouts in a game is 15, which Tony Cingrani did June 27, 2012 against the Jackson Generals.
The 24-year-old Castillo, who retired 15 of the first 16 batters he faced, won his third start in a row to improve to 4-3 and lowered his ERA to 2.68.
In his last three starts, Castillo has now struck out 31 and walked four over 19 innings. He jumped from 11th in strikeouts in the Southern League to fifth with 76 total this season.
Castillo displayed hitting and running skills, too. He is 3-14 this season and scored his first run of the year. He knocked a ground ball back up the middle — the second hit off of Mississippi starter Luiz Gohara — and hustled from second to score on a single slapped into right field by third baseman Josh VanMeter to give Penacola a 1-0 lead in the fifth inning.
“He’s deceptively very athletic,” Kelly said. “People don’t realize it. But he runs well shagging balls in the outfield (during batting practice).”
Pensacola ended up batting around in the fifth inning to go ahead, 3-0, getting three walks and two singles. Blue Wahoos center fielder Gabriel Guerrero hit a tapper to shortstop and left fielder Tyler Goeddel beat the throw to home for the second run. The final run in the fifth came when VanMeter scored when second baseman Alex Blandino walked with the bases loaded.
The Blue Wahoos added two more runs in the seventh inning when left-handed hitting first baseman Eric Jagielo jacked a two-run shot to the opposite field. He now has five home runs and 19 RBIs on the season.
Mississippi’s Gohara, who is from Tupa, Brazil, earned the loss to fall to 0-1 in his fourth start in Double-A. The 20-year-old, who Baseball America ranked the No. 3 prospect last year in the Seattle Mariners organization, gave up three runs on three hits and four walks in 4.1 innings and struck out three.
Mississippi couldn’t generate any runs off the Blue Wahoos pitching staff in the five-game series, which featured MLB rehab starts by Cincinnati Reds starters Homer Bailey and Brandon Finnegan. The scored six runs in five games.
One key was keeping the hot-hitting 19-year-old Mississippi outfielder Ronald Acuna off the bases. He entered the series batting .354 but went 2-20 and struck out 10 times as the Blue Wahoos pitching pounded fastballs outside. His average fell to .316.
Pensacola, which has the top team ERA in the Southern League at 2.79, travel to play the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp for the last five-game series of the first half.
The Blue Wahoos are 38-27 and are up four games with five to go in the Southern League South Division. Pensacola hopes to clinch the first half crown and join the Tennessee Smokies who won four consecutive halves from 2009 to 2011.
“These guys have worked exceptionally hard,” Kelly said about his team that he has coached the past three years. “I think they deserve it.”
Putnam Leads Money Chase In State Races
June 14, 2017
Candidates seeking to follow Gov. Rick Scott are off to a fast fundraising start, with new reports showing Adam Putnam holding a money advantage in the 2018 governor’s race.
Putnam, the two-term Republican state agriculture commissioner who kicked off his campaign May 10 in Bartow, raised nearly $1.2 million through the end of May for his campaign account, according to a report filed Monday with the state Division of Elections.
His political committee, Florida Grown, raised another $1 million in May, bringing the total to $12.35 million for the fund, which Putnam created after his re-election to the Cabinet in 2014.
Between the two accounts, Putnam had about $10 million in cash available to spend on his campaign as of May 31.
Major contributors to his political committee in May included $100,000 from A. Duda and Sons, an Oviedo-based agriculture company, $100,000 from the Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association and $50,000 from the phosphate industry.
Also, Florida Grown in May received a transfer of more than $221,000 from a prior fund, SSLP Political Committee, records show.
On the Democratic side, former U.S. Rep. Gwen Graham of Tallahassee piled up about $1.6 million after she joined the governor’s race in May.
She raised more than $435,000 for her campaign account and another $1.16 million for her political committee, Our Florida, bringing the fund’s total above $1.8 million, records show. After expenditures, Graham had about $1.9 million to spend on her campaign.
Her political committee was bolstered by a transfer last month of $950,000 from a prior congressional campaign fund, records show. Major contributors to Graham have included $100,000 from James Finch, a Lynn Haven developer, and $50,000 from Wayne Hogan, a Jacksonville trial lawyer.
Andrew Gillum, the Democratic mayor of Tallahassee, raised $97,000 for his gubernatorial campaign fund in May, bringing the total to $499,000. He had raised a total of $662,000 for his political committee, Forward Florida.
Gillum had about $763,000 to spend on his campaign. Major contributors have included $150,000 from George and Alex Soros and $50,000 from television producer Norman Lear.
Chris King, a Winter Park businessman, raised some $221,000 for his Democratic gubernatorial campaign in May, records show. It included $100,000 for his campaign account, bringing the total to nearly $1.5 million. King previously made a $1 million personal donation to his campaign account.
His political committee, Rise and Lead, raised $121,000 in May, bringing its total to about $544,000. King had about $1.6 million to spend on his campaign, records show.
His largest contributor in May was $100,000 from Sam of Heathrow, an Orlando development company. Prior major contributions included $179,000 from Paul Morgan, one of King’s business partners, and $166,000 from David King, his father who is a Winter Park attorney.
State candidates and political committees were required to file updated campaign-finance reports by a Monday night deadline. The 2018 election cycle is expected to be costly, at least in part because the governor’s office and three Cabinet seats will be on the ballot.
In the race to replace Putnam as agriculture commissioner, state Sen. Denise Grimsley, R-Sebring, raised nearly $50,000 for her campaign in May, bringing her total to $384,000. Her political committee, Saving Florida’s Heartland, has raised more than $1 million. She had about $722,000 available to spend on her campaign as of May 31, records show.
Rep. Matt Caldwell, R-North Fort Myers, raised about $102,000 for his agriculture commissioner campaign in May, the first month of his campaign, records show. His political committee, Friends of Matt Caldwell, had raised a total of $763,000. He had about $720,000 in cash on hand.
Paul Paulson, an Orlando businessman and another agriculture commissioner candidate, had raised $396,000 for his Republican campaign, including $393,000 in loans, records show. He had spent $108,000.
Former state Rep. Baxter Troutman, R-Winter Haven, entered the agriculture commissioner’s race this week. Although he hasn’t filed a report yet, his campaign announced he would loan $2.5 million to the campaign.
On the Democratic side, Michael Christine, a University of Miami law student, had raised $3,559 for his agriculture commissioner campaign.
In the race to succeed Attorney General Pam Bondi, state Rep. Jay Fant, R-Jacksonville, raised about $80,000 in May, the first month of his campaign, records show.
His political committee, Pledge This Day, had raised nearly $226,000 through the end of May, with the largest recent contribution of $9,000 coming from J.B. Coxwell Contracting in Jacksonville. He had a total of $157,000 to spend on his campaign.
Republican Ashley Moody, a former Hillsborough County circuit judge who has the backing of Bondi, was not required to file a report this week because she opened her campaign account June 1, the day after the end of the reporting period.
Democrat Ryan Torrens, an attorney from Hillsborough County who opened his campaign account on May 22, raised $3,618, records show.
In the race for chief financial officer, former Democratic state Sen. Jeremy Ring, who opened his campaign account on May 30, reported no financial activity. But a political committee affiliated with Ring, Florida Action Fund PC, reported raising $18,500 last month and spending $12,000, records show.
by Lloyd Dunkelberger, The News Service of Florida
Irma H. Beech
June 14, 2017
Irma H. Beech, 97 of Huxford, AL passed away Saturday, June 10, 2017, at her residence. She was a homemaker. She was born in Richton, MS on January 16, 1920, to the late Samuel M. and Sophia Robertson Hartley. She was a member of Huxford Baptist Church.
She is preceded in death by her parents; her husband, William “Putt” Beech; sons, William “Mack” Beech and Ray Marshall; two brothers, Glenn A. Hartley, Sr. and James A. Hartley and one sister, Laverle Lea.
Survivors include her daughter, Quita Kimbrough of Montgomery, AL; eight grandchildren; eight nieces and five nephews.
Services were held Tuesday, June 13, 2017, at Johnson-Quimby Funeral Home Chapel with Bro. James Boyd officiating.
Active pallbearers were Daniel Ellison, Sean Bonner, Mark Helton, Albert Hartley, Sam Hartley, and Robert Hartley.
Johnson-Quimby Funeral Home is in charge of all arrangements.