New Lights For Cervantes, Search Continues For Vehicle In Deadly Hit And Run
June 12, 2018
State and local officials announced lighting improvements Tuesday morning for Cervantes Street following a deadly hit and run that left two people dead.
There were will be 72 LED street lights installed or replaced along a 2.5 mile stretch of Cervantes to improve safety. The lights will be installed between Dominguez and A Street.
Pensacola Police are continuing their search for a white 2015-2018 Dodge Challenger involved in the hit and run last Wednesday night. Three people were crossing Cervantes Street near M Street when they were hit by a vehicle traveling at a high rate of speed. Neariaah Ikerria Williams, age 8 months, and a family friend, 28-year-old Nephateria Monique Williams, died. The child’s mother, 27-year-old Quineka Tyon Baldwin, was injured.
Anyone with information on the crash is asked to call 911, the Pensacola Police Department, or Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP.
Sen. Doug Broxson, Escambia County Commissioner Lumon May, Pensacola Mayor Ashton Hayward, Pensacola City Councilwoman Jewel Cannada-Wynn, Florida Department of Transportation officials, and Gulf Power representativesmade the joint safety announcement at the Brownsville Community Center as an audience of local children looked on.
Gulf Power started the street light installation Tuesday morning.
Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Lola Peebles
June 12, 2018
Mrs. Lola Peebles, age 88, passed away on Saturday, June 9, 2018, in Pensacola, Florida.
Mrs. Peebles was born in Berlin, Germany and had resided in Bratt, FL for most of her life. She was a member of the Shiloh Freewill Baptist Church. She is preceded in death by her husband, Thomas Henry Peebles.
She is survived her two sons, Willie (Pat) Peebles of McDavid, FL and Robert Franz Peebles of Bratt, FL; two daughters, Mary L. Peebles of Atmore, AL and Becky (Tony) Wheeler of Bratt, FL; seven grandchildren, Kevin Peebles, Keith Peebles, Derick Peebles, Kathy Dickerson, Paula Short, Michael Stacey and Gene Wheeler; 15 great-grandchildren; and seven great-great grandchildren.
Funeral services were held Tuesday, June 12, 2018, at the Petty-Eastside Chapel Funeral Home with Rev. Ricky Peebles and Rev. James Sage officiating.
Burial was at the Godwin Cemetery.
Pallbearers were Kevin Peebles, Keith Peebles, Derick Peebles, Gene Wheeler, Jeff Steadham and David Steadham.
Honorary pallbearer was be Danny Steadham.
Petty-Eastside Chapel Funeral Homes is in charge of all arrangements.
Jerry J. Dykes
June 12, 2018
Jerry J. Dykes, 71, of Jay, Florida passed away Saturday, June 9, 2018.
He was a loving father, grandfather and brother. He loved his children and family. He enjoyed hunting and fishing and was retired from Sterling Fibers.
He was preceded in death by his parents, James LaRue and Arvilla Dykes; son, John Wesley Dykes; friend, Deana Richardson; sister, Barbara Harrison and niece, Ashley McCullough.
He is survived by his daughters, Ruby White and Kimberly (John David) Roberts; sons, Jerry Allen Dykes and James Brian Dykes; sisters, Lou Jean (Lester) Black and Evelyn (Richard) Pope; brother, Larry (Beverly) Dykes; special friend, Ethel Walker; 11 grandchildren and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.
Funeral services will be held at 2:00 pm on Wednesday, June 13, 2018, at Ebenezer Church with Reverend Earl Harrison and Brother Bobby Carnley officiating.
Burial will follow in the Church Cemetery.
Jack Hodge
June 12, 2018
Jack Hodge passed away on June 6, 2018, at the age of 86 years. Born in 1931 in Castleberry AL, he joined the Army and served in the Korean Conflict, and left with honorable discharge in 1952.
After settling in Molino, FL, he began his career with St. Regis Paper Mill where he was to spend 30 years until he co-founded Plastic Coated Papers Inc. He would later retire from there in 1994. Jack was involved with numerous organizations, including board member of Harvesters Federal Credit Union, Coach for Molino Little League, and he also belonged to his local Masonic chapter. Throughout Jack’s life, he was a devout Christian, and served each church family he was privileged to belong to. He served as a Deacon and mentor at Highland Baptist Church, Deacon at First Baptist Church of Cantonment, and is currently a member of Windy Hill Baptist Church.
He is survived by his wife of 65 years, Peggy Jo Hodge; daughter Susan McCrory, sons, Jackie Hodge and David Hodge; sister Jean of LA; seven grandchildren; and nine great-grandchildren.
He is preceded in death by his parents, Challie and Emma Ruth Hodge; eldest son, Aaron Hodge, and eight siblings.
Services were held Tuesday, June 12, 2018, at Eastern Gate Memorial Funeral Home, officiated by Pastor Ricky Skaggs.
Memorial donations in memory of Jack can be made to Windy Hill Baptist Church, Building Fund, 9896 Rebel Road, Pensacola, FL 32526.
Arrangements have been entrusted to Eastern Gate Memorial Funeral Home.
Elderly Pensacola Woman Stabbed, Left For Dead
June 11, 2018
A man has been charged with brutally attacking an 82-year old woman in Pensacola and leaving her for dead.
Tyler Hyden Owens, 18 was charged with attempted murder and home invasion robbery following the incident Saturday night at the Arbor Club Apartments off Ninth Avenue.
The woman was stabbed inside her apartment late Saturday night and left for dead, according to Pensacola Police. She was found by a family member Sunday morning with multiple wounds and transported to the hospital. She is expected to recover.
Police said Owens lived in a neighboring apartment. After a search warrant was served, several items were found in his apartment that belonged to the victim, along with bloody clothes. The clothes will be tested to determine if they match blood from the crime scene.
Owens reportedly made statements about being hungry and needing food during the incident.
Cottage Hill Man Sentenced For Cockfighting
June 11, 2018
A Cottage Hill man has been sentenced for cockfighting.
Terry Maurus Jackson, 59, was sentenced to three years probation. He will not be allowed to possess any animal during the three year period. Jackson was arrested in June 2017 at his home on McKenzie Road and charged with three counts of animal fighting and three counts of possession of a controlled substance.
Escambia County deputies executed a search warrant at Jackson’s residence for narcotics and found cockfighting roosters, cockfighting paraphernalia, cockfighting trophies and pictures of roosters. Escambia County Animal control was then contacted, along with the State Attorney’s Office.
Animal control reported that the roosters’ talons had been cut and prepared for cockfighting, according to court documents. They were also found to have injuries consistent with cockfighting.
Paraphernalia seized from the home included “Gamecock” magazine; medications, needles, syringes, saws, spurs and hooks; a written journal and cockfighting trophies. Written on one of the trophies were the words “1st Place — 5-Cock Derby — Poor Man’s Club 3-18-17″.
Schedule III narcotics associated were cockfighting were also seized, according to court documents, including Trenbolone, Testosterone Propionate and Testerone Acetate.
NorthEscambia.com file photos by Kristi Barbour, click to enlarge.
Florida Gas Prices Slip Lower
June 11, 2018
Gas prices in Florida declined nearly six cents last week. The state average of $2.80 per gallon is the lowest daily price since early May, according to AAA.
Since peaking at $2.92 on May 25, gas prices have declined 16 consecutive days for 11 cents. Despite the recent discount, motorists are still paying 46 cents per gallon more than this time last year.
The Escambia County area average was $2.81 per gallon. One year ago, the local average was $2.31.
“Gas prices could drop another five cents this week, unless the market suddenly shifts course,” said Mark Jenkins, spokesman, AAA – The Auto Club Group. “Prices at the pump are still adjusting to the recent drop in oil and wholesale gasoline, due to the potential of increased crude output from OPEC. However, there is still volatility in the market, and pump prices could move higher if OPEC decides against easing production cuts at a meeting later this month.”
Number Of Florida Children With No Health Insurance Increases
June 11, 2018
While Florida has made strides in reducing the number of uninsured children, a national health-care expert warned Thursday that those gains are likely stalling, and she put part of the blame on increased scrutiny of immigration status.
Joan Alker, executive director of the Washington-based Center for Children and Families, said data released late last month by the National Center on Health Statistics shows that the number of uninsured children in Florida in 2017 rose slightly to 7.6 percent.
Alker said that while the small rise — from 7.4 percent the previous year — may be statistically insignificant, it could be “an early warning sign” that Florida’s seven-year trend of lowering uninsured rates for children is at risk.
She attributed the increase in part to attrition of what she called “mixed” families, or families where a parent is an immigrant and the child is either a citizen or legally residing in the state.
“Because of all the intimidation that is happening right now with immigrant families, we’ve heard lots of anecdotal evidence that they are very reluctant now to sign their kids up for coverage,” said Alker who has spent years observing Florida’s government-subsidized health insurance programs.
She suggested that other factors that could have played a factor in the slight hike include congressional efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act and a push to restructure the Medicaid program and reduce funding.
State Agency for Health Care Administration spokeswoman Mallory McManus said she wasn’t aware of the new data and said that “ensuring that children have access to health care has always been a priority of our agency.”
Combined, the subsidized Children’s Health Insurance Program and Medicaid provide coverage to an estimated 44 percent of the children in the state.
The National Health Interview Survey data is collected through personal household interviews. Alker called the data an “early sign,” but said that the release in September of information from what is known as the American Community Survey will provide additional insight about health insurance. The American Community Survey is the largest household survey conducted by the Census Bureau.
While the 2017 percentage increase was small, Alker said it shows that Florida lost ground while states such as Texas and California continued to make progress. Those states lowered their uninsured rates by 1 percent and 1.4 percent, respectively.
Alker made the remarks during a webinar where she discussed a new report called, “The New Federal Children’s Health Insurance Law and What it Means for Florida’s Children.”
It is one of a series of reports that Alker has conducted about health insurance for Florida children and was funded by the Florida Blue Foundation, the Health Foundation of South Florida, the Space Coast Health Foundation and the Winter Park Health Foundation, among others, operating under the Florida Philanthropic Network.
The report examines the impact of two recently passed extensions of the Children’s Health Insurance Program and what they mean for the state. CHIP funding expired last year, and many states, such as Florida, were forced to operate the program on carry-over funds from previous years. Congress agreed to extend CHIP funding in January and again in February.
CHIP funds subsidized insurance coverage for more than 345,000 children in Florida.
Under the extensions, Alker said Florida cannot make any future changes to the CHIP program that would make it more cost- restrictive, including increasing co-payments.
by Christine Sexton, The News Service of Florida
Molino 8U Wins All Star Championship
June 11, 2018
The Molino 8U team won an all-star championship this weekend. Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Push Continues For Drilling Off Florida Coast
June 11, 2018
Proponents of drilling for oil and natural gas haven’t given up on tapping areas closer to Florida’s shoreline despite repeated assurances those waters will be exempt from a White House plan to expand exploration.
The Washington, D.C.-based American Petroleum Institute announced Wednesday a multi-state “Explore Offshore” coalition to support the Trump administration’s plan to open previously protected parts of the Atlantic Ocean and eastern Gulf of Mexico to oil and gas drilling.
The coalition’s Florida team, which is focused on the eastern Gulf waters, includes former Lt. Gov. Jeff Kottkamp, former Okaloosa County Commissioner Wayne Harris, former Puerto Rico state Sen. Miriam Ramirez and Florida Petroleum Council Executive Director David Mica.
Mica said Floridians use more than 25 million gallons of motor fuel a day, while the industry is restricted from “some very, very good areas” that potentially have oil.
“We need to do it in an environmentally responsible manner, but we must go forward,” Mica said. “I think that it’s really putting your head in the sand if you think that we’re not going to need a lot more oil and gas into the future and that we can rely only on alternative fuels.”
Many Florida officials, including Gov. Rick Scott, Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Noah Valenstein and members of Florida’s congressional delegation from both sides of the political aisle have denounced the possibility of opening to drilling nearly all of the nation’s outer continental shelf — a jurisdictional term describing submerged lands 10.36 statutory miles off Florida’s west coast and 3 nautical miles off the east coast.
Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke appeared briefly Jan. 9 in Tallahassee to announce drilling would not occur off the Florida coast. But the Trump administration’s stance has not been formalized and continues to draw questions.
U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., on Wednesday equated the petroleum industry’s new coalition with lingering skepticism over Zinke’s assurances that waters off the Florida coast will be exempt from the plan.
“Here we go. Like us, Big Oil doesn’t believe Florida is really ‘off the table’ to new drilling — despite what Scott and the Trump Administration keep saying — and now they are making a new push to drill closer to Florida’s shores,” Nelson tweeted. “We can’t let that happen!”
The federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management is expected to release a draft report on the offshore proposal before the end of the year. That will kick off a second round of public hearings.
Drilling proponents have hailed the prospects of exploring for oil and gas closer to shore as benefiting consumers by potentially creating jobs and additional government revenue while strengthening national security.
The American Petroleum Institute said its coalition features more than 100 businesses, organizations and officials from Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida.
In its release, the institute highlighted Florida’s dependence on natural gas, which generates 67 percent of the state’s electricity, and forecast that offshore development could result in $2.6 billion in private investment in Florida and $1 billion per year in state revenues.
Kottkamp said the “availability of affordable energy is critical” to Florida’s qualify of life.
“We look forward to working with our local leaders to discuss ways to maintain our state’s natural beauty while at the same time expanding opportunities to keep our nation energy independent,” Kottkamp said in a statement.
In November, Florida voters will decide whether to approve a proposed constitutional amendment that would ban nearshore oil and gas drilling. That ban would affect state-controlled waters.
by Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida