EREC Crews Return From Trip To Help With Florence Power Restoration
September 16, 2018
Update: The EREC crews are back home.Brunswick EMC was unable to accommodate any more workers due to flooding issues, and the Florida crews coming in to help were released. EREC crews are on standby to assist if they are needed
Previous story:
Escambia River Electric Cooperative lineworkers helping restore power in North Carolina following Hurricane Florence.
EREC is helping Brunswick Electric Membership Cooperative in Whiteville, NC, the second largest electric cooperative in North Carolina with nearly 97,000 members. About 84,000 of those members lost power.
“EREC was fortunate to receive help from other cooperatives during our time of need,” says Clay Campbell, CEO of Escambia River EC. “Co-ops are family. When someone needs help, we go.”
EREC sent line crew workers; bucket, digger, mechanic and fuel trucks; and additional equipment and supplies to assist Brunswick EMC in restoration efforts.
Pictured top: EREC line crew heads to Brunswick Electric Membership Cooperative to assist with Hurricane Florence power restoration. Pictured back row are Mark LeFlore, David Deese and Ken Blair. Kneeling in front are Matthew Reynolds, Doug Stewart and Kevin Macht. Pictured below: EC trucks head north to assist with power restoration efforts in Whiteville, NC. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Driver Shears Off Power Pole
September 16, 2018
A driver sheared off a power pole on Pine Forest just south of Highway 297A, near Publix, Saturday afternoon. There was no immediate word on injuries. The accident remains under investigation by the Florida Highway Patrol. NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Barbour, click to enlarge.
Smith Graduates From Coast Guard Training
September 16, 2018
FA Landon Reese Smith recently graduated from boot camp for the United States Coast Guard at Training Center Cape May, NJ. He is a 2018 graduate of Jay High School.
Smith is currently stationed in Portsmouth, VA. and assigned to the USCG cutter Tampa. He will be working in electrical engineering.
Smith is the son of Rex Jr. and Theresa Smith of Jay, and the grandson of Wayne and Brenda Cook of Berrydale, Ruby and Archie Phillips of Crossville,TN, and Rex Smith, Sr. of Jay.
One Injured In Pine Forest, West Roberts Wreck
September 16, 2018
One person was injured in a two vehicle accident Saturday afternoon at Pine Forest Road and West Roberts Road. Two other people involved in the crash were not injured. Further details were not released by the Florida Highway Patrol. NorthEscambia.com photo by Kristi Barbour, click to enlarge.
Cantonment’s Strictly Business Wins 10U Tournament
September 16, 2018
Cantonment 10U Strictly Business took home the championship Saturday in the first annual USSSA Gulf Coast Recreation All Star Showdown charity tournament in Pace.
Strictly Business was 4-0 in tournament play, defeating the Fairhope All Stars 17-12 in the championship game.
Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Florida Gov’t Weekly Roundup: Stormy Political Weather
September 16, 2018
Hurricane Florence may have spared the Sunshine State, but political squalls continue to churn throughout Florida, and the worst is yet to come.
President Donald Trump whipped up a tempest after accusing Democrats of dramatically inflating the number of deaths in Puerto Rico caused by Hurricane Maria.
But it wasn’t just Trump who stirred the political pot this week.
Gov. Rick Scott, who’s vying to oust Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, kicked into motion the process to appoint replacements for three Florida Supreme Court justices who will retire in January. The replacements could create a significant shift in the court’s shaping of public policy for decades.
Meanwhile, the state’s gubernatorial candidates and their supporters took to the airwaves to kick off the barrage of television ads that will inundate Floridians over the next two months.
A spot launched by the Republican Governors Association accused Democratic nominee Andrew Gillum of being so “far out” he’s “on another planet.” The somewhat-odd piece — which includes an image of Gillum superimposed over a moon — is even more curious, since onetime astronaut Nelson’s been mocked by Scott and other Republicans about the senator’s actual space trip.
The Republican Party of Florida, meanwhile, unleashed a promo of GOP gubernatorial candidate Ron DeSantis that opens with a homage to the former congressman’s Dunedin team making a trip to the 1991 Little League World Series.
“We were only 12 when we learned to dream big, work hard and swing away,” the grown-up DeSantis says in the spot.
Gillum, too, released an upbeat ad that focused on his childhood, echoing his campaign’s #BringItHome mantra in which the Tallahassee mayor invokes the lessons he learned from his grandmother.
“She’d say, go to school. Mind your teachers. Get your lesson. And one day bring that education home,” Gillum says in the voiceover.
Although it’s doubtful, the two candidates’ positive messages could set the stage for the general election battle.
As they load their political cannons, they might consider heeding the guidance of a certain granny: “You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.”
TRUMP’S MARIA TWEETSTORM
The president’s position on the death count in Puerto Rico drew rebukes from the two Republicans at the top of the Florida ticket: Scott and DeSantis.
Both parties in Florida are looking to draw support from Puerto Rican voters in the November elections, and Trump’s tweets Thursday brought bipartisan criticism — and came as Hurricane Florence barreled down on the Carolinas.
“3000 people did not die in the two hurricanes that hit Puerto Rico,” Trump tweeted a little before 9 a.m. Thursday. “When I left the Island, AFTER the storm had hit, they had anywhere from 6 to 18 deaths. As time went by it did not go up by much. Then, a long time later, they started to report really large numbers, like 3000…”
“…..This was done by the Democrats in order to make me look as bad as possible when I was successfully raising Billions of Dollars to help rebuild Puerto Rico,” Trump followed in a tweet. “If a person died for any reason, like old age, just add them onto the list. Bad politics. I love Puerto Rico!”
In the November elections, Republican and Democratic politicians are courting Puerto Rican voters who are longtime residents of Florida, as well as those who relocated to the state after Maria caused devastating damage to the U.S. territory last September.
“I disagree with @POTUS– an independent study said thousands were lost and Gov. (Ricardo) Rosselló agreed,” Scott tweeted. “I’ve been to Puerto Rico 7 times & saw devastation firsthand. The loss of any life is tragic; the extent of lives lost as a result of Maria is heart wrenching. I’ll continue to help PR.”
Nelson called Trump’s comments “shameful.”
“We deserve and expect more from someone who holds the highest office in our country,” Nelson said in statement.
DeSantis and Gillum, though with different tones, also separated themselves from Trump’s comments.
DeSantis, who resigned his congressional seat this week to focus on the governor’s race, is typically one of Trump’s most-ardent supporters, and Trump’s endorsement was a cornerstone of DeSantis’ primary election win last month.
DeSantis’ campaign issued a statement Thursday that said he is “committed to standing with the Puerto Rican community, especially after such a tragic loss of life” and that he “doesn’t believe any loss of life has been inflated.”
Gillum was harsher, saying “no death is partisan and our brothers and sisters in Puerto Rico deserved better from @realDonaldTrump before, during and after the hurricane.”
GAVELING IN COURT CHANGES
Scott on Tuesday said he asked the Supreme Court Judicial Nominating Commission to begin a process that includes accepting and reviewing applications, interviewing candidates and making nominations for appointment. The process will lead to replacements for longtime justices Barbara Pariente, R. Fred Lewis and Peggy Quince, who are required to leave the court in January because of reaching a mandatory retirement age.
Appointments of Supreme Court justices are always important, but Pariente, Lewis and Quince — along with Justice Jorge Labarga — are widely considered a left-leaning majority on the seven-member court. That has led to the possibility that their replacements could spur a rightward shift of the court.
As a sign of that, a legal debate emerged last year about whether Scott, who will also leave office in January, should have the authority to appoint the new justices or whether that power should go to his successor. Scott has appointed one justice, Alan Lawson, who is generally aligned with what is viewed as the conservative minority on the court.
Scott has argued that he has the authority to appoint the new justices, but the League of Women Voters of Florida and Common Cause filed a case last year arguing that Scott’s successor should make the picks. The Supreme Court dismissed the case in December, saying the issue wasn’t “ripe” for consideration because Scott had not acted on the appointments.
But the dismissal of the case does not preclude another challenge to Scott’s position that he has the authority to make the appointments.
In the announcement Tuesday, Scott’s office said he would invite the governor-elect to interview the court nominees after the general election. The governor’s office pointed to an “expectation” that Scott and his successor would be able to agree on appointments.
But Gillum’s campaign issued a terse rejection of Scott’s position: “In our understanding of the Constitution, the next governor will appoint the next three Supreme Court justices.”
STORY OF THE WEEK: President Donald Trump received bipartisan pushback from Florida pols after accusing Democrats of over-inflating the death toll caused by Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “Mr. President. SHUT UP. Any death, whether one or 3,000 is a tragedy.” — Alan Levine, a member of the Florida university system Board of Governors, in a tweet in which Levine also said he voted for Trump.
by Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida
Haas Center Proposes $95K Plan For Century Economic Development
September 15, 2018
The University of West Florida Haas Center is proposing to use $95,000 in county funds to plan economic growth in Century. Earlier this year, the county commission took no action on a workforce education plan proposed by the Century Chamber using the same funding pool.
The Escambia County Commission approved $55,000 in economic development funding for the Century area during the current 2017-2018 fiscal year, and there is an additional $50,000 pending final approval for the upcoming 2018-2019 fiscal year.
The monies were designated by the commission for economic development initiatives in the Century area but were not awarded directly to the town or chamber. Instead, funding requests were to be submitted to District 5 Commissioner Steven Barry for presentation to the entire commission for approval.
Hass Center $95,000 Plan
The Haas Center plan would utilizes the $55,000 from the current fiscal year plus $40,000 from the upcoming year that begins October 1. The plan expands on a “Six Pillar Community Economic Development Strategic Plan” that was funded by a state grant in 2014.
“The Town of Century will be the model for rural economic redevelopment, excelling in cultivating its workforce, facilitating the growth of regional industry, and enhancing the quality of life for its residents and the surrounding communities,” was the vision of the 2014 plan.
Currently, the Haas Center is proposing:
Market Analysis – $24,500 – Market analysis of development opportunties.
CRA Mapping Tool -$15,000 — An application that will allow users to view and interact with CRA data.
Market Study of Industrial Park – $25,000 — The study will include an analysis of amenities and site development for the park in comparison to other site locations.
Health Assessment and Needs Survey – $15,500 – Will include a “pre” survey before a $2 million Community Health Northwest Florida expansion in Century and a “post” survey to gauge how this investment into the health center has increased the access to resources and overall health needs of the community.
Strategic Plan Metrics and Dashboard – $15,000 – Collect data and present online, mailed resident satisfaction.
The $50,000 Plan
Escambia County took no action on previous request for most of the $55,000 in current fiscal year funding.
The Century Chamber of Commerce proposed a two part workforce development training program with Pensacola State College.
The first part, “Basic Skills for the Workforce” would have been 52 hours with instruction including reading comprehension, basic math, business grammar, financial literacy, resume building and mock interviews.
The second segment would have included 200 hours of instruction for entry-level positions in building construction and industrial settings, including safety, construction math, hand and power tools, communication skills, OHSA 10 hour course and CPR/first aid.
The proposal asked for up to $50,188 for 15 students.
Pictured: The unoccupied, town-owned Helicopter Technology Building in the Century Industrial Park. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Bicyclist Struck And Killed By Hit And Run Driver
September 15, 2018
A bicyclist was struck and killed by a hit and run driver Friday night in Escambia County.
The Florida Highway Patrol said 39-year old Melissa Kay Hicks was traveling east on the right edge of Michigan Avenue near Jaker Lane when she was hit by a vehicle of an unknown type and unknown color. She was pronounced deceased at the scene by Escambia County EMS following the 10:08 p.m. accident.
Anyone with information on the hit and run is asked to call the FHP at (850) 484-5000 or *FHP from a cellphone.
Sunny And Hot Weekend
September 15, 2018
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
Saturday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 94. Calm wind becoming north around 5 mph in the morning.
Saturday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 74. Northwest wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
Sunday: Sunny, with a high near 93. Calm wind becoming northwest around 5 mph in the afternoon.
Sunday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 74. Calm wind.
Monday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 92. Calm wind becoming southwest around 5 mph.
Monday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 72. Southwest wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
Tuesday: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly sunny, with a high near 91. Calm wind becoming south around 5 mph.
Tuesday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 72. Southwest wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
Wednesday: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly sunny, with a high near 91.
Wednesday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 72.
Thursday: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly sunny, with a high near 89.
Thursday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 71.
Friday: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly sunny, with a high near 88.
PHS Tops Tate 21-7
September 15, 2018
The Pensacola High Tigers topped the Tate Aggies 21-7 Friday night.
On their first drive of the game, the Aggies scored on a quarterback keeper from Hunter Riggan with 9:45 to go in the first for a 7-0 lead. The Tigers answered to tie it at 7-7 in the second.
But PHS held Tate scoreless in the last three quarters.
Tate had won the previous three meetings between the teams, both of which went into Friday night at 1-2.
The Tate High School Aggies will be at Milton next Friday night with a 7:30 p.m. kickoff.