Driver Trapped In Wreckage By Live Power Lines After Cantonment Crash
January 1, 2021
A driver was trapped in their mangled vehicle by live power lines for nearly half an hour following a wreck in Cantonment early Friday morning.
The woman crashed into a power pole at Highway 29 and Neal Road about 5:25 a.m. Live power lines were downed across the wreckage, preventing firefighters from beginning extrication efforts until Gulf Power could cut off a portion of the power grid. Once power was off, firefighters were forced to cut the victim from her pickup truck.
The woman was freed from the wreckage shortly after 6 a.m by Escambia County Fire Rescue units from Cantonment, Ensley and Molino, and a special operations team from Brent and Osceola. The victim was transported to an area hospital for treatment by Escambia County EMS. An updated on her condition was not available.
About 400 Gulf Power customers initially lost power when Gulf Power remotely cut off the grid in the area, but that number was later narrowed significantly.
The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating.
Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
New Year Brings A New Century Mayor, Two New Council Members
January 1, 2021
A new year will bring a new Century mayor and two new town council members.
Benjamin Boutwell will be sworn in as mayor, and political newcomers Dynette Lewis and Leonard White will take the oath of office for town council. Incumbent Luis Gomez will also be sworn in for another term.
The swearing ceremony and a regular council meeting will take place at 6 p.m. Monday, January 4 at the community center on West Highway 4 at the corner of Industrial Boulevard. A reception will follow.
During the 2020 elections, Boutwell defeated incumbent mayor Henry Hawkins. Lewis defeated incumbent council president Ann Brooks, and White was elected to the seat that held by Boutwell until his resignation to run for mayor. Gomez was automatically reelected without opposition.
Mostly Cloudy Tonight, A Slight Chance Of Rain Saturday
January 1, 2021
Happy New Year!
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast for the first day of 2021:
Tonight: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 49. South wind around 5 mph becoming calm in the evening.
Saturday: A 20 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 62. North wind around 5 mph becoming west in the afternoon.
Saturday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 39. Northwest wind around 5 mph.
Sunday: Sunny, with a high near 56. Northwest wind 5 to 10 mph.
Sunday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 37. Northwest wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
Monday: Sunny, with a high near 60. Calm wind becoming northwest around 5 mph.
Monday Night: Clear, with a low around 38. Calm wind.
Tuesday: Sunny, with a high near 63. Calm wind becoming north around 5 mph.
Tuesday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 41. Calm wind.
Wednesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 64.
Wednesday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 50.
Thursday: A 20 percent chance of showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 61.
Thursday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 42.
Friday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 57.
Gulf Power Customers Will See Slight Electric Rate Increase In 2021
January 1, 2021
Gulf Power customers will see a small rate increase on their bills in January.
Gulf Power residential customers that use 1,000 kilowatt hours in a month will see their bill increase by 19 cents from $140.43 to $140.62, according to the Florida Public Service Commission. The 1,000 kilowatt hours in an example; actual usage varies widely among consumers.
Customers of Florida Power & Light, the parent company of Gulf Power, will see a $2.62 increase for 1,000 kilowatt hours. Their total bill for example usage will increase to $99.05.
Milton High, Former Ernest Ward Teacher And Coach Jeff Larson Lost To COVID-19
January 1, 2021
A Milton High School science teacher and coach with North Escambia ties has passed away due to COVID-19.
Coach Jeff Larson passed away on Christmas Day.
He was in education for 38 years, the last 26 as a science teacher at Milton High School.
“He was probably the most revered science teacher in the department. A great teacher, a tremendous football coach, but a better person,” said Tim Short, principal of Milton High School.
Larson was a coach and teacher at what was then Ernest Ward High School in Walnut Hill.
Two Teen Boys Rescued From Human Traffickers, Two Arrests Made
January 1, 2021
Two teenage boys are safe from human traffickers after a traffic stop and arrest in Santa Rosa County. The boys, ages 17 and 14, are citizens of Guatemala who were recently smuggled into the country from Mexico into Texas.
The investigation began when a Santa Rosa County Sheriff’sdeputy stopped a vehicle for a moving violation on I-10 and noted indicators of possible human trafficking. The Santa Rosa Sheriff’s Office contacted the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) for assistance with the investigation.
“A deputy’s keen eye and immediate multiagency cooperation were instrumental in rescuing two children,” said Chris Williams, chief of Investigations for FDLE Pensacola Regional Operations Center. “I’m proud of the deputies and agents who teamed to bring two human traffickers to justice.”
Investigators believe the boys were trafficked into the United States for forced labor. According to the victims, their families each paid more than $1,000 to be smuggled into the U.S. Each teen was told they had to work to pay off additional travel debt. Agents believe the men were taking the boys to different cities in Central and South Florida.
Agents arrested Frank Moreno, 39, Odessa, Texas, and Jackson Perez-Godinez, 21, Guatemala. Each are charged with two counts of human trafficking and two counts of human smuggling.
Moreno and Perez-Godinez were booked into the Santa Rosa County Jail on no bond, pending first appearance.
One New COVID-19 Death, 373 Additional Cases Reported In Escambia County
January 1, 2021
THIS IS ARCHIVED STORY. NO REPORT WAS RELEASED BY THE STATE ON NEW YEAR’S DAY.
The Florida Department of Health reported one additional COVID-19 death and 373 new cases in Escambia County on Thursday.
Here is the latest data:
Escambia County cases:
Total cases: 22,349 (+373)
Non-Florida residents: 2,433
Total deaths: 373 (+1)
Long-term care facility deaths : 165
Current hospitalizations: 198 (-7)
Number of tests reported last day: 1,782
Percent positive reported last day: 14.7%
Percent positive reported last week: 13.6%
Escambia County cases by location*:
Pensacola: 16,346 (+256)
Cantonment: 1,938 (+43)
Century: 1,010
—-including 774 Century prison inmates
Molino: 271 (+5)
McDavid: 136 (+1)
Walnut Hill: 39
Bellview: 31
Perdido Key: 17
Gonzalez: 9
Santa Rosa County cases:
Total cases: 11,180 (+244)
Non-Florida residents: 141
Total deaths: 128 (+4)
Long-term care facility deaths: 24
Cumulative Hospitalizations: 554*
Number of tests reported day: 471
Percent positive reported last day: 33.5%
Santa Rosa County cases by location*:
Milton: 5,515 (+76)
Navarre: 2,160 (+56)
Gulf Breeze: 1,962 (+56)
Pace: 850 (+11)
Jay: 298 (+6)
Bagdad: 26 (+1)
Florida cases:
Total cases: 1,323,315
Florida residents: 1,300,28
Deaths: 21,673
Hospitalizations: 62,868*
*“Hospitalizations” in the statewide and Santa Rosa County totals is a count of all laboratory confirmed cases in which an inpatient hospitalization occurred at any time during the course of illness. Most of these people are longer be hospitalized. The FDOH does not provide a count of patients currently hospitalized. The Escambia County number is current data compiled each day from the local hospitals.
On cases by location, the city is based upon zip code and is not always received as part of the initial notification. There may be a delay in reporting locations as a result, and locations will not total the daily case increase as a result.
*The Florida Department of Health does not have a clear standard or definition of “recovered” and does not report a number of recovered individuals.
**Data Sources: Florida Department of Health, Escambia County, City of Pensacola, local hospitals.