Colder Weather Returns Tonight, Low In The 30s
November 30, 2022
Dry conditions expected through tonight with clear skies abd the return of some cold weather with a rather impressive shift in degree of temperature from last night. Lows are expected to plummet into the low tomid 30s for most of the North Escambia area with upper 30s to low 40s closer to the coast.
Tonight: Clear, with a low around 37. Northeast wind 5 to 10 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.
Thursday: Sunny, with a high near 59. Northeast wind 5 to 10 mph.
Thursday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 41. East wind around 5 mph.
Friday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 69. Southeast wind 5 to 10 mph.
Friday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 57. Southeast wind around 5 mph becoming calm after midnight.
Saturday: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly after noon. Partly sunny, with a high near 76. Calm wind becoming south around 5 mph.
Saturday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers before midnight. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 58. North wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
Sunday: Partly sunny, with a high near 70. Calm wind becoming northeast around 5 mph.
Sunday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 60. South wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
Monday: Partly sunny, with a high near 73.
Monday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 60.
Tuesday: Partly sunny, with a high near 77.
Tuesday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 59.
Wednesday: A 20 percent chance of showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 73.
Bogia Man Charged With Battery Of Pregnant Woman
November 30, 2022
A Bogia man is accused of allegedly hitting a pregnant woman and preventing her from leaving a residence.
Jordan Matthew Capps, 22, was charged with aggravated battery offender knew or should have known the victim was pregnant, and false imprisonment, both felonies. He remained in the Escambia County Jail without bond Wednesday morning.
The pregnant victim told the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office that Capps became angry when he could not find his phone and accused her of having. He grabbed her arm, hit her in the head multiple times and poked her in the eye, according to an arrest report.
When the victim tried to leave the residence, Capps pulled her back away from one door, blocked her exit through another door and snatched her keys, the report continues. Deputies noted injuries to her forehead and hand.
Deputies were unable to contact Capps immediately after the November 22 incident and a warrant was issued for his arrest.
After he was arrested Tuesday, Capps was also charged with possession of a firearm or concealed weapon by a convicted felon. Records show he was convicted of sexual battery by a juvenile on a victim under 12 in 2016 and is a registered juvenile sex offender.
Escambia Sex Offender Gets 11 Years In Federal Prison For Gun Crimes
November 30, 2022
An Escambia County sex offender has been sentenced to 134 months in federal prison for multiple gun crimes.
James Leroy Smith Jr., 38, pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, possession of an unregistered short-barreled rifle, and multiple violations of his federal supervised release conditions. Smith was sentenced to 10 years in prison on the firearm charges, and he was sentenced to an additional 14 months for his supervision violations to run consecutively to his firearm case.
“Senseless violence by armed felons endangers the public and results in serious consequences,” stated U.S. Attorney Coody. “Our partners at the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office are to be commended for their swift actions in apprehending this violent felon. Due to their efforts our community is safer, and this repeat offender is exactly where he belongs – back behind bars.”
Court records indicate Smith was arrested by ECSO deputies on April 24, 2021, after shooting a black AR-style rifle loaded with rounds in a 100-round double-drum magazine at another car while driving through a residential area. At the time, Smith was being supervised by the U.S. Probation Office following a prison sentence imposed for failure to register as a sex offender. In addition to that federal offense, he had nine other felony convictions, including a prior conviction for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and a conviction for sexual battery.
The sentence resulted from a joint investigation by the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Three With 120 Years Combined Experience Retire From International Paper
November 30, 2022
Three employees with 120 years combined service recently retired from International Paper’s mill in Cantonment.
They are:
- Tommy Nall, predictive maintenance technician, 42 years of service
- Mark Ard, reliability engineer, 37 years of service
- John Huelsbeck, storeroom, 41 years of service
“These team members have been teachers, mentors, high level contributors and friends at the mill. They professionally and personally will leave long lasting positive impressions,” Scott Taylor, mill manager, said.
Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Walnut Hill Man Charged With DUI In Connection With Wrong-Way Highway 97 Crash
November 30, 2022
A Walnut Hill man has been charged in connection with a wrong way crash Monday night.
James Harold Green, 66, was charged by the Florida Highway Patrol with DUI with property damage, reckless driving with property damage, and smuggling a controlled substance into the county jail, according to jail records. He was released on a $5,000 bond.
Witnesses said Green’s pickup truck was traveling in the wrong lane of Highway 97 near Wiggins Lake Road, just north of Walnut Hill Fire Station, about 6:47 p.m..
An oncoming driver reportedly swerved out of the way to avoid a head-on collision, and his pickup truck struck a guardrail. The driver was not injured.
The wrong-way pickup truck came to rest about 1,000 feet away in a ditch hitting a guardrail and a mailbox. Green was transported by Escambia County EMS to Jay Hospital for treatment and taken into custody by troopers. While he was being booked into the Escambia County Jail, a felony amount of narcotics was discovered, according to FHP.
The Florida Highway Patrol investigated the crash. The Walnut Hill and McDavid stations of Escambia County Fire Rescue and the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office also responded.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Escambia County Names Top 3 Legislative Asks
November 30, 2022
The Escambia County Commission has picked their top three legislative priorities for the upcoming session.
The county will ask the Florida Legislature to:
- Complete the FDOT Work Plan, which includes a Beulah I-10 interchange
- Provide $2.5 million in funds for a wastewater lift station at OLF-8 on Nine Mile Road
- Reform for residential property insurance in the state
Other items were discussed, but commissioners ultimately decided to limit their asks to three items.
Boil Water Notice Notice Area Of Highway 29 Between Quintette, Pinoak
November 30, 2022
A broken water main at Highway 29 and Hazzard Lane has led to a boil water notice for some Cottage Hill Water Works customers.
All Cottage Hill Water Works customers on Hazzard Lane and on Highway 29 from Quintette Road south to Pineoak Lane are under a precautionary boil water notice until further notice.
The utility is advising, as a precaution, that all water used for drinking, cooking, making ice, brushing teeth, or washing dishes be boiled. A rolling boil of one minute is sufficient. As an alternative bottled water may be used.
This precautionary boil water notice will remain in effect until the problem has been corrected and a bacteriological survey shows that the water is safe to drink.
This story will be updated when the boil water notice is lifted.
Bonus Gallery: NHS Cheerleaders, Band, NJROTC And Fans
November 30, 2022
Here is a photo bonus gallery with the Northview band, cheerleaders, NJROTC and fans from the last two playoff games.
Click here to view the gallery.
Northview (12-0) will host the Fightin’ Tigers of Union County High (8-2) at 7 p.m. Tickets are $9 and are available at GoFan.co.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Escambia County Chooses EREC To Bring 2 Gigabit Fiber Internet To North Escambia
November 29, 2022
The Escambia County Commission voted Monday to pursue an agreement with Escambia River Electric Cooperative to bring high speed fiber internet directly to thousands of homes and businesses in rural northern Escambia County potentially as early as next summer.
Escambia County will contribute $6 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act funds to the project across EREC’s franchise area, which is roughly north of Barrineau Park Road. EREC will provide the balance of the estimated $23 to $24 million project or apply for other grants and funding.
“4,200 to 4,300 homes and businesses, which is every single home and business in their footprint,” District 5 Commissioner Steven Barry said. “It’s fiber to every one of those. It’s nearly 700 miles of fiber, 500 aerial, 200 underground. And what’s been negotiated is a $6 million contribution from county ARPA funds.”
Three basic speed tiers are proposed are:
- 100 Mbps/100 Mbps — $49.95/month
- 1 Gig/1Gig — $79.95/month
- 2 Gig/2Gig — $99.95/month
Under the Affordable Connectivity Program, ACP, Lifeline, and other low-income benefits will lower by $30 per month, or as low as $19.95 per month.
EREC is a member-owned cooperative founded in 1939.
“I could not be more excited to be moving forward with a partnership with EREC. The ability to bring real fiber high speed internet access to every home and business in their service area is a dream come true,” Barr said. “By utilizing only federal dollars, thousands of residents will gain access to something that is crucial, and Escambia County has the ability to partner with EREC, a cooperative that is owned by our friends and neighbors. It’s truly a blessing to be able to bring access to this service to rural areas neglected by internet providers for so long.”
“We are very excited to learn of the Escambia County award,” EREC CEO Ryan Campbell said. “All of us at Escambia River Electric Cooperative are eager to bring broadband fiber to unserved and underserved homes and businesses in this rural county. We are in the very early design stage, and we look forward to communicating more about our plans in early 2023.”
EREC’s fiber ring will also connect about two dozen county-owned facilities in the cooperative’s service area.
EREC will partner with Conexon Connect under the proposal.
“Conexon Connect works predominantly with electric cooperatives, building networks using a methodology and architecture that allows the co-ops to leverage their existing infrastructure, thus powering reliable and affordable broadband service for 100% of their members,” according to the company’s website.
The county commission’s vote during a special meeting Monday afternoon was to negotiate a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with EREC, and provide support as EREC applies for Florida Department of Economic Opportunity grants. The MOU will return to the BOCC for final approval at a future meeting.
The vote was 4-1, with newly-elected District 2 Commissioner Mike Kohler voting no after saying that he did not have time to read and become familiar with program documentation.
“I can’t vote for something if I don’t have complete knowledge on it, and I don’t,” he said.
Other proposals were received from Cox Communications, Florida Power & Light’s sister company NextCity Networks, and C-Spire Fiber.
Cox proposed connecting about 2,500 homes, while NextCity Networks proposed taking up to 10 years to provide fiber to homes.
Escambia County originally sought proposals to provide fiber to homes north of 10 Mile Road, with another upcoming request for proposals for the area south of 10 Mile Road. The county committed up to $10 million to the area north of 10 Mile Road, with another $12 million for the area to the south.
Accepting the EREC proposal for $6 million for an area further north of 10 Mile Road will shift the second phase to roughly south of Barrineau Park Road.
One Injured In Alleged Wrong Way Driver Crash On Highway 97 In Walnut Hill
November 29, 2022
FOR AN UPDATE ON AN ARREST IN THIS CRASH, CLICK HERE.
One person received minor injuries in a wreck involving two vehicles on Highway 97 in Walnut Hill Monday night.
Witnesses said a pickup truck was traveling in the wrong lane of Highway 97 near Wiggins Lake Road, just north of Walnut Hill Fire Station, about 6:47 p.m.
An oncoming driver reportedly swerved out of the way to avoid a head-on collision, and his pickup truck struck a guardrail. The driver was not injured.
The alleged wrong-way pickup truck came to rest about 1,000 feet away in a ditch after also apparently hitting a guardrail. The driver of the truck was transported by Escambia County EMS to Jay Hospital for treatment.
The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating the crash, which completely closed Highway 97 and backed up traffic for over half a mile.
The Walnut Hill and McDavid stations of Escambia County Fire Rescue and the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office also responded.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.