Camp Fire Kids Attend Easter Egg Hunt At Century Health And Rehab
April 15, 2017
The children at the Camp Fire Century Youth Learning Center recently attended an annual Easter Egg Hunt with the staff and residents at the Century Health and Rehabilitation Center. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Tate Softball Beats Niceville; Tate Baseball Beats Pace
April 15, 2017
SOFTBALL
Tate 9, Niceville 6
The Tate Lady Aggies came alive in the bottom of the fifth Friday on their way to a 9-6 win over Niceville.
The Aggies added six runs in the fifth for a 7-1 lead before Niceville answered with five runs in the top of the sixth.
Hannah Brown pitched a complete game for Tate, allowing 10 hits, six runs, three errors, walking three and striking out four. She was 3-4 at the plate with a double.
For Tate: Hayden Lindsay 2-4, 2R; Belle Wolfenden 1-3, RBI; Shelby Ullrich 2-3, R, RBI; Leslee Scruggs 2-4, R, 3 RBI 2B; Ashely Lundquist R; Shelby McLean 1-3, 2 RBI; 2B; Deazia Nickerson 1-3, R.
BASEBALL
Tate 7, Pace 2
The Tate Aggies beat Pace 7-2 Friday night.
Gabe Castro pitched a fulll game for Tate, allowing four hits, two runs, two errors an striking out one batter.
For Tate: Reid Halfacre 1-2, R; Mason Land 3-3, R, 2RBI, 2B; Logan McGuffey 1-4, 2RBI; Logan Blackmon 1-2, R, RBI; Jesse Sherrill 2-3, R; Corben Young, R; Blake Anderson R; RBI; Ethan Bloodworth R.
Blue Wahoos Fall To Shuckers 6-2
April 15, 2017
The Biloxi Shuckers sent nine batters to the plate in the bottom of the second and scored five runs to end the Pensacola Blue Wahoos three-game winning streak, 6-2, Friday at MGM Park.
Biloxi got four singles from right fielder Clint Coulter, second baseman Javier Betancourt, catcher Dustin Houle and shortstop Maurico Dubon and a line drive double to left field from third baseman Angel Ortega to score the first four runs in the inning and go ahead, 4-0. Ortega capped the scoring when he crossed the plate when first baseman Dustin DeMuth grounded into a force out.
Blue Wahoos righty Keury Mella lasted just 1.2 innings. He gave up five earned runs on six hits and struck out two. The Cincinnati Reds’ organization 19th ranked prospect is now 0-2 on the year.
Pensacola used four pitchers in relief of Mella and allowed just one more run to the Shuckers on five hits. Biloxi Michael Reed hit his second home run of the season to left field off of Blue Wahoos reliever Alex Powers in the fourth inning to put Biloxi up, 6-2. Powers pitched 3.1 innings in relief, giving up three hits and striking out one.
Seven of Biloxi’s nine starters earned hits in the game.
The Blue Wahoos had pulled within, 5-2, in the top of the fourth inning when second baseman Josh VanMeter doubled to center field with two outs to drive in both Brian O’Grady and Powers. VanMeter has three doubles this season and is hitting .292 on the year.
Blue Wahoos left fielder Gabriel Guerrero went 2-5 with two singles to raise his average this season to a team-leading .344. He has four multi-hit games in the first eight games.
Pensacola fell into a three-way tie with the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp and Mississippi Braves for first place in the South Division at 5-3.
Hundreds Lose Power In The Walnut Hill Area
April 14, 2017
About 425 Escambia River Electric Cooperative customers in the Walnut Hill, Pineville and Enon areas were without power for about two hours Friday. The outage involved a portion of those served by the Oak Grove Substation on Highway 99A. The cause was reportedly an equipment problem in the substation. The power went out about 11 a.m., and crews restored power just before 1 p.m.
Century Continues To Burn 2016 Tornado Debris
April 14, 2017
Over the past month, the Town of Century has burned just over half of the vegetative debris that was left behind when an EF-3 tornado that ripped through town on February 15, 2016. The process, according to Mayor Henry Hawkins, has been slightly delayed by rain.
The downed trees and limbs were transported to an empty lot in the town’s industrial park. Piles were created for burning out of about 800 dump truck loads of trees and other vegetative debris from the tornado.
The first of those piles was burned Tuesday, March 14. Town employees are burning the piles under permits issued daily from the Florida Forest Service.
NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Camp Fire Lines Street With Pinwheels For Child Abuse And Neglect Month
April 14, 2017
Blue pinwheels line Industrial Boulevard in Century, leading from Highway 4 to the Camp Fire Century Youth Learning Center. April is Child Abuse and Neglect month. In recognition, Camp Fire lined the street with blue and white pinwheels because “there’s no excuse for child abuse”. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Aerial Tour: I-10, Highway 29 Improvements
April 14, 2017
Work on the I-10/U.S. 29 interchange improvements is currently focused on widening on both the interstate and U.S. 29. Scroll down for an aerial tour of the construction activities.
Above: I-10 eastbound near the on-ramp from U.S. 29 north. Crews began driving piles for the new, wider bridge at the end of last year. The new section of the bridge is now close to completion and crews are at work to widen the I-10 eastbound roadway. When the project is complete, drivers will no longer have a left-hand merge from U.S. 29 south to I-10 eastbound. There will be a through travel lane making I-10 eastbound near the interchange three lanes.
Above: I-10 eastbound is on the left and I-10 westbound on the right. Old Palafox Street is at the bottom of the photo, crossing above I-10.
Traffic on I-10 westbound is shifted to the inside so crews can mill, resurface and widen the existing outside shoulder and travel lanes. On I-10 eastbound, crews are grading for the new travel lane and shoulder.
Above: An aerial view of I-10 and U.S. 29 near the interchange. In the bottom center, crews are working off the roadway to construct what will be the new “Exit 10” from I-10 westbound to U.S. 29. Drivers traveling from I-10 westbound to U.S. 29 south will utilize a new traffic signal on U.S. 29. Drivers traveling from I-10 westbound to U.S. 29 north will bypass the new signal and merge onto U.S. 29.
Also in this picture, crews are working in the U.S. 29 median to widen the roadway. U.S. 29 will have three lanes in each direction near the interchange when the project is complete.
Drivers will continue to encounter lane and ramp closures between 8 p.m. and 6 a.m.
Beach This Weekend? Rip Currents, Sun And Large Crowds Expected
April 14, 2017
With large crowds, moderate to strong surf and rip currents, and very high UV index forecasted, Escambia County Public Safety reminds beach goers to stay safe this Easter weekend. Visitors and residents are asked to be patient when driving, wear and reapply sunscreen often, drink plenty of water and only go in the water if you are strong swimmer. No matter your swimming level, it is always best to swim near a lifeguard. Pensacola Beach Lifeguards will be staffing towers at Casino Beach, Park East, Park West and Quietwater beaches.
Before you plan your trip to the beach any day, be sure to check current conditions. The local rip current risk can be checked daily by clicking here and flag conditions are posted on the Pensacola Beach Lifeguards page on MyEscambia.com and on the Pensacola Beach Lifeguards Facebook.
When visiting any beach, please follow these rip current safety tips:
- Never swim alone or at an unguarded beach. When you arrive at the beach, ask the on-duty lifeguard about rip currents and other conditions expected.
- Follow the posted beach condition flag warnings:
- Green Flag - Means “low hazard,” but you should still exercise caution.
- Yellow Flag – Indicates “moderate surf and conditions” such as rip currents. Swimmers should exercise careful caution when entering the water.
- Red Flag – “Strong currents and high surf,” no swimming or wading. Entering the Gulf of Mexico to swim or wade during red flag conditions is illegal in Escambia County.
- Double Red Flags – Only used during hurricanes and other natural disasters. No swimming, wading or surfing in the Gulf of Mexico. Entering the Gulf of Mexico during double red flag conditions is illegal in Escambia County.
- Purple Flag – Indicates “dangerous marine wildlife” may be present. Please use caution when entering the water.
- Rip Current Safety
- Learn how to spot a rip current – Most often, rip currents are identified by a channel of churning, choppy water, an area having a notable difference in water color, a line of foam, seaweed, or debris moving steadily seaward, or a break in the incoming wave pattern.
- Don’t fight the current.
- Don’t swim straight into shore; instead, swim diagonally until you do not feel the rip current’s pull. Then you can swim to shore.
- If you see someone in trouble, get help from a lifeguard. If lifeguards are not available, have someone call 911.
Ransom Multimedia Academy Makes School Board Presentation
April 14, 2017
Students from the Ransom Middle School Multimedia Academy made a presentation to the Escambia County School Board Thursday afternoon during a board workshop. The students created personalized books to stimulate an interest in reading for students at Bellview Middle School. Photos by Kim Stefansson, ECSD, click to enlarge.
Florida Lawmakers Move Forward With No-Fault Repeal
April 14, 2017
Efforts to put the brakes on Florida’s no-fault auto insurance system are moving in the House and Senate.
But with a little more than three weeks remaining in the 60-day legislative session, and critics claiming the change would be a boon to trial lawyers and kill small-business jobs, the proposal is just starting to advance in the Senate.
Also, the bills differ on a redesign of minimum insurance coverage, with the House sponsor saying the Senate version may just be “PIP renamed.”
Thursday morning, the Senate Banking and Insurance Committee voted 8-1 to support a measure (SB 1766) that would eliminate the no-fault system and the requirement that motorists carry personal-injury protection — commonly referred to as PIP — coverage. The bill would require motorists to buy bodily-injury coverage, which most drivers in Florida already have.
A short time later Thursday, the House Commerce Committee voted 22-5 to back a repeal measure (HB 1063) that would impose a different minimum of bodily-injury coverage. That bill is now ready to go to the full House.
Under the decades-old no-fault system, motorists are required to carry $10,000 in personal-injury protection coverage. That coverage, which essentially hasn’t changed since 1979, is designed to pay medical bills after accidents.
“I’m of the fundamental belief that PIP is woefully inadequate in the 21st Century,” Senate bill sponsor Tom Lee, R-Thonotosassa, said. “It’s just lost pace with the cost and medical inflation and treating injured parties.”
The House legislation is projected to save motorists an average of about $81 a year per policy. But that is mostly due to the fact that nearly 90 percent of motorists already have some form of bodily-injury coverage, and the savings would depend on where motorists live.
The change could affect health-care premiums, according to a House staff report.
The Senate proposal, which would require more overall coverage and gradually impose a higher minimum of bodily-injury coverage, is projected at providing $9 to $12 a year savings, depending on where motorists live.
Under Lee’s proposal, starting in 2018, motorists would be required to have $20,000 in personal bodily-injury coverage and $40,000 for multi-person bodily-injury coverage. The minimums would grow two years later to $25,000 and $50,000 and to $30,000 and $60,000 in 2022.
Motorists would also be required to have $5,000 in medical-payments coverage, similar to a component in no-fault.
Sen. Rene Garcia, R-Hialeah, cast the lone vote against the Senate measure, due in part to his desire for the bill to include a $2,500 set-aside for physician emergency-room care.
“That’s extremely important for me,” Garcia said. “I also have a concern that this is a cost shift from auto-insurance to health-insurance policies, and it does nothing to ensure that rates will go down for those that need it the most.”
The House bill, sponsored by Rep. Erin Grall, R-Vero Beach, would take effect Jan. 1. It would mandate motorists get at least $25,000 in coverage for bodily injury or death and $50,000 for bodily injury or death of two or more people.
Medical payments coverage is not included in the House proposal, and Grall doesn’t support its inclusion.
“I’m concerned that if we just rename PIP ‘med pay,’ we will have the same problem,” Grall said.
The proposals to change the auto-insurance system come as lawmakers continue to express dissatisfaction with a 2012 effort to reform the no-fault law. That effort was championed by Gov. Rick Scott and state Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater.
The 2012 law, which set benchmarks for insurers to lower rates, was considered a last-ditch effort to maintain the system after rates increased due to an increase in fraudulent claims.
The law, in part, required people involved in crashes to seek treatment within 14 days and allowed up to $10,000 in benefits for emergency medical conditions, while putting a $2,500 cap on non-emergency conditions.
A state-commissioned study in September by Illinois-based Pinnacle Actuarial Resources determined the 2012 reform law resulted in an estimated statewide average savings in PIP premiums of 15.1 percent.
However, the Office of Insurance Regulation reported that while rates dropped for the first two years, they have grown since 2015 by 25.7 percent — driven by increases in medical care, costs of vehicle body work and distracted drivers.