Northview Boys Weightlifting Headed To Regions; Several Lifters Take First At Districts
April 3, 2023
The Northview High School boys weightlifting team finished as district runner-ups, and several team members earned individual district championships.
Dustin Santinelli earned the district championship in the 119-pound class with a total of 355 pounds. Tony Antrim won the 129-pound class with a total of 360-pounds. Blake Yoder won the district title in the 199-pound class with a total of 525 pounds.
Other medalists included Danny McGaha, third place in the 139-pound division; Jacquez Moore, third place in the 169-pound division; Kaleb Selig third place in the 199-pound division; and Daniel Earnest, third place in the 219-pound division.
Teams at the meet also included Jay, Catholic, and Baker.
“I am very proud of our guys’ consistency this season. We are looking forward to regionals,” Northview boys weightlifting coach Jace Gandy said.
The regional championship will be Friday, April 7 in Port St. Joe.
Pictured top: District medalists from the Northview High School boys weightlifting team. Pictured below: The complete team. Photos for NorthEsambia.com, click to enlarge.
Tate Girls Tennis Improves To 12-1 With Win Over Pace
April 3, 2023
The Tate High School Aggies girls tennis team defeated Pace Friday 6-1. With the win, the improve to 12-1 for the season. The Tate girls tennis team’s last home match is Monday against Gulf Breeze. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
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AAA: Gas Prices Likely To Rise After Production Cuts
April 3, 2023
Florida gas prices increased 10 cents per gallon last week, and additional price hikes are likely to come, after Saudi Arabia unexpectedly announced plans to cut oil production, according to AAA.
On Sunday, Saudi Arabia and other OPEC+ countries announced surprise plans to cut oil production by more than a million barrels per day, beginning in May. The cuts are reportedly an effort to prop up oil prices, which recently plummeted to 15-month lows due to fuel demand concerns created by the banking crisis.
The average price per gallon in Escambia County was $3.27. A North Escambia low of $3.18 was at a station on Highway 29 in Cantonment. Pensacola prices were as low as $3.08 at the warehouse clubs.
NorthEscambia.com file photo.
Tate High Students Prepare 57,600 Meals For The Needy (With Gallery)
April 2, 2023
Tate High School FFA and volunteers worked Friday to package 57,600 meals for the community through Meals of Hope.
“Food insecurity is real within Escambia County,” said Austin Courson, agricultural educator and FFA advisor. “It’s important to FFA and other local organizations to partner together and help fight food insecurity for many within the Pensacola region. This gives our students hands-on experience while encouraging them to work together to meet the needs of our community.”
They exceeded their goal of feeding 55,000 with the Meals of Hope project by packaging these meals in under three hours.
All the packaged meals will be distributed to families in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties. Sponsors include the Florida Farm Bureau, Feeding the Gulf Coast, Big John’s Heating and Air, The Mathes Group, and Pensacola Energy.
For more photos, click or tap here.
Volunteers included current students in Tate’s FFA, softball, baseball, football, Early Childhood Academy and Tate FFA Alumni.
Meals of Hope is a nonprofit organization that is committed to bringing people together to fight the hunger epidemic.
Pictured: Tate High School students and volunteers prepared 57,600 meals for the community through the Males of Hope program on Friday. Photos by Erica Langton and Avery Kreiser/Tate High School Yearbook for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Northview Honors Kara Santorelli As Prom Queen, With Mural On Graffiti Bridge
April 2, 2023
Northview High School named Kara Santorelli as prom queen Saturday night.
The 18-year senior died in a collision with a wrong-way driver early the morning of March 17 on Highway 29 just south of Quintette Road.
Students honored her by naming her prom queen, dedicating the prom to her, and with a mural on Graffiti Bridge.
“Kara. Your wings were ready, but our hearts were not.”
Pensacola’s Graffiti Bridge was painted Saturday in remembrance of Santorelli. T
Also Saturday night, senior Rustin Pope was named prom king.
Courtesy photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Century Special Election Results Certified; Swearing In On Good Friday
April 2, 2023
The results have been officially certified for last Tuesday’s Century special election for two council seats, and the new members will be sworn in on Good Friday, April 7.
Good Friday is a holiday. The Century Town Hall will be closed, but will open for a 6 p.m. Friday for a swearing in ceremony. The town charter requires that council members be sworn in 10 days following a special election.
The Escambia County Canvassing Board met late last week to certify the results. There were no changes in the vote totals we first reported.
In January, Shelisa McCall and Alicia Johnson were appointed to the council after no one ran for two seats during the 2022 election. Both won during the special election by about a two to one margin.
Century Town Council Seat 3
- Shelisa McCall – 89 votes (66.92%)
- Evelyn Webber – 44 votes (33.08%)
Century Town Council Seat 4
- Eddie Hammond – 43 votes (32.58%)
- Alicia Johnson – 89 votes (67.42%)
Turnout was just 14.06% (136) of the 967 eligible registered voters cast a vote. There were 32 votes cast by mail and 104 in person at Century Town Hall.
Photos: Bratt Community Easter Egg Hunt
April 2, 2023
The First Baptist Church of Bratt held a community Easter egg hunt Saturday morning at Travis Nelson Park in Bratt.
In a light rain, dozens of children hunted eggs and enjoyed snacks after learning about Easter and the Resurrection.
For a photo gallery, click here.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Remains Of Soldier Killed In Korean War Are Home For Burial In Escambia County
April 2, 2023
The remains of an Escambia County soldier killed during the Korean War have returned home, and his funeral service will be held Tuesday.
In the summer of 1950, U.S. Army Pfc. Ithiel E. Whatley, 19, of Pensacola, was awarded the Purple Heart, Army Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Korean Service Medal with one Bronze Service Star, Presidential Unit Citation, Combat Infantry Badge, United Nations Service Medal, Republic of Korean War Service Medal and Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation.
Whatley was a member of M Company, 3rd Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action on July 12 after this unit was engaged in a fighting withdrawal south of Chochi’won, South Korea, towards the Kum River. While it is possible Whatley was captured, there was no record or eyewitness accounts of him being held as a prisoner of war, and no recovered remains were ever identified as him. The Army issued a presumptive finding of death on January 4, 1954 and declared Whatley non-recoverable in January 1956.
On October 6, 1950, a set of remains, designated X-143 Taejon, was recovered from the Kum River and transported to the United Nations Military Cemetery Taejon, where they were buried with 164 sets of remains previously recovered from the area where Whatley is believed to have gone missing. X-143 was sent with other unidentified remains to the Central Identification Unit – Kokura in Japan in 1951, but was unable to be identified. They were then transported to Hawaii in 1956 where they were buried at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, also known as Punchbowl Cemetery, with the other unknowns from the Korean War.
In July 2019, during Phase 2 of DPAA’s Korean War Disinterment Project, X-143 Taejon was disinterred from the Punchbowl and transferred to the DPAA Laboratory at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, for analysis.
To identify Whatley’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental and anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.
Whatley’s name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the Punchbowl, along with the others who are still missing from the Korean War. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Graveside services with full military honors will be held at Barrancas National Cemetery Tuesday, April 4 at 3 p.m.
He was survived by his mother, Willie Inez Whatley Warren and brother Nathaniel Mack who have both since died and his sister Roylene Mack Hairelson who is still living.
Here Are This Week’s Road Construction Trouble Zones
April 2, 2023
Drivers will encounter traffic disruptions on the following state roads in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties as crews perform construction and maintenance activities.
Escambia County:
- U.S. 98 Pensacola Bay Bridge Replacement – Drivers will encounter alternating lane closures on the Pensacola Bay Bridge Sunday, April 2 through Saturday, April 8 from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. as crews perform paving operations. On Tuesday, April 4, U.S. 98 westbound (Gulf Breeze to Pensacola) will have lane closures beginning at 10 p.m. due to Bands on the Beach.
- U.S. 29 (North Century Boulevard) Resurfacing Between Henry Street and Cottage Street in Century – Drivers on U.S. 29 (North Century Boulevard) will encounter a lane shift and lane closures through April. The two U.S. 29 northbound travel lanes and the center turn lane will be closed between Hatties Boulevard and East Cottage Street. During the closure, one northbound and one southbound lane will remain open using the current southbound travel lanes. Signage will be in place to safely direct drivers through the work zone.
- Interstate 10 (I-10) Escambia County Welcome Center – The truck parking lot at the Escambia County Interstate 10 Welcome Center, located at mile marker four, will be temporarily closed until summer when the Welcome Center improvements are complete. The front and middle car parking lots are open.
- East Nine Mile Road (U.S. 90A) Roadway Improvements from Chemstrand Road to East of Baldridge Drive – The bicycle lanes are temporarily closed to allow crews to widen the turn lanes and construct new five-foot bicycle lanes. In addition, the speed limit on this section of East Nine Mile Road has been reduced from 45 mph to 35 mph as vehicles and bicycles will share the roadway. The closure and speed limit reduction will be in place until the project is complete next summer.
- · Pensacola Boulevard (U.S. 29) Resurfacing from Brent Lane (State Road (S.R.) 296) to North of I-10 – Drivers will encounter alternating lane closures Sunday, April 2 through Thursday, April 6 from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. as crews pave the roadway.
- Lillian Highway (S.R. 298) Resurfacing from North of U.S. 98 to East of Fairfield Drive (S.R. 727) and Lillian Highway at Blue Angel Parkway (S.R. 173) – Drivers will encounter nighttime lane closures on Lillian Highway, between U.S. 98 and Blue Angel Parkway, Monday, April 3 to Friday, April 7 from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Crews will be performing drainage and shoulder widening work.
- Navy Boulevard (S.R. 295) Resurfacing from North of the Bayou Grande Bridge to Gulf Beach Highway/Barrancas Avenue (S.R. 292) – Drivers will encounter outside lane closures on Navy Boulevard southbound, from Barrancas Avenue to the Bayou Grande Bridge, Friday, March 31 through Friday, April 7 from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Crews will be working on curb, gutters and sidewalks.
- Sorrento Road (S.R. 292) Resurfacing from the Theo Baars Bridge to Bauer Road - Crews will be performing concrete work near the right turn lane from Sorrento Road to Bauer Road southbound nightly between 9 p.m. and 5:30 a.m. Flagging operations will be in place to direct drivers through the work zone.
- S.R. 289 (North 9th Avenue) Routine Utility Maintenance North of Ash Drive – Motorists may encounter intermittent lane closures Sunday, April 2 and Monday, April 3 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. for routine utility maintenance.
Santa Rosa County:
- U.S. 98 Pensacola Bay Bridge Replacement – Drivers will encounter alternating lane closures on the Pensacola Bay Bridge Sunday, April 2 through Saturday, April 8 from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. as crews perform paving operations. On Tuesday, April 4, U.S. 98 westbound (Gulf Breeze to Pensacola) will have lane closures beginning at 10 p.m. due to Bands on the Beach.
- U.S. 90 Bridge Replacement over Simpson River – Construction crews have temporarily shifted eastbound traffic to the westbound bridge over Simpson River. The shift is expected to be in place through April 2023. During this time, there will be two westbound lanes and one eastbound travel lane using the westbound bridge. Due to the traffic shift, there will not be dedicated bike lanes on the bridge. Drivers are urged to use extra caution as they will be temporarily sharing the bridge with cyclists. Drivers are also reminded that the speed limit is 35 mph through the work zone.
- U.S. 98 Widening from Bayshore Road to Portside Drive – Motorists will encounter the following traffic impacts:
- Median and turn-lane closures from Bayshore Road to Tiger Point Drive.
- Intermittent lane closures and additional median closures between S.R. 281 and Bayshore Road Sunday, April 2, through Friday, April 7, from 9 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. for stormwater drainage improvements and paving operations.
- S.R. 87 Routine Utility Maintenance South of the East River Bridge – Motorists may encounter intermittent lane closures Tuesday, April 4 from 8:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. for routine utility maintenance.
All activities are weather-dependent and may be delayed or rescheduled in the event of inclement weather.
Jury Convicts Century Felon Of Cocaine Trafficking, Weapons Offenses
April 1, 2023
A Century felon was convicted this week on drugs and weapons charges.
Kendrick Jamar Washington was found guilty by an Escambia County jury of trafficking in cocaine, carrying an unlicensed concealed firearm and carrying a concealed firearm while trafficking in cocaine. He will be sentenced in late May.
On June 24, 2022, Washington allegedly pointed “an assault rifle” at his sister and threatened to kill her, according to an arrest report. She headed to the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office Century Precinct to file a report.
During the investigation, deputies were alerted of an armed disturbance on Ashford Alley off Jefferson Avenue and detained Washington. A .38 Special revolver and a Del-Ton rifle were recovered from Washington, along with a .223 round in the chamber, 13 rounds in the magazine of the rifle and five rounds in his pocket, according to an arrest report.
Deputies also found a plastic bag with 91.7 grams of powdered cocaine, 18.9 grams of crack cocaine and 1.6 grams of marijuana, according to court documents. A total of $4,642 in currency was found on Washington’s person, deputies said.
Charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and possession of marijuana against Washington were dropped.