Last night psycho went nuts and shot a group of Chilean students at their town home apartment in Miramar Beach, FL. Two people were killed and three are in critical condition. Here's a link for more details: http://www.nwfdailynews.com/…dents.html

Miramar Beach isn't that far away from Pensacola, and it freaks me out that something this horrible can happen so close to where I live. Northwest Florida is traditionally a quiet area (when it's not spring break or hurricane season) and stuff like this really unnerves us.

My prayers are with the family victims. To have something bad happen to your loved ones who are literally thousands of miles away can be a difficult and frustrating experience. Hopefully, the US and Chilean governments can quickly coordinate and help these families out.

Here's a link to the initial report about the shooting. It talks more about the shooter who apparently was an insane radical, anti-immigrant Republican Party supporter. Link: http://www.nwfdailynews.com/…eriff.html

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Labels: local news

Labels: local news, videos

Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola, Florida is being lit up in pink at night as part of Breast Cancer Awareness month.

If you're a local and drive anywhere near Cordova Mall at night, then I'm pretty sure you've seen the massive hospital glowing in pink. If you haven't seen it, then I suggest taking a little drive about town at night and taking a look. I think it's pretty neat.

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Labels: local news

ESCAMBIA COUNTY (FL) – The Escambia County Health Department is issuing a Health Alert for West Nile virus following the report of the first adult case of West Nile Virus since 2006. Residents and visitors are urged to take the necessary precautions to avoid being bitten by an infected mosquito.

The 5Ds of Prevention

• Dusk and Dawn: Do not go outdoors when mosquitoes are seeking blood during the twilight hours of dusk and at dawn.
  
• Dress: Wear clothing that covers most of your skin.
  
• DEET: When the potential exists for exposure to mosquitoes, repellents containing DEET are recommended. Check labels before using a product on infants and children. If an infant is too young to wear repellent and must be outdoors, a parent should place mosquito netting over the infant’s carrier. Picaridin and oil of lemon eucalyptus are other repellent options for individuals who cannot wear DEET.
  
• Drainage: Check around your home to rid the area of standing water, which is where mosquitoes can lay their eggs. Elimination of breeding sites is one of the keys to prevention.
  
• Screens: Make sure window and door screens are in good condition, without any tears or holes that allow mosquitoes to enter your home. Place screens on open windows.

Eliminate Mosquito Breeding Sites

• Clean out eaves, troughs and gutters.
• Remove old tires or drill holes in those used in playgrounds to drain.
• Turn over or remove empty plastic pots.
• Pick up all beverage containers and cups.
• Check tarps on boats or other equipment that may collect water.
• Pump out bilges on boats.
• Replace water in birdbaths and pet or other animal feeding dishes at least once a week.
• Change water in plant trays, including hanging plants, at least once a week.
• Remove vegetation or obstructions in drainage ditches that prevent the flow of water.

What is West Nile Virus?

West Nile virus is a potentially serious illness – about one in 150 people infected with WNV will develop severe illness.

The severe symptoms can include high fever, headache, neck stiffness, stupor, disorientation, coma, tremors, convulsions, muscle weakness, vision loss, numbness and paralysis. These symptoms may last several weeks, and neurological effects may be permanent.

Mild Symptoms in Some: Up to 20 percent of the people who become infected have symptoms such as fever, headache, and body aches, nausea, vomiting, and sometimes swollen lymph glands or a skin rash on the chest, stomach and back. Symptoms can last for as short as a few days, though even healthy people have become sick for several weeks.

No Symptoms in Most People: Approximately 80 percent of people (about 4 out of 5) who are infected with WNV will not show any symptoms at all.

# # #

Source: Escabia County Health Department Web Site - Press Release

For Immediate Release: September 8, 2008
Media Contact: Molly Payne-Hardin Escambia County Health Department Phone: 850-595-6410

Labels: Health Alert, local news

• East Brent Baptist Church, located at 4801 North Davis Highway, in Pensacola is open for local residents and as a host shelter for travelers. Nurses are available for special needs clients. No advance registration required.

• 42 local residents – 113 out of town
• 1 special needs patient with 2 caregivers

• Blue Springs Baptist Conference Center, 2650 Lakeshore Drive, Marianna.
• Jackson County Ag Center, 3631 U.S. 90, Marianna

• First Baptist Church of Woodville, 9500 Woodville Highway, Tallahassee
• First Church of the Nazarene, 1983 Mahan Drive, Tallahassee
• Saint John’s Episcopal Church, 211 North Monroe Street, Tallahassee

• First Baptist Church of Defuniak Springs, 210 East Live Oak Avenue, Defuniak Springs

• Shalimar Methodist Church, 1 Old Ferry Road, Shalimar

• Milton Community Center, 5689 Byrom St., Milton

• Gulf Power as of 10 a.m. is reporting 3,406 customers without power in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties; 2,765 in Escambia, 641 Santa Rosa.
• In Okaloosa County, 506 people are without power; Bay County, 37; Washington County, 22.
• Crews will begin working to bring the power back on as soon as conditions improve. Lynn Erickson, company spokeswoman, said crews cannot be in bucket trucks until the winds die down below 35 mph, but in areas where the interruptions, don't require crews to work in the air, work is under way to repairs.

• Report power outages to (800) GU-POWER.

• The Pensacola Visitor Information Center is providing an up-to-date list of available lodging and pet kennels. Call (850) 434-1234 during business hours (8 a.m. to 4 p.m.).

• Pensacola Regional Airport is currently open. Please contact your airline directly for flight availability on both returns and departures.

• ECAT services are suspended Monday for Labor Day.

• ECUA will not have trash pickup today due to Labor Day. Customers scheduled for today pickup will be serviced on Tuesday. Customers scheduled for Tuesday pickup will be serviced on Wednesday.

• UWF and Escambia County schools are scheduled to be open on Tuesday.
• UWF students in affected areas who may be delayed in returning to campus Tuesday should contact the Division of Student Affairs at (850) 474-2214 or e-mail StudentAffairs@uwf.edu.

• Extremely rough surf conditions exist at the beaches. Red flag conditions at both beaches prohibit swimming in the gulf until further notice. People are reminded to stay out of the water.
• Trolley Service on Pensacola Beach has been suspended until further notice.

• FEMA –Hurricane Gustav Evacuee Locator Service, call (800) 588-9822, or visit http://www.fema.gov/
• Emergency contact information for other areas can be found at http://www.escambiaemergency.com/gulfcoastcontacts.asp

• Direct concerns about possible price gouging to 1-866-966-7226.
• Citizen Information line: 471-6600.
• Official Escambia County Websites: http://www.bereadyescambia.com/ and http://www.myescambia.com/.

Labels: Gustave, local news, weather

• As a precautionary measure, a voluntary evacuation of campers, mobile homes and Navarre Beach was issued at 11 a.m. Sunday morning.

• The citizen information line is activated until further notice. The number is 983- INFO/4636 or (800) 225-7421. Call volume has been high throughout the day.

• Emergency management staff will monitor river levels, but no flooding is expected.
• Standing water on Gulf Boulevard on Navarre Beach near South Carolina Street has been reported.
• The eastern section of Madura Road in Tiger Point and the adjacent cul-de-sacs. The stormwater lift station has been turned off until the storm surge subsides.
• Minor damage was reported from a possible tornado on Ceylon Drive in Midway.
• A family needed assistance leaving their home on Andrew Jackson Drive in Floridatown due to storm surge.
• Minor beach erosion has been reported at Navarre Beach.

• At the Red Cross shelter at the Milton Community Center, 5629 Byrom St., there were 110 people, including nine staffers, 60 Santa Rosa residents and 34 evacuees.
• As of Sunday night, 36 rooms of 576 hotel rooms in Santa Rosa are estimated to be unoccupied. Evacuees represent an estimated 95 percent of that occupancy.
• Evacuees seeking accommodations can visit www.floridabeachestorivers.com

• FEMA –Hurricane Gustav Evacuee Locator Service; call (800) 588-9822 or visit www.fema.gov.

• Escambia River Electric Cooperative, Inc. is experiencing very few scattered outages in northern Escambia and Santa Rosa counties in Florida. Crews have been able to quickly restore the isolated outages. EREC will continue to monitor the storm closely and respond accordingly

• The City of Gulf Breeze has established an e-mail list to provide community and emergency information to residents.
  
  
  • Sign up at the City’s website: www.cityofgulfbreeze.com and follow the link under “Emails from the City” on the front page.

Labels: Gustave, local news, weather

Labels: local news, pictures, weekend fun

Labels: beach, local news

Labels: local news, web site attacks

• FOX 10 news reports 3 people being hit by lightening.


• WEAR 3 news reports 4 people being hit by lightening.


• PNJ.com reports 4 people being shocked and 6 more people being treated for other injuries

As of this posting, the Blue Angels Air Show was to be rescheduled for 2 p.m. Sunday, July 13.

Labels: local news, weather

Labels: local news