The U.S. Senate has confirmed Pentagon official Robert Wilkie to be secretary of Veterans Affairs. The vote was 86-9, and many Democrats voted for him after Wilkie at his confirmation hearing he will not privatize the government’s second-largest department. Wilkie is President Trump’s third pick for the job in 18 months after firing his first…… MORE
Yearly Archives: 2018
FREE SCHOOL MEALS
Students at most public schools in Escambia County will be able to get free breakfast and lunch – regardless of income – during the upcoming school year at 45 schools in Escambia County. The Community Eligibility Provision program means that parents of the students at these schools are not required to submit an application for…… MORE
PENSACOLA NEAR-DROWNING
A 7-year-old boy was taken to a local hospital by ambulance following a near drowning at a hotel on Pensacola Boulevard yesterday. Escambia County Emergency Services responded to the Studio 6 hotel at 6950 Pensacola Boulevard just before 6:30 p.m. yesterday. The boy was taken to Sacred Heart Hospital by ambulance, but was not transported…… MORE
CRAB ISLAND DROWNING
The Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office says the body of a Pensacola teenager was recovered Sunday morning at Destin’s Crab Island by their Dive Team. 18-year-old Zion Foster was believed to have drowned on Saturday night after being caught by the currents and was unable to get back to his pontoon boat. Two people on another…… MORE
PHONE SCAM
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office is warning residents of a phone scam. Investigators say the scammer called the potential victim, claiming to be an employee of the Sheriff’s Office and told him if he did not provide payment right away a warrant would be issued for his arrest. The scammers have created a fake number…… MORE
BAY COUNTY AIRBOAT COLLISION
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission says four people were injured Friday night when two commercial airboats collided in West Bay in Bay County near the State 79 bridge. Bekah Nelson, a spokeswoman for the FWC, said the investigation has been taken over by the Coast Guard because the collision involved two licensed commercial…… MORE
FSU STATUE REMOVED
Florida State University President John Thrasher announced that a statue of Francis Eppes, a grandson of founding father Thomas Jefferson, would be relocated from the university’s Legacy Walk, where it has been since 2002. Eppes has drawn criticism because he was a former slave owner and justice of the peace who helped capture escaped slaves.…… MORE
NEW BAY BRIDGE CONCRETE CRACKING
The Pensacola News Journal is reporting construction on the new Pensacola Bay Bridge project has been stopped twice over the last several months because cracks were found in the concrete bridge decking. The Florida Department of Transportation said work was halted from April 5th to the 16th and from June 26th to 27th. Senator Doug…… MORE
ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT
The Trump administration has announced it wants to rework the Endangered Species Act, which seeks to prevent plants and animals from becoming extinct. The Endangered Species Act was signed into law by President Richard Nixon in 1973. Proposed changes would make it is easier to remove species from the protected list. The proposal also makes…… MORE
SLOT MACHINE JACKPOT
A Gulf Breeze man – identified only as “Fred S.” won almost 1.3 million dollars at a ten-dollar slot machine at a casino in Biloxi Wednesday morning. He was playing the Double Diamond, slot machine and it was definitely his lucky day, as he had just previously hit a $14,000 jackpot in the High Limits…… MORE
