Month: August 2024

At least four deaths have been confirmed as a result of Hurricane Debby, which made landfall today on Florida’s Big Bend at 7 a.m. ET as a Category 1 hurricane with 80 mph winds. The National Hurricane Center said that Debby was downgraded at 11 a.m. on Monday to a tropical storm, but its affects still continue to ravage the state as it moves inland with flooding rain, damaging winds and a life-threatening storm surge.

Debby, which made landfall as a Category 1 storm, touched down near Steinhatchee about 7 a.m. ET with winds estimated at 80 mph. After landfall, power outages skyrocketed to more than 300,000 utility customers in the Sunshine State, according to PowerOutage.us.

Officials confirmed two deaths in Dixie County, Florida, as Debby approached the coastline: a 38-year-old woman and a 12-year-old boy, both from Crawfordville, were killed in a crash just before 9:30 p.m. Sunday on US Highway 19 after their car lost control and struck a guardrail. Additionally, a 13-year-old boy was also killed about 8 a.m. Monday after a tree fell on a mobile home in Levy County; and a fourth victim, a 64-year-old man from New Albany, Mississippi, died after the tractor-trailer he was driving on southbound Interstate 75 near the Tampa Bypass Canal lost control on the wet roadway, according to Florida State Troopers.

Forecasters continue to warn residents of life-threatening storm surges in Florida and major flooding across southeastern states, with downpours and flooding hitting Florida’s Gulf Coast hard, with more than 10 inches of rain in some areas. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency for 61 counties expected to be affected by the storm. In a statement, his office said that 3,000 National Guard members have been mobilized.

The slow-moving storm is expected to dump extreme amounts of nearly 2 feet of rain on parts of Georgia and South Carolina by mid-week, with the National Hurricane Center is forecasting “potentially historic rainfall” across southeastern Georgia and South Carolina through Friday, causing widespread flash flooding and life-threatening conditions.

Governors in Florida, Georgia and South Carolina have all declared a state of emergency, and DeSantis shared in a statement: “I think what’s going to make this much different than what we had with Idalia is it is going to move very slowly once it enters Florida – it’s going to be southern Georgia, northern Florida – and it is just going to drop an inordinate amount of water on the north-central Florida region.”

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One deputy was killed and two other deputies were injured Friday night in central Florida when they were “ambushed” after responding to a disturbance Friday night.  Lake County Sheriff’s Peyton Grinnell said during a news conference that the shooting happened at a home in Eustis about 40 miles north of Orlando around 8 p.m., after deputies responded to a disturbance call.

Grinnell said at the news conference: “We went to a disturbance at one house – the initial call was for a disturbance – and then, while we were on that scene, somebody at that scene told the deputies they needed to go to the other house, that that’s where there was a problem happening.” Deputies saw what appeared to be a door kicked in, so they entered the residence to conduct a well-being check, when they walked into an ambush, Grinnell said, and were “met with a hail of gunfire ..It was a very violent scene”

The first deputy who entered the house was injured and trapped inside while another deputy was able to get out. Other law enforcement responded, and when they went to rescue the trapped deputy, they were again met with gunfire and another deputy was struck, the sheriff said.  One deputy who was shot in the shoulder and did not require surgery, and was in stable condition early Saturday. A second deputy was shot multiple times in the armpit and stomach area and was in serious/critical condition after surgery early Saturday. The third deputy who was trapped inside the home, has died.

The rescue team involved tactical equipment to tear down walls in a desperate attempt to rescue the deputy who was trapped inside the residence.  Once the scene was secured, deputies found multiple weapons inside, including handguns and long guns.   All three suspects in the shooting were also killed, Herrell said. No official cause of death has been determined, however the sheriff’s office said their gunshot wounds appear to be self-inflicted.

Lake County Sheriff’s Lt. John Herrell identified the slain deputy as 28-year-old Master Deputy Sheriff Bradley Michael Link, whom he described as a five-year veteran, joining the sheriff’s office in 2019. Herrell said Link was a “good deputy,” and became emotional while speaking about him during a press conference on Saturday: “Deputy Link wasn’t even supposed to be there. He wasn’t even part of the road patrol unit. He heard the call go out, he went there to assist .. Brad, as our Sheriff’s Office family knew him, touched the lives of all who were blessed enough to work with him; his contributions and the impact of this loss will not soon be forgotten.”

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A 5-year-old boy died and a second child was injured when a strong wind gust sent a bounce house airborne during a baseball game Friday night in Waldorf, Maryland. Waldorf is located about 30 miles south of Washington, D.C. and 56 miles south of Baltimore.

Officials in Charles County said that the incident occurred at about 9:20 p.m. local time at Regency Furniture Stadium in Waldorf, during a Southern Maryland Blue Crabs game. Several children were playing inside the bounce house adjacent to the playing field when a wind gust sent it about 15 to 20 feet into the air. The children fell out of the bounce house before it landed on the playing field.

A 5-year-old boy was rushed to a nearby hospital, where he died, while a second child was airlifted to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.  Emergency personnel who were stationed at the stadium for the game, trainers from the baseball team and volunteer first responders in attendance all began administering medical care.

The Blue Crabs play in the independent Atlantic League of Professional Baseball; the team said that Saturday’s game and all corresponding baseball activities were canceled. Courtney Knichel, general manager of the Blue Crabs, released a statement saying: “Our entire organization shares our condolences with the family mourning the loss of a child, and concern for the child who was injured. Our thoughts and prayers are with them all.”

Reuben B. Collins II Esq., the Charles County Government commissioner president, in a statement: “We extend our deepest empathy to the children and their families during this difficult time. We thank our EMS team and the Maryland State Police for their swift actions to ensure the children received immediate care.”

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