Behind the Scenes

By Rick Outzen

Behind the scenes at Santa Rosa County’s emergency center

Gulf Breeze City Manager Buzz Eddy asked Councilman Beverly Zimmern and me to man the city’s desk at the Santa Rosa County Emergency Operations Center in Milton on Friday, Sept. 17. Gulf Breeze was digging out from under the aftermath of Hurricane Ivan, but we needed help. And simple phone calls to the EOC were not getting it done.

Beverly and I arrived in Milton wearing our official City of Gulf Breeze polo shirts, carrying legal pads and holding a long list of needs. But nothing could have prepared us for life at the EOC.

For the next four days, we got a crash course in disaster relief and its accompanying bureaucracy. Requests that seemed simple on the surface — generators, water, ice, food and portalets —went unfulfilled without tracking numbers, correct addresses and contact persons. No matter how hard I argued that Gulf Breeze was such a small town that addresses didn’t matter, (“Just get there and we’ll find a place for it,” I insisted.) we had to follow the system.

Gov. Jeb Bush, Congressman Jeff Miller and Sen. Bill Nelson showed up about noon. Within 20 minutes, Beverly was giving Jeb a hug and we got some two-on-one time to press for the repair of the Pensacola Bay Bridge. The Governor was warm, sincere and genuinely concerned. The only other thing I remember about that day was state Rep. Greg Evers being there for the Governor’s visit, but disappearing the second Jeb left. We never saw Evers again.

On Saturday, Sept. 18, I kept hearing on the radio how Escambia County had five comfort stations and were handing out water, ice and food. Santa Rosa County had no such distribution sites. I, along with County Commissioners Robert Hilliard, Gordon Goodin and Don Salter, began demanding something had to give. I must admit that I did my complaining quietly on the side at first ”’ fearing any loud protests would be like complaining to a waiter before he delivers your food. You don’t want him peeing in your soup. The state and federal officials listened to the commissioners. Slowly the relief efforts started to move. Trucks were showing up and finally we got a sense that help really was on the way.

By Sunday, Sept. 19, the lack of organization in the unincorporated areas of south Santa Rosa County began to take its toll. Commissioner Buck Lee had yet to come to the EOC — rumor had it that his neighborhood took a major hit. His successor John Broxson was there, however. The water, ice and food stations were too few and poorly manned. Gulf Breeze had limited supplies and had restricted access to its city to prevent sight-seers, possible looters and ensure its citizens had adequate relief supplies. Tempers flared. I had one EOC official threaten to move our city’s water, ice and food to a location down U.S. Highway 98— which had me livid.

Needless to say I used a few choice words of which my mother would not be too proud. But Gulf Breeze kept its comfort station. We also got more supplies, so that we could take care of people living outside the city.

Monday, Sept. 20, was the true action day. Finally, all the orders we had placed over the past three days started arriving. The water system finally had gained pressure. Power was gradually being restored. Beverly was highly successful playing the good cop to my bad cop and was getting results right and left. I went into politician mode — attending the press conference, doing radio interviews and thanking county officials for their efforts. I still hadn’t shaved since Ivan hit, because I wanted it to be visual reminder to the EOC of the conditions in the south end of the county.

Beverly and I agreed we had done all we could and it was time for the professionals and the paid staff to take the disaster relief to the next level. We needed to get back to repairing our own homes. As frustrating as the last four days had been, we were seeing some of the fruits of our efforts and all of the hard work by some other people in the EOC.

We learned a great deal about the FEMA/EOC system and about how to be better prepared for the next emergency. I just hope we don’t have to use these lessons learned any time soon.

Ivan really blows

By Sam Baltrusis

It’s hard to have a sense of humor after a huge ass hurricane ravages your entire community.

Leave it to the crack staff at the Independent News to focus on those rare, weathered nuggets of humor and weird news ditties that have somehow surfaced after the storm.

SEEN AT THE ALBERTSON’S Two women fighting over a loaf of bread. An elderly third lady comes from behind to swipe the decimated sack from the battered warriors. At this point, the bread is in pieces. One customer points out that if they looked over their shoulder, a rack of Wonder Bread was en route to the cat fight site. The women pick themselves up and proceed to load their shopping cart with the new-found booty.

CREATIVE SIGNAGE Weary Pensacolians tapped into their creative juices in preparation for Hurricane Ivan. Some savvy business owners opted for the fun sexual innuendo over the boring “Closed due to Ivan” spray painted message. Some shops sported the oh-so-popular “Ivan Blows!” signage while others got a bit personal with the “Ivan, Blow Me!” catchphrase. Some homeowners avoided the sexualized approach and cut right to the point. One Blue Angel Parkway resident warned potential carpetbaggers with his fighting message of vigilante justice: “Homeowner on Premises: IS ARMED AND WILL SHOOT!”

HAVING A NIC FIT A generic cigarette shop on Pine Forest Rd. and 297A boarded up its doors with the standard three-quarter inch plywood. The owner spray paints “Trying to Reason With Hurricane Season” over the wood guarding the front entrance. Fast forward four days later, after the shop was broken into by cigarette stealing thugs. Seems that people were helping themselves to the racks of generic smokes. The owner scrawls a retort after finding his store in shambles: “LOOTERS SUCK!”

ANCHORS ON THE EDGE Speaking of nic fits, after almost three full days of stellar hurricane reporting on TV station, WEAR, battle-scarred anchors Sue Straughn and Bob Solarski got into a bit of a sparring match on-air when Solarski touched a nerve with the tried-and-true Straughn. It seems the New Yorker turned Pensacola powerhouse made a comment along the lines that help was out there for hurricane afflicted denizens, but people needed to get off their rears and seek it. Straughn, obviously frazzled by her marathon stint in front of the camera, bit into Solarski with a Norma Rae-esque diatribe defending the common folk. “Some of these people don’t even know if they have a job, much less a home,” she says, barking at the shocked evening news anchor. Sue, you go girl!

SHOCKED JOCK Radio became the only information outlet for most people after thousands lost power. WABB DJ, Dylan, manned the evening shift, while people frantically called in to get the skinny on comfort station locales, school closings and where to score a generator. The WABB shock jock, after manning the stationís “Answer Line” like a pro for days, got a little testy after teams of kids ó and adults ó called in to request songs and ask the same questions over and over. Dylan, a bit unnerved by the listener interaction, slammed callers for being “stupid” while he continued to spin the same nine songs throughout the night. One listener, miffed by Dylan’s acerbic tone, asks: “Am I on the air?” Dylan barks back: “Yes, you are.” The man slams the DJ with: “I just want to tell you that youíre doing a piss-poor job.” The DJ, not losing a beat, hangs up on the man.

GIVE ME GAS Frantic gas guzzlers lined up in droves outside of SAM’S CLUB, one of the first stations in the Pensacola area to serve up fuel. Swarms of Ivan survivors headed to Airport Boulevard in hopes of scoring a full tank of fuel to get them through the week whether it was for their car or generator. After waiting for hours, some people were turned away from the pumps when they realized that the precious gas was only for SAM’S CLUB members. Now, that really blows.Dogberry contortedly obstreperous lupoma rejoin gyrorotor biont ovigenic lithe subdivide hepatomelanosis. Bumble sanhedrim preselection transmit!

Ivan and Bush Hit Home

By Duwayne Escobedo

Ivan and Bush hit home

Hurricane Ivan paid a visit to Al and Reta Boyd’s two-story house and trashed it, leaving only a foundation behind.

Then President George W. Bush came by Sunday, Sept. 19, during a tour of Pensacola to check up on Ivan.

At least, the Boyds braced up their front door for Dubya.

“I’m still kicking myself because I didn’t get the president to sign the door,” says Al Boyd on Wednesday, Sept. 22. “I could have had him and (Florida Gov.) Jeb (Bush) sign that door, put it on E-Bay and bought myself a new house.”

Pictures of the president with Boyd at his obliterated house and the Boyd’s door circulated in newspapers across the country.

The Boyds spent the past 15 years in the waterfront home on Pensacola Bay near Ryan’s Catch restaurant and about a mile from Grand Lagoon ñ one of the most leveled places in Ivan’s path.

The Boyds evacuated after experiencing 2-foot high flooding inside their home during Hurricane Opal in 1995. They figured they would get some water again and moved all of their prized possessions ñ including a grandfather clock and antique jukebox ñ to the second floor.

A few days after Ivan’s floodwaters subsided, the Boyds returned to find that high winds and storm surges wiped their house clean off the slab and scattered it and all their belongings around the neighborhood.

Two other houses on their street are also completely gone.

The side of one condo was ripped off but clothes hung perfectly in a second-story closet.

Al Boyd, 63, a military retiree, sifted through the rubble and began lining his prized collection of bar glasses on his foundation. He couldn’t find an heirloom ñ a set of earrings worn by his grandmother.

“It looks like the only thing it left out here was the bamboo,” he says.

While Boyd hunted through Ivan’s destruction a week after its Sept. 16 visit, his next door neighbor, Terrie Pacitti, arrived home for the first time, after evacuating to Virginia.

She burst into tears and Boyd tried to comfort her. Her house lost part of its roof and walls.

“I was going to stay here but my boys made me pack up and go,” she says. “This is unreal. I was expecting bad, but I wasnít expecting this bad.”

After the president’s visit, the American Red Cross and Federal Emergency Management officials showed up the next day.

“I knew that would happen because Dubya, the President, told me they would be right over,” Boyd says. “Dubya was awesome. He didnít have his entourage. He was like anybody else.”

For now, the Boyds remain in doubt about rebuilding.

“We’re too stunned to think about it right now,” he says.

Staring Ivan in the Eye

By Duwayne Escobedo

Gary Cole watched a 30-foot wave smack down, then saw freezers, air conditioners and roofs zip by in the current past his Pensacola Beach home on the Santa Rosa Sound.

About an hour before Ivan’s eye blasted into the coast, the 56-year-old decided it was time to evacuate – to his Pensacola Beach neighbor’­s second-floor porch.

He stumbled and swam against the rising tide – 6-feet high at times – washing across the barrier island to get to higher ground.

“When I think about it now, you have to be dumber than a box of rocks to stay out here,” he says. “It’s not for everyone. But I wanted to stare Ivan right in the eyeballs.”

So, would he do it again?

Definitely.

“If it was a Category 5, I would worry a little bit,” says Cole, a fisherman and beach resident since 1968. “It really gets your heart beating faster. What a good rush, man.”

Deb Friedman hollered, “Hallelujah!” when she set eyes on her slightly crazy, thrill-seeking, next door neighbor of 20 years. Friedman and other beach residents who evacuated were allowed to return for the first time Wednesday, Sept. 22 -six days after Ivan hit.

“I’m just glad he’s alive. I was so afraid he would die out here,” says Friedman, who left her back door unlocked, so Cole could stay in her place that was rebuilt in 1997, two years after Hurricane Opal destroyed her cinder block home. “He asked me, if the water got high could he come over. I said, “Well, of course.’ ”

Cole was one of about 10 islanders who refused to evacuate, authorities say. One bedridden elderly woman and her husband, who stayed on Pensacola Beach, were also found safe, deputies say.

Cole came out of his Ivan rush with a scratched shoulder, a twisted knee and sore eyes. Cole dawned dark sunglasses as his fellow islanders returned home for the day, because a window blew out and sent tiny shards into his eyes. Cole says he used tweezers to pull the pieces out.

“I feel great,” he insists, despite his hangover.

Cole’s one-story cinder block home, though, not so great. Ivan peeled the roof back like a sardine can and dumped sand in it that’s knee high.

A lifelong Gulf Coast resident, he estimates winds reached 120 mph and the tidal surge washing across the barrier island raced at about 10 knots.

“I didn’t have much of a home to lose,” he says, frankly. “I’ll just tear it down and get me a new one.”

Cole, who CNN interviewed, says only Opal came close to being as fierce as Ivan.

“Ivan was really blowin’,” he says. “It was way better than Opal and Erin and all of ’em since I’ve been here.”

duwayne@inweekly.net

Images of Ivan

W&L 9/23/04

winners

MRES These “Meals Ready to Eat” are a hot commodity along the Gulf Coast. We love the variety — Beef Teriakyi , Pot Roast, Jambalya and Vegetable Manacotti. Each packet is an adventure. Our only regret is they make you wish for a porta-potty too quickly.

BOB RILEY The Alabama Governor is a hero for opening all four lanes to Interstate 65 for evacuation from Mobile and Northwest Florida. Thousands were able to flee the area before Hurricane Ivan made landfall. Maybe Riley will help Gov. Jeb Bush work on an I-65 connector for Northwest Florida?

DON PARKER The former Escambia County sheriff’s deputy and current WCOA radio personality helped keep tempers calm with his off-beat sense of humor and quick witted quips, while taking listeners sometimes bizarre calls. Caller: “Do you know anything about high schools?” Parker: “Well, I spent six years at Woodham.” Although WCOA went off air, its sister station Q100 was able to come back on and provide some levity.

GULF POWER The initial prediction for electricity restoration was that many people would sit in the dark and without A/C as long as six weeks. Instead, more than 70 percent of the area had power a week after Ivan. It was truly inspiring to see the utility crews, some from as far away as New Jersey, on the streets working all hours to get the lights on.

PORTOFINO The towering million dollar condominiums on Pensacola Beach survived Hurricane Ivan with little structural damage. It’s one more testimony to new building codes.

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losers

MAIN STREET SEWAGE PLANT This disaster by the bay helped reinforce Pensacolaís nickname, “Plopacola,” by failing during Hurricane Ivan and flooding a four-block area with untreated sludge. U.S. Homeland Security Chief Tom Ridge was so concerned that he personally came to inspect the damage.

NEXTEL Nearly all law enforcement agencies in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties depend on Nextel for communications. Unfortunately, Nextel was out of service long after many other wireless services following Ivan. Officers could not use their phones when they needed them most, and temporarily used another service. Escambia County Sheriff Ron McNesby was so upset that he demanded Nextel send the CEO to remedy the problem. In the end, Nextel did agree to invest millions in the two counties to insure such critical communications stay up.

WEATHER CHANNEL If anyone catches these hysterical storm riders in Pensacola, please contact an officer. These so-called weather experts gave overblown reports on the conditions of the area before, during and after the storm. They repeatedly misnamed local landmarks and confused buildings that were under construction or already demolished with buildings that were actually damaged.

GARCON POINT BRIDGE Why did it take so long for this bridge to lift its toll during the evacuation? It wasn’t until 8 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 15, that the bridge removed the toll. We figure they wanted to drain the last dollar of anyone trying to get to work in Milton or Pace that morning before they focused on the evacuation. Let’s hope they drag their feet on reinstating the toll.

Outtakes 9/23/04

By Rick Outzen

IVAN TALES All of us have Hurricane Ivan stories. Some make us laugh. Others bring tears. And nearly all our experiences over the past seven days have made us contemplate what is truly important to us.

My wife, Cathy, and our three daughters evacuated to Jacksonville to avoid Ivan. I chose to ride it out in our Gulf Breeze home, convinced Ivan would veer away from our coast. I awoke Sept. 16 to realize I have no future as a weatherman. Ivan did a number on us.
Each day is a step-by-step progression toward normalcy. First, I had to secure our house, getting the larger limbs off the roof and power lines. Then, working with friends, we cut up and removed fallen trees and limbs that blocked streets and driveways in the neighborhood. By Friday, I was in the Santa Rosa County Emergency Operations Center fighting to get water, ice and food for Gulf Breeze. After four days of cajoling, cussing and currying favors from state and federal disaster officials, it was time for me to turn my attention back to the Independent News.

That was my progression—family, home, neighborhood, city and newspaper. Our staff each followed a similar path, many of them passing out MREs to their neighbors or tarping their roofs.

We see all of this intertwined and essential components of our lives. We are committed to keep the Independent News alive and continue its role as this community’s fearless watchdog and resident smart aleck.

As many of our area businesses are doing, we are relocating our offices. My office on the third floor of the historic Thiesen Building looks like it threw up on itself. We have temporarily laid off a few staff members and reduced the hours of others, until the community recovers and our advertising dollars come back.

But we will keep publishing.

BEARD UNITY As I write this column, Gulf Power and nearly 4,000 utility workers from around the Southeast are toiling to get power restored. Other utilities have restored water and sewer to most of Escambia and Santa Rosa counties. The Florida Department of Transportation is committed to rebuilding our area bridges as quickly as humanly possible. There is a definite energy in the air.

As a sign of unity, Gulf Breeze City Manager Buzz Eddy and I have agreed to not shave until power is restored to every town resident in Gulf Breeze. I plan to extend my beard protest until all Escambia and Santa Rosa have water, electricity and telephone service.

Let’s hope it’s soon—this beard is itchy and awfully gray.

LOCAL HEROES There are several lasting impressions I have of Hurricane Ivan and its aftermath.

There was Santa Rosa County Commissioner Robert Hilliard working diligently to get comfort stations established, even though his home was completely swept away. Robert’s only possessions were the clothes he was wearing and a few items he was carrying around in a plastic bag. Not once did he let his loss keep him from serving the public.

In Gulf Breeze City Hall, Sandy Bell tirelessly cooked for all the fire, law enforcement and disaster workers—breakfast, lunch and dinner. Her group of volunteers scoured the coastal town for food and kept the meals coming. The word on Sandy’s cooking got out so well that workers from as far as Perdido Key were showing up for breakfast in Gulf Breeze.

At the Santa Rosa County Emergency Operations Center, Gulf Breeze City Councilwoman Beverly Zimmern used all her wit, guile and motherly skills to master the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s bureaucracy. When Gov. Jeb Bush showed up, Beverly was there to give him a hug and explain to Jeb how important it was that Pensacola Bay Bridge open as soon as possible. I was the bull in the china shop in the Santa Rosa EOC.
Beverly was the den mother who listened and persisted until things got moving.

Doctors Steve Trawick and Steve Zieman immediately attacked the fallen trees in Gulf Breeze. These two longtime friends and neighbors were out in Trawick’s pickup within hours after daylight. Armed with two chainsaws, they roamed the streets slicing up every limb in sight and clearing the roadways in the rain and wind. Thanks to their efforts many of their neighbors were freed from trees that blocked their front doors and driveways.

Frank and Jane Taylor, owners of Global Grill, were saturated with from downtown floodwaters. They tore out the carpet of their Palafox Street restaurant. After several hard days of ripping up carpet, it was great to sit at dusk, share stories and drink an ice-cold Corona.

The Taylors’ humor and optimism had not faded, despite the destruction at their home and business. They were ready to face the new challenges of the post-Ivan economy.

RISING FROM THE MAT None of us could have prepared for the knockout punches delivered by Hurricane Ivan. Its blows have nearly destroyed the tourism and agricultural economies of Escambia and Santa Rosa counties, plus smacked our area military bases. Our waterfronts are forever changed. But we will rebuild. And hopefully we will become a stronger community in the process.

The Buzz 9/23/04

WHERE’S WALDO CLARK? Word from the District 3 bureau chief is that voter unrest with Rev. Ronnie Clark is reaching a fever pitch.

Already criticized heavily by former school board member Elmer Jenkins and former city councilwoman Rita Jones, voters seem to finally be getting upset with Clark as phone calls go unreturned and Clark misses school board and other meetings.

The first-term politician has remained on the board since November, despite being transferred to an AME Church in Winter Haven a mere 470-miles away from Pensacola.
The Florida Constitution and state law mandate that elected officials keep a residence in the distict in which they were elected throughout their term. However, the definition of ìresidenceî is a gray area.

However, fed up constituents just may finally get the State Attorney’s office to examine Clark’s residency and whether he’s violating the law, if not the spirit of the law. Some Clark supporters and critics in District 3 are apparently trying to arrange a public forum with Clark to ask him questions about his service as a school board member, such as whether he charges the school district mileage for his 940-mile commute and why he doesnít return calls.

Clark, a former Pensacola Bethel AME Church pastor, now heads the Hurst Chapel AME Church in Winter Haven.

In a Jan. 9 cover story in the Independent News, Clark hinted he might step down in June after his daughter graduated from Pensacola High School. Now, it looks as if brewing District 3 voter outrage might force him out of office—one way or another.

MONEY, MONEY, MONEY When it comes to money, the incumbents nearly always win. Since there are no Michael Bloomberg- or Arnold Schwarzenegger-type challengers in Escambia County, the three incumbents facing re-election in November enjoy a money advantage.

The most humungous advantage is currently held by Republican incumbent Sheriff Ron McNesby. His campaign bank account shows $85,656 in cash on hand. Candidate John Powell, who defeated Gary Willis in the Democratic primary despite Willisís nearly 2-1 advantage in fundraising, boasts $3,702 in cashola.

In the Escambia County Superintendent of School race, Republican Jim Paul, vying to become the first two-termer since 2001, has $1,669 in the bank to Democratic challenger Claudia Brown-Curryís $988.

School Board incumbent Linda Finkelstein owns a $2,548-$1,997 advantage over Pete Gindl in the District 5 race.

In the only other Escambia race on the November ballot, Republican David Stafford and Democrat Bill Farinas are battling it out for the Supervisor of Elections seat being abandoned by Bonnie Jones. Stafford shows $12,761 in his pocket, while Farinas has $1,677.

Since contributors can throw up to $500 at the candidates again, now that the primary is over, The Buzz will be watching to see how the money game plays out. Stay tuned.

NADER IS BACK . . . Florida Democrats blame famous consumer crusader Ralph Nader for keeping Al Gore out of the White House in 2000. Nader, of course, is the second-most despised person in the liberal political universe, after Dubya.

Florida Secretary of State Glenda Hood returned Nader to the stateís presidential ballot recently as lawyers for the Democratic Party, the state and Nader sought emergency court hearings to settle a dispute over whether the independent candidate can appear there.

A state judge had kicked Nader off the ballot. Hood’s decision to have election supervisors prepare absentee ballots for overseas voters with Nader on them has infuriated Democrats. Florida Democratic Party Chairman Scott Maddox accused Gov. Jeb Bush of turning the elections office into a Republican Party campaign and legal arm.
Florida Dems ostracized Nader after 2000, believing that the 97,000 Florida votes he received that year took votes away from Gore.

Nader’s removal from the Florida ballot was viewed as a bonus for Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry. Polls suggest that Nader could be a factor in another tight race. President George W. Bush won Florida by just 537 votes in 2000 and a recent poll showed Nader pulling 2 percent of the vote in Florida, with Bush at 48 percent and Kerry at 46 percent.

Watch as Floridaís highest court, the same one that tried to give Gore the election, enter the fray. The state Supreme Court says the case involves ìmatters of great public importance.íí

Nader is on the ballot in 23 states, but Democrats have succeeded in keeping him off of it in three other battleground states: Pennsylvania, Missouri and Arizona.