WOKC Local News – August 06, 2026, 7:40 AM
Transcript
WOKC News. Former sheriff laid to rest with WOKC News. I’m Charles Murphy. Clayton Williams, who served Okeechobee as sheriff and later as a city council member, passed away last week and was buried Monday in Okeechobee. Current sheriff Noel Stephen thanked Williams for bringing advances to the department that included the auxiliary 911 dispatch center and a canine unit. His whole entire adult life has been dedicated to the service of Okeechobee and its communities, both county and city. So a man like that deserves full honors, especially serving as a fellow sheriff. I wanted to make sure our men and women and the Okeechobee County Sheriff’s Office sent him off with the honors too. Okeechobee County Fire Rescue would like to add six new people and three new trucks. Their overall budget increase approaches 8%. Fire chief has reduced it to 7% due to some tweaks. They want to reduce overtime costs. They haven’t hired anyone lately and are planning a new fire station that should be open in about three years. County Commissioner Terry Burroughs suggests now might not be the time to hire six, maybe three is more palatable. Bottom line is that I’m not crazy about having, about hiring six people, because at the end of the day, people are freezing hiring. You gotta do with what you gotta do with. Property appraiser Mickey Bandy says the tax base rose 200 million to 4.8 billion this year. The current homestead exemption now just over 51,000. He gave presentations to both the county commission and city council. And I’m not sure 67 counties five years down the road after this, if this passes, are still 67 counties. He says the issue of property taxes is not going to go away. Indiantown heard from their council member, Vernistine Williams-Palmer. She wants to put a moratorium of one year on data centers. She says let’s stop them for now so they can be studied more. Moratorium. And I’m really, really in favor of doing that. Residents urged the village to focus on improving their water system. They recently received a $250,000 grant from Florida Power and Light, and will use those to upgrade the ball fields. A traffic stop in the 4400 block of Southeast 28th Street leads to the arrest of Amanda Davis of Okeechobee, the 43-year-old facing various drug charges. Sheriff deputies say they found some methamphetamines, some prescription pills, various items of drug paraphernalia, and some marijuana in that vehicle. With back to school next Monday, Okeechobee County firefighters and paramedics local union 2918 will help local families and children with a school supply drive. It’ll be held on Friday afternoon from four to seven, and Saturday from 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. in the parking lot of the Walmart Supercenter. Donations are welcome this week at all the fire stations and their administration building. I’m Charles Murphy, WOKC News.
Recorded from the WOKC daily newscast (Glades Media).