News Cast for June 24th:
Florida unemployment rates remained steady in May at 3.7 percent.
Florida has added 148,700 non-farm jobs in the past year.
Okeechobee saw an increase in unemployment in May from 3.9 percent to 4.1 percent.
There were 16,263 people in the work force in April compared to 16,274 in May.
The state report listed 15,636 people employed in April and 15,611 in May.
The number of employed went form 627 in April to 663 in May.
Around the region Martin had 3.7 percent, St. Lucie four percent, Indian River 4.2 percent, Osceola 3.6 percent, Highlands County five percent and Glades County 4.7 percent unemployment.
An Okeechobee man was sentenced to 10 years in prison for 15 different felony crimes related to child pornography possession and weapon possession.
Thomas McClain, 60, pled no contest in a plea deal where 21 other counts were dropped by the state.
He was jailed after a tip was made to the National Center for Mission and Exploited Children in September, 2023.
A search warrant was secured for his residence and several electronic devices were seized.
Okeechobee Sheriff detectives said they found videos that appeared to show children involved in sexual activity and also sexual activity involving horses and dogs.
Lawmen also found a clip of ammunition but no firearm. McClain was previously a convicted felon and was prohibited from possessing any form of ammunition or firearm.
He had prior convictions for aggravated assault, fleeing and eluding police, armed robbery, and battery on law enforcement.
He scored 180 months in prison.
Okeechobee County Fire Rescue will continue with a grant application with the Federal government called the SAFER grant.
It is an acronym for staffing for adequate fire and emergency response.
The county said it wants to hire 13 new firemen.
In the past the grant would pay 100 percent of the costs of the salary for these firemen and women for the first three years of employment.
Now the county will be required to pay a percentage of the salary.
County Administrator Deborah Manzo recommended they only try to get funds for nine firemen in this grant cycle.
“13 positions and funding them I have a concern about.”
Public Safety Director Earl Wooten said last year they spent $300,000 in overtime.
“We have vacancies. Right now 200 percent of the overtime budgeted is due to vacancies and having to keep minimum staff at the stations.”
He said they need all these firemen for staffing to get to where they want to go in the future, staffing trucks, leave of employees, and the overtime.
“We know it’s a big deal in our department.”
Moore Haven City Council members said they were disappointed the city didn’t get more use out of a rented backhoe they secured for drainage work.
Councilmember Bradley Smith said he was not impressed with the work done on the ditch cleanup in conjunction with mosquito control.
Mayor Clay Browning said the equipment was used only three hours per day and could have been used more.
“You are asking mosquito control to pay us $4,400 and we didn’t give them $4,400 worth of work. That is a little bogus there.”
He said the resident complaining had a right to complaint. He said they could have unlimited hours for this equipment.
“That makes it cheaper for the taxpayer. When I get calls the machine isn’t run, it is hard for me to defend running it only three hours per day.”
A 20 acre brush fire didn’t threaten any homes or buildings in the area of 17148 NW 310th Street in the Viking Property.
Okeechobee County Fire Rescue said the first information on the fire was three to five acres burning in scrub palms and other trees.
The Florida Forest Service also responded with two plows, a brush truck and air tanker.
Winds blew the flames northward and the flames did jump NW 310 Street.
A civilian reported the fire may have been started by outdoor cooking.
A Vero Beach woman was held on $8,500 bond in the Okeechobee County Jail on charges of child neglect and DUI.
Wendy Kelley allegedly was impaired and was spotted driving erratically by a deputy.
The arrest report said the deputy was in the west bound lanes of route 70 east of town conducting a traffic stop on the shoulder of the road.
He said the suspects vehicle came very close to the stopped vehicle and where he was standing.
He completed the traffic stop and located the suspects vehicle at the main light.
A truck driver was verbally berating the woman with expletives claiming she had cut him off. A second motorist said she saw the vehicle being driving erratically.
The report said Kelley failed field sobriety tests and then failed to blow any air into the breathalizer.
There were three children in the vehicle at the time of the traffic stop.