WOKC Local News – April 21, 2026, 7:41 AM
Transcript
WOKC News. Drivers showing off arrested. With WOKC News, I’m Charles Murphy. Five children were hospitalized after a single vehicle crash involving an SUV on Southwest Rookstery Road. The Florida Highway Patrol says the crash occurred Saturday at 1.30pm. The Ford Escape had two adults and five children inside. It was traveling northbound when the driver admitted he was showing off and lost control of the Ford at a high rate of speed. He left the road, struck a mailbox, went airborne, and overturned into a water-filled canal. Three of the children had minor injuries. Two had serious injury, one had to be flown out. Nineteen-year-old Robert Oyd Lee Vanegas of Port St. Lucie was charged with no driver’s license, reckless driving, and child neglect causing serious bodily injury. There’s no end in sight for the busy wildfire season in Florida. Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson says now is the peak time. Through May and June, the state is predicted for above-normal wildfire activity. Simpson says if your county has a burn ban, please obey it. Another big factor is the fire in the backyard. Burning brush piles, having a barbecue, not putting those fires all the way out is leading to major fires all over this state. Pat Keough is a Florida Forest Service district manager. He says the rains received this month have been good, but they’re only a short reprieve. He says Florida homeowners need to step up and protect their property. As we enter the height of Florida’s fire season, it’s important that all Floridians protect themselves from wildfires by clearing out around their homes and debris from their homes and being safe with any outdoor burning. While we have some of the best trained and best equipped firefighters in the country, every fire that’s prevented is one that we don’t have to go to. South Florida Water Management District lifted some voluntary water restrictions in Glades and Highlands County on Friday. They hope to keep the Lake Ukechubee levels high enough. They call this the second worst drought since the 1990s in South Florida. Drew Bartlett, executive director of the Water Management District, says they’re only thinking of community water supplies. When we think about conservation mode, we are thinking about water supply for communities. The southeast coast, we need it to have as much as we can for the heat of the dry season, the end of the dry season. A plane crash on Saturday in southern Martin County off southwest Pratt Whitney Road. A single-engine plane stopped working and landed on its roof. The pilot was able to extricate himself and get assistance. Martin and Palm Beach County rescuers responded to the scene. It happens in the Hungryland Preserve. In Indian Town Farmer’s Market, community event included a presentation on State Road 710 and what’s being done to make it safer to travel on the road. Law enforcement agencies say they’re maintaining a zero-tolerance approach to speeding, aggressive driving and improper passing, issuing citations in an effort to reduce dangerous behavior. They’re hoping to widen the road, but that won’t come until 2029. I’m Charles Murphy, WOKC News.
Recorded from the WOKC daily newscast (Glades Media).