WOKC Local News – October 21, 2026, 7:40 AM
Transcript
WOKC News. No more lead scare. With WOKC News, I’m Charles Murphy. The Environmental Protection Agency in South Florida applauded the Okeechobee Utility Authority for their handling of the lead in the drinking water episode. Brian Smith, an EPA spokesman, says the OUA should get top marks for how transparent and how they handle the issue. Okeechobee Utility Authority did exactly what they needed to do. They monitored at the right time. They crossed that action level for lead, that threshold that says they have follow-up actions to do, and they did those follow-up actions very quickly. They were right on top of it. This would be an example of the regulation working. Smith has some advice for homeowners and what they can do to keep lead out of their drinking water. Just opening your water, your faucet, and letting it run for a while is one way to reduce lead. Folks can also use filters that are certified to remove lead. And some folks may choose to use bottled water during this time while the utility is addressing the concern. They’ve retested the water in the areas where the lead levels were elevated and they’re now below recommended levels. The EPA rejects any thought the problem was water from Lake Okeechobee. Andrew Martins of North Palm Beach will run around Lake Okeechobee Friday. Remarkably, Martins recovered quickly from being shot in the head on New Year’s morning this year. No one was arrested, and it was chalked up to celebratory gunfire. He wants to help urban youth impact. They’re a nonprofit school that serves inner city youth for free with programs, counseling, and afterschool care. It is free. Martins plans to stop in Okeechobee to promote his effort around seven o’clock Friday night at Lock 7. I’ll stop and I’ll have some supporters there with me and people that will help me get through this because it’s not only me, I’m relying on my team and my crew for support. So it’s not only me, it’s the people involved and hopefully we’ll have some people out from the charity there. Expect a rainy winter, water management telling city officials that a super El Nino will affect our weather patterns. Libby Pigman called it some weird winter weather. We’re in a very unusual weather pattern right now. We’ve got a super El Nino. Our executive director called it a super duper El Nino. And it’s projected to give us a lot more rain in the dry season than what we’re expecting. Highlands County Sheriff Paul Blackman honored members of the building department for helping out on Labor Day weekend when the air conditioning went out in the new part of the jail. The county recently completed a 100 bed expansion of the jail. An attempted robbery reported in the Nubbin Slough area. A boater was approached by another man. They got into a conversation and the other man apparently got a little hostile asking personal questions and also about the victim’s finances. He then pulled a knife allegedly. The victim though went to his boat and pulled out a gun. The would-be robber fled the scene on foot. He’s described as a white male with short brown hair and a scruffy beard. He was wearing tan cargo shorts, a green or gray shirt and Croc style flip-flops. Deputies checked the area all the way to 18th Terrace and 15A and also checked under the bridge at Nubbin Slough and did not locate the suspect. Ironically, the would-be thief complained that the victim defended himself saying he was going to contact law enforcement. I’m Charles Murphy, WOKC News.
Recorded from the WOKC daily newscast (Glades Media).