Florida
Water at tip of Florida hits hot tub level, may have set world record for warmest seawater
The water temperature on the tip of Florida hit hot tub levels, exceeding 100 degrees (37.8 degrees Celsius) two days in a row. And meteorologists say that could potentially be the hottest seawater ever measured, although there are some issues with the reading.
Just 26 miles (40 kilometers) away, scientists saw devastating effects from prolonged hot water surrounding Florida — devastating coral bleaching and even some death in what had been one of the Florida Keys’ most resilient reefs. Climate change has been setting temperature records across the globe this month.
Weather records for sea water temperature are unofficial, and there are certain conditions in this reading that could disqualify it for a top mark, meteorologists said. But the initial reading on a buoy at Manatee Bay hit 101.1 degrees (38.4 Celsius) Monday evening, according to National Weather Service meteorologist George Rizzuto. On Sunday night the same buoy showed an online reading of 100.2 (37.9 Celsius) degrees.
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“It seems plausible,” Rizzuto said. “That is a potential record.”
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While there aren’t official water temperature records, a 2020 study listed a 99.7 degree (37.6 Celsius) mark in Kuwait Bay in July 2020 as the world’s highest recorded sea surface temperature. Rizzuto said a new record from Florida is plausible because nearby buoys measured in the 98 and 99 (36.7 and 37.2 Celsius) degree range.
“This is a hot tub. I like my hot tub around 100, 101, (37.8, 38.3 Celsius). That’s what was recorded yesterday,” said Yale Climate Connections meteorologist Jeff Masters. Hot tub maker Jacuzzi recommends water between 100 and 102 degrees (37.8 and 38.9 Celsius).
“We’ve never seen a record-breaking event like this before,” Masters said.
But he and University of Miami tropical meteorologist Brian McNoldy said while the hot temperatures fit with what’s happening around Florida, it may not be accepted as a record because the area is shallow, has sea grasses in it and may be influenced by warm land in the nearby Everglades National Park.
Still, McNoldy said, “it’s amazing.”
In this image provide by NOAA, a fish swims near coral showing signs of bleaching at Cheeca Rocks off the coast of Islamorada, Fla., on July 23, 2023. (Andrew Ibarra/NOAA via AP)
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The fact that two 100 degree measurements were taken in consecutive days gives credence to the readings, McNoldy said. Water temperatures have been in the upper 90s in the area for more than two weeks.
There aren’t many coral reefs in Manatee Bay, but elsewhere in the Florida Keys, scientists diving at Cheeca Rocks found bleaching and even death in some of the Keys most resilient corals, said Ian Enochs, lead of the coral program at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory.
NOAA researcher Andrew Ibarra, who took his kayak to the area because of the hot water, said, “I found that the entire reef was bleached out. Every single coral colony was exhibiting some form of paling, partial bleaching or full out bleaching.”
This image provide by NOAA, shows a dead coral at Cheeca Rocks off the coast of Islamorada, Fla., on July 23, 2023. (Andrew Ibarra/NOAA via AP)
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Some coral even had died, he said. This is on top of bleaching seen last week by the University of Miami as NOAA increased the level of alert for coral problems earlier this month.
Until the 1980s coral bleaching was mostly unheard of around the globe yet “now we’ve reached the point where it’s become routine,” Enochs said. Bleaching, which doesn’t kill coral but weakens it and could lead to death, occurs when water temperatures pass the upper 80s (low 30s Celsius), Enochs said.
“This is more, earlier than we have ever seen,” Enochs said. “I’m nervous by how early this is occurring.”
This all comes as sea surface temperatures worldwide have broken monthly records for heat in April, May and June, according to NOAA. And temperatures in the North Atlantic are off the charts — as much as 9 to 11 degrees (5 to 6 degrees Celsius) warmer than normal in some spots near Newfoundland, McNoldy said.
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A Florida deputy is “fighting for his life” Friday after being critically injured in a “horrific accident” that claimed the lives of two of his colleagues, officials say.
Deputy Ignacio Diaz of the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office was struck Thursday on the shoulder of Southern Boulevard by a female driver who was trying to pass a vehicle on her right, according to Sheriff Ric Bradshaw. Diaz, along with Cpl. Luis Paez and Deputy Sheriff Ralph Waller, had been conducting traffic enforcement in the area.
“She overcompensated, got off the road and then struck all three of the motor officers, at which time all three went airborne in different directions,” Bradshaw said.
“Hopefully he is going to make it,” Bradshaw added regarding Diaz. “It’s a bad crash. We are jointly investigating this with Florida Highway Patrol.”
FLORIDA SHERIFF BREAKS UP ALLEGED MASSIVE CHECK FRAUD CONSPIRACY
Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Deputy Ignacio “Dan” Diaz, who was critically injured Thursday after being hit by an SUV while conducting traffic enforcement. (Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office)
Bradshaw said the accident happened after one of the officers made a traffic stop and then “could not get his motorcycle started, so he thought he had a dead battery.
“So he called the other two over to help him move the bike off the road. They were all three on the grassy area on the shoulder of the road, and they were going to wait for another PBSO vehicle to come with some battery cables,” he continued.
The female driver, who did not appear to be impaired and was traveling in a zone with a 55-mph speed limit, suffered minor injuries in the crash, the sheriff said.
Paez and Waller were airlifted to a hospital, where “they worked on them for as long as they could there,” but “they were injured so badly they just weren’t going to make it,” according to Bradshaw.
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“Law enforcement, public safety and the military are the only professions when you leave the house and kiss your family goodbye, that might be the last time, and here’s the example of it,” Bradshaw said. “When a deputy dies, a piece of the community dies with them. It’s tough.”
The sheriff, who also called the accident “horrific,” said Diaz underwent surgery and is now in critical but stable condition in a local hospital’s ICU.
“This is our hero, Deputy Ignacio ‘Dan’ Diaz, currently fighting for his life. Deputy Diaz joined PBSO in 2004 and has been a valued member of our Motor Unit for over 10 years. We ask for your thoughts and prayers for him and his family during this incredibly difficult time,” the sheriff’s office wrote on its Facebook page.
“Our hearts are heavy as we mourn the loss of our brothers, honor their memory, and support their families during this devastating time,” it added in a post announcing the deaths of Paez and Waller.
Motorcycles belonging to the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office.
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As of Friday, it appears no charges have been filed following the accident. The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
A Florida judge has granted the defense team’s motion for a mistrial in the Home Depot murder case because of an “unhinged juror.”
After more than five hours of deliberations earlier this week, an Escambia County judge called a mistrial for Shelia Agee, who is accused of helping her son kill the mother of his child at a Pensacola Home Depot store last year.
“A particular juror has not treated this case during the evidence with the seriousness that they should have, that has apparently continued during deliberations,” Judge Coleman Robinson told WKRG.
The problems reportedly began when juror Sallie Sue Smith was caught with a crossword puzzle during testimony, according to WEAR News 3.
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Keith Agee, 20, and his mother, Sheila, were allegedly texting about his plans to kill Brooklyn Sims at The Home Depot in Pensacola. (Escambia County Sheriff’s Office)
On Tuesday, Smith was found working on a crossword puzzle during witness testimony. The next day, she was found using another crossword puzzle during deliberation.
Smith told WEAR News that the puzzle “helped her focus,” and denied any threatening behavior in the jury room.
“It was me,” Smith told WEAR News. “Well, I didn’t know it was a bad thing. I do that when I concentrate and I’m listening. You couldn’t see the bench or witness stand very well cause it was dark. But I could hear it… That’s just the way I do. I just do that and I had no idea and then when they told me I wasn’t supposed to do it, I stopped. And then, today, when I went into the jury room, I had another crossword puzzle.”
Other jurors also later shared concerns about their safety during deliberations with Judge Robinson.
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Sheila Agee, 50, is facing charges in the shooting death of 18-year-old Brooklyn Sims after allegedly helping her son plan the attack. (Washington County Jail)
“It is just a single piece of paper with a crossword puzzle printed on one side and not sure what’s on the other side,” said Robinson. “…I cannot ever recall a juror doing a crossword puzzle during a trial.”
Judge Robinson later questioned each juror, calling them in, one by one, and asked if they felt safe to continue after concerns were relayed to him by security.
Nearly 20 witnesses took the stand, while it took prosecutors less than two days to rest their case against Agee. However, due to the jury’s issues, the trial was “hindered beyond repair.”
Smith didn’t say what her decision was on a verdict, but denied any threatening behavior to WEAR News.
“We retired to the jury room and started to deliberate,” Smith said. “It became obvious to me right away that I was in the minority of one versus 11 other people… At first, it started out reasonable. A lot of shouting, and I can shout, too.”
“I do have a loud voice, but I was being shouted down by a lot of people,” Smith added.
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Keith Agee, 20, is charged with homicide and aggravated battery in the shooting death of 18-year-old Brooklyn Sims. (Escambia County Jail)
Agee, 51, was charged with principal to first-degree premeditated murder after police discovered text messages allegedly showing her help plan the shooting death of the mother of her son’s child, 18-year-old Brooklyn Sims, who was also Sheila’s co-worker.
Her son, Keith Agee, 20, was arrested by the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office in connection with the deadly Aug. 11, 2023 shooting of Sims.
“According to text messages, it’s clear that Keith Agee’s mother, Sheila Agee, knew and participated in the plan to kill Brooklyn Sims. Additionally, text messages between mother and son highlight the mother’s involvement in helping locate the victim,” the ECSO previously wrote on Facebook.
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The department released the alleged text messages between the mother and son on its Facebook page, claiming they took place right before Sims was shot and killed.
“The murder itself is unbelievable, but to know the mother knew about it and helped coordinate it is incomprehensible,” Sheriff Chip Simmons said previously via Facebook.
The case is expected to be back in court on Feb. 5.
“Another jury will have to come back and listen to the evidence in front of another jury where hopefully, those certain members will follow common sense, will follow the law, will treat their fellow jurors with decency and appropriateness. And will reach a verdict, whatever that may be, that is a fair and just verdict for both sides,” Robinson said.
Fox News Digital’s Elizabeth Pritchett contributed to this report.
DADE CITY, Fla. – Looking for a winter wonderland that isn’t too far from home? Snowcat Ridge in Dade City officially opens for the season on Friday.
Despite the state’s tropical landscape, Snowcat Ridge brings a unique alpine snow park and gives visitors a chance to experience snow and winter activities without leaving Florida.
The park’s centerpiece is a massive 60-foot-tall snow tubing hill with runs extending up to 400 feet, where families can zoom down on tubes while surrounded by snow.
READ: Top destinations people dream of traveling to for the holidays
“So this year, what we really wanted to do was focus on what people said they enjoy most—the Christmas aspects of the park. So I said, ‘okay, let’s really do the Christmas thing,’” said Winston McDaniel with Snowcat Ridge.
Guests can also build snowmen, create snow angels and engage in snowball play inside the park’s 10,000-square-foot Arctic Igloo. The facility also has cutting edge snow-making technology to maintain snowy conditions.
There’s also a cozy lodge for guests to grab hot chocolate and winter treats.
“It’s just about really doubling down on what it means to spend family time here at Christmas,” said McDaniel.
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In the evening, the slopes at Snowcat Ridge transform into a colorful LED light display, illuminating the snow and creating an unforgettable atmosphere for guests.
For more information on the park and its hours of operation, visit snowcatridge.com.
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