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Florida
Your Florida Daily: State lawmakers return to Tallahassee, commercial moon lander suffers ‘anomaly’
ORLANDO, Fla. – It’s time to put away the Christmas decorations, Florida.
Strong to severe storms are coming today thanks to a front slicing through the state.
It’s coming south from the Panhandle and working its way across Florida throughout the afternoon and evening.
“So the two main weather impacts that we’re going to focus on are the severe wind risks. It’s showing about a 30% shot at seeing damaging, strong straight-line wind gusts. That means we’re clocking winds an upwards of 60-70 mph,” News 6 meteorologist Candace Campos said.
On the other side of the front is cooler drier weather! Wednesday’s high temperature is going to be in the 60s.
Florida lawmakers return to Tallahassee for legislative session
It’s a big day in Tallahassee.
State lawmakers are back at the Capitol to begin the annual legislative session. Over 1,600 bills have been filed for this year’s session.
That includes a proposal that would lower the minimum age to buy rifles and other long guns from 21 down to 18.
It would reverse part of a law passed after the deadly school shooting in Parkland in 2018.
Other measures up for debate this year would impact your daily drive including a proposed ban on red light cameras and a proposed fee for electric car owners to offset losses to the gas tax.
Limiting abortions is also back up for discussion. A bill filed Monday would ban almost all abortions in the state except to save the life of the mother.
One thing you may not hear much about is property insurance.
As of right now, Florida leadership is leaving the issue alone. They say they want to give more time for reforms that have already been passed to work.
Tap here to tell us what issues do you think Florida lawmakers should focus on during the legislative session.
Moon landing attempt by US company appears doomed after ‘critical’ fuel leak
Just hours after liftoff on the Space Coast, the moon lander onboard the new Vulcan Centaur rocket ran into big trouble.
The spacecraft was supposed to land on the lunar surface next month but the company behind it, Astrobotic, said it had a propulsion problem.
Teams are working to get as much data as they can from the lander but it’s still not known if it will be able to make it all the way to the moon, officials say.
In other space news, multiple sources are reporting that NASA will announce a big delay in its next mission to the moon.
The Artemis II mission, which aims to send four astronauts on a flyby journey of the moon, was set to lift off in November.
However, NASA is expected to announce the flight won’t take place until 2025.
Random Florida Fact
For those interested in the fascinating history of ocean exploration, check out the Man in the Sea Museum.
It’s located in Panama City Beach and displays a quirky, yet accurate, portrayal of mankind’s attempts at deep sea exploration over the centuries.
You can see early diving bells and diving suit rigs dating back to 1837, as well as prototypes for modern day mini-subs and remote craft.
The parking lot is filled with the collection’s biggest features, including the world’s first working undersea habitat SEALAB-1.
Copyright 2024 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.
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Florida
Traffic stop goes viral after Florida deputy accuses driver missing right hand of holding phone
PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. — Video of a traffic stop in Palm Beach County is going viral over an awkward exchange between the driver and a deputy who accused her of holding a phone while driving.
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“You drove past me holding a phone with your right hand, manipulating that phone,” the deputy tells 36-year-old Kathleen “Katie” Thomas.
“Obviously not,” Thomas says while laughing and holding up her right arm, showing that she’s missing her right hand.
“So you wanna call this a day?” she asks.
“I don’t want to call this a day. You had a hand up, manipulating,” the deputy responds.
“You just said my right hand,” Thomas counters.
“Well, I thought I saw your right hand,” the deputy says.
“So you didn’t,” Thomas responds.
Thomas posted the bodycam footage on Instagram and TikTok where it gained millions of likes.
In the video, although she shows the deputy she doesn’t have a right hand, the deputy doubled down.
“I’m asking you now; did you or not have your phone in your hand?” the deputy asks.
“I did not,” Thomas responds.
“You did not have your phone in your hand?” the deputy asks again.
“I did not,” Thomas responds.
“Hand to God, you didn’t have a phone in your hand?” the deputy asks.
“Hand to God,” Thomas says.
Court records show Thomas was given a $116 citation despite the presented evidence, but it was later dismissed at the request of the deputy involved.
Copyright 2026 by WPLG Local10.com – All rights reserved.
Florida
Blue Origin New Glenn rocket explodes on launch pad in Florida
A Blue Origin New Glenn rocket exploded Thursday night on a launch pad at Cape Canaveral in Florida.
The explosion occurred at about 9 p.m. ET. Blue Origin said there were no injuries from the incident.
“We experienced an anomaly during today’s hotfire test,” Blue Origin said in a statement. “All personnel have been accounted for. We will provide updates as we learn more.”
Cape Canaveral Space Force Station also confirmed in a separate statement that “all personnel have been accounted for and there were no injuries/fatalities.”
Blue Origin was scheduled to fuel the rocket Thursday evening ahead of a planned test firing of the rocket’s engines.
Blue Origin, which is owned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, successfully launched its third New Glenn rocket last month.
This rocket was being prepared for the fourth New Glenn mission as soon as June 4 to launch 48 satellites for Amazon’s Leo internet service, which competes with Elon Musk’s Starlink.
The 48 satellites were not aboard the rocket during the test. It was not immediately clear how much damage the launch pad and ground equipment sustained, or how long it might take to repair it.
Space Launch Complex 36, where the explosion occurred, is the only launch pad equipped to launch New Glenn rockets.
The New Glenn rocket is key to Blue Origin’s and NASA’s moon base plans, and the explosion will likely be a setback. Next year, the New Glenn is supposed to launch another Blue Moon lander as part of the Artemis III mission in low Earth orbit.
In a social media post, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman wrote, “Spaceflight is unforgiving, and developing new heavy-lift launch capability is extraordinarily difficult. We will work with our partners to support a thorough investigation of this anomaly, assess near-term mission impacts, and get back to launching rockets.”
The New Glenn rocket had just been cleared on May 22 to return to flight after being grounded by the Federal Aviation Administration after an anomaly with the second stage during an April 19 launch.
In a statement Thursday, the FAA said it was aware that the rocket had “experienced an anomaly during a static fire test on the pad in Cape Canaveral, Florida,” adding that the “test was not within the scope of FAA licensed activities.”
The FAA also noted that “there was no impact to air traffic” from the explosion.
Bezos wrote on X Thursday night, “It’s too early to know the root cause but we’re already working to find it. Very rough day, but we’ll rebuild whatever needs rebuilding and get back to flying. It’s worth it.”
Musk wrote: “Sorry to see this, I hope you recover quickly.”
Florida
Florida to pay Sumrall’s assistants a combined $11.2M in 2026
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida coach Jon Sumrall’s assistants will make a combined $11.2 million in 2026, a significant investment for a program desperate to win more often.
Offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner tops the list after signing a three-year, $6.6 million contract to leave Georgia Tech and join Sumrall in Gainesville. Faulker will get $2.1 million in 2026 – the first $2 million coordinator in school history – and has a $100,000 raise set for each of the next two years.
Only six college offensive coordinators were paid $2 million or more in 2025, according to CBS Sports. Fifteen defensive coordinators topped $2 million.
Florida defensive coordinator Brad White signed a three-year, $5.85 million deal that starts at $1.85 million and also includes a $100,000 raise in 2027 and 2028.
The Gators released the contracts Thursday in response to a public records request.
Sumrall signed a six-year, $44.7 million contract last year that averages $7.45 million annually. The Gators will dole out more than $20 million to Sumrall, his staff of 15 assistants and a front office led by new general manager Dave Caldwell.
Four of the assistants are scheduled to earn at least $1 million during their deals.
Defensive line coach Gerald Chapman and offensive line coach Phil Trautwine will join Faulker and White in the seven-figure club. Chapman, the lone holdover from former Florida coach Billy Napier’s staff, will make $950,000 this year and $1 million in 2027. Trautwine, meanwhile, starts at $750,000 and jumps to $1 million. Both signed two-year deals.
Their salaries show Sumrall’s commitment to rebuilding the team along both lines of scrimmage in the powerhouse Southeastern Conference.
Napier’s 12-man coaching staff was paid a combined $7.5 million in 2025. The Gators posted three losing seasons in Napier’s four years.
The rest of Sumrall’s staff range between making $350,000 and $600,000 annually, all of them on two-year contracts.
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