Latest reporting from the Public Safety desk.
Six firefighters who serve the Lakewood Ranch area deployed to Escambia County on Sunday to assist with Hurricane Isaias recovery, the second joint mutual-aid mission for West Manatee Fire Rescue and North River Fire Rescue in two months.
Public Safety
A Manatee County jury convicted Vincent Steele, 52, of Riverview on all six counts Thursday in the May 2024 Palmetto road rage shooting that struck a pregnant woman three times; sentencing has not been scheduled.
Public Safety
The Manatee County Sheriff's Office posted two wanted-person bulletins on Wednesday, Aug. 5, seeking Christian Pete on felony warrants including battery on a law enforcement officer, and registered sexual offender James Anderson for failing to update his address.
Public Safety
Fire rescue agencies serving Lakewood Ranch have partnered with Sarasota Memorial Hospital for annual cancer screenings as a new state law phases out PFAS-containing firefighting foam over three years.
Public Safety
A 20-year-old force main broke July 8 inside a Parrish luxury development, spilling approximately 17,700 gallons of raw sewage, with about 9,700 gallons reaching the Manatee River — the watershed that feeds the reservoir supplying drinking water to Lakewood Ranch and surrounding communities. County water quality tests two days later showed minimal impact.
Public Safety
A 30-foot catamaran struck a bridge piling near the Manatee Avenue Bridge on Tuesday, July 28, snapping the mast and stranding two people; a multi-agency rescue brought both ashore, with one person hospitalized for a head laceration.
Public Safety
Manatee County Beach Patrol plans to deploy a $140,000 rescue drone by mid-August that can reach the north end of Anna Maria Island in four minutes, dropping flotation devices and AEDs to distressed swimmers in areas without lifeguards.
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