The morning edition

Power is back for over 200,000 Panhandle customers, and Florida plans to seek a major disaster declaration

Monday, October 12, 2026

Monday, October 12, 2026

Good Morning! Boca Raton Army Air Field officially opened on Oct. 12, 1942, and the Army built more than 800 buildings and four runways there. B-17 pilots trained at the field, and airplanes came from all over to have radar installed. Cadets sometimes spent up to 20 hours a day learning engineering, aerodynamics and communications.

In This Issue: power coming back across the Panhandle as Florida readies a major disaster request, mail paused in 60 North Florida ZIP codes and insurance help opening in Destin, a fugitive businessman in the Venezuela bribery case now in U.S. custody and 41 Southwest Florida waters added to the state's polluted list. Plus: no-interest bridge loans for storm-hit businesses and farms, a 180,000-square-foot Life Time club in Lakewood Ranch, a 57-yard kick at the gun in London, a Design District office tower with an artist's touch and a Villager's hole-in-one on a par 4.

Weather: Sunshine returns statewide for Columbus Day Monday, with patchy morning fog around Gainesville and only a slight chance of storms in Miami and the Keys. Highs run from 84° to 90°. (NWS)

Tropical: There are no active storms in the Atlantic; NHC is watching an elongated area of low pressure a few hundred miles west of the Cabo Verde Islands, with a low (20 percent) chance of formation through 7 days. Florida's Isaias state of emergency remains in effect for 27 counties (Executive Order 26-211). (National Hurricane Center)

Rip Current Report: No beaches carry a high rip current risk Monday; the risk is moderate from Walton through Franklin, on the Gulf coast from Pinellas through Lee and on the Atlantic from Volusia through Palm Beach. It is low in Escambia, Santa Rosa and Okaloosa, from Nassau through St. Johns, in Broward, Miami-Dade and Collier and from Levy through Pasco. (NWS)

Receive Front Porch Florida Free Each Morning · Send to a Friend

More Than 200,000 Panhandle Customers Have Power Back as Florida Prepares to Seek a Major Disaster Declaration

As of Sunday afternoon, more than 200,000 customers who lost power in Hurricane Isaias had it back, Gov. Ron DeSantis said. That's out of about 430,000 who were without it Saturday morning. As of 9:01 p.m. Sunday, 199,995 Florida customers were still without power, including 161,820 Florida Power & Light customers, according to the Florida Public Service Commission. Other updates:

FPL is expected to be largely finished with restoration by Monday.
CHELCO had about 21,900 customers still out as of the PSC's 9:01 p.m. report, and the co-op says it expects to restore power to most members by Tuesday night.
Outage shares: some of the hardest-hit counties were Santa Rosa (about 90% of customers out), Holmes (89%), Washington (86%), Walton (85%), Escambia (75%) and Okaloosa (53%), the governor said.
Major disaster declaration: DeSantis said the state will ask the federal government for one, saying damage from fallen trees alone should clear the threshold. That would open the door to aid for individuals and public infrastructure, beyond the emergency declaration already in place.

The worst damage came inland, not on the coast, where storm surge was lower than expected. In north Santa Rosa and Escambia counties, strong winds lifted roofs off buildings, DeSantis said at a stop in Milton.

Grayton Beach: at Grayton Beach State Park in Walton County, crews worked overnight with 600 cubic yards of sand to rebuild a washed-out bridge in less than 18 hours, DeSantis said, according to WTXL. The park was expected to reopen Sunday night, and 24 parks have reopened, WTXL reported.
River flooding: the state is watching rising water on the Blackwater and Shoal rivers near U.S. 90 and I-10 around Crestview, DeSantis said, and search-and-rescue teams remain on standby.

USPS Halts Mail in 60 North Florida ZIP Codes as State Insurance Help Opens in Destin and Most Schools Eye a Wednesday Return

The U.S. Postal Service's Florida 1 District has temporarily suspended mail delivery and retail operations in 60 North Florida ZIP codes after Hurricane Isaias, effective immediately, WJHG reports. The Postal Service said it is working to restore operations as quickly as it safely can. Separately, Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia's Department of Financial Services opened an insurance assistance hub Sunday at the Morgan Sports Center, 4200 Indian Bayou Trail, in Destin. At least six carriers and state consumer-services staff are there to help with claims. More insurers are due Monday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and the hub is expected to stay open for the next few days.

DeSantis said most Northwest Florida schools were already off Monday for Columbus Day, and many have a teacher planning day Tuesday. He expects "the vast, vast, vast majority" to reopen Wednesday. The state is also surveying businesses about storm losses at FloridaDisaster.biz.

Fugitive Businessman Alvaro Pulido, Charged in Miami in the Venezuela Bribery Case, Is in U.S. Custody

Alvaro Pulido has been taken into U.S. custody after an investigation by the DEA, FBI and Homeland Security Investigations, a Homeland Security Task Force spokesperson said Sunday. He is wanted for allegedly paying bribes to top Venezuelan officials for state contracts. Pulido was indicted in Miami federal court in 2019 and again in 2021. The DEA and State Department had offered up to $10 million for information leading to his arrest. Spokesperson Nicole Navas Oxman didn't say how he came into U.S. custody, but said his first court appearance is Tuesday in Miami.

Prosecutors allege that Pulido and his longtime partner Alex Saab built a network of offshore shell companies to funnel bribes to allies of ousted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, in exchange for contracts to import food, medicine and low-cost housing. Saab was deported to the U.S. in May. Last month he pleaded guilty in a related bribery case, agreeing to cooperate against Maduro and others and to forfeit $195 million.

DEP Adds 41 Southwest Florida Creeks, Bays and Canals to the State's Polluted-Waters List, Most for Human and Animal Waste Bacteria

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection checks the state's waters against its pollution limits every two years. Its latest review added 41 contaminated water bodies in Charlotte, Lee and Collier counties to the list of waters that fail, WGCU reports. More than half were listed for bacteria that signal waste from people and animals, often enterococcus, including three stretches of the Peace River. In Cape Coral's tidal canals, an algae marker that had run low for years shot past the limit.

The picture is mixed. Charlotte County accounts for the largest share of the 41 new listings, yet other parts of Charlotte Harbor now pass nutrient tests they once failed. Next, the state will work out how much pollution each listed water can take and still be clean enough for swimming, fishing and wildlife.

Receive Front Porch Florida Free Each Morning · Send to a Friend

❖ Miami-Dade — Design District Partners Plan The Ursa, a 20-Story Office Tower: Miami: Miami Design District Associates and BH3 Management formed a joint venture to build The Ursa, a 20-story Class A office building in the Design District with about 250,000 square feet of offices and 15,000 square feet of ground-floor retail. Arquitectonica and Arsham Studio are designing it, and artist Daniel Arsham will oversee its art program.

❖ Tampa Bay — Tampa's CyberFOX Buys Optimize365: Tampa: Tampa-based cybersecurity software company CyberFOX has acquired Optimize365. The company says the deal adds continuous Microsoft 365 tenant monitoring and hardening to its product lineup.

❖ Orlando — 360-Unit Royal Palm at Crosswood Set to Break Ground in Sanford: Sanford: Royal Palm Companies and Mattoni Group plan to start building The Royal Palm at Crosswood early next year: six four-story buildings with 360 apartments on about 22.2 acres at 100 Crosswood Loop, anchored by a 9,000-square-foot clubhouse. The pair opened Northhaven, a 420-unit community in Sanford, earlier this year.

❖ Jacksonville — Crate & Barrel Eyes Former Pinstripes Site at St. Johns Town Center: Jacksonville: Crate & Barrel is identified in plans for 10274 Buckhead Branch Drive at St. Johns Town Center, a site once slated for a Pinstripes bowling-and-dining venue that never moved forward. A permit has been issued; the retailer hasn't confirmed an opening date.

❖ Broward — Parkland Mom Uses AI to Build a Gift-Planning App Now in 175 Countries: Parkland: Ali Rogove, a Parkland resident with more than 20 years in public relations and no software background, used artificial intelligence to build GivWrap, a free iPhone app that organizes gift ideas, tracks purchases and manages budgets. It's now available in 175 countries.

❖ Palm Beach — Delray Medical Center Offers a Muscle-Sparing Shoulder Replacement: Delray Beach: Delray Medical Center is offering a shoulder replacement technique, "Inhance Intact," that preserves the subscapularis tendon, part of the rotator cuff. Orthopedic surgeon Dr. Vani Sabesan says it lets some patients recover faster with no restrictions after surgery.

❖ Gulf Coast — Sarasota Memorial Warns UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage Patients of Jan. 1 Cutoff: Sarasota: Sarasota Memorial Health Care System says its Medicare Advantage contract with UnitedHealthcare expires Dec. 31 and the insurer has rejected its renewal proposals. Without a deal, both SMH hospitals, in Sarasota and Venice, and all First Physicians Group practices would be out of network for those plan members starting Jan. 1.

❖ North Florida — UF Study: City Pollinators Start Their Season About Three Weeks Late: Gainesville: A University of Florida/IFAS study led by assistant professor Corey Callaghan found pollinators began their activity about three weeks later in the most human-modified landscapes than in remote or rural areas. Researchers warn that could leave bees out of sync with the plants they depend on, a "phenological mismatch."

Receive Front Porch Florida Free Each Morning · Send to a Friend

❖ State Opens No-Interest Bridge Loans for Isaias-Hit Businesses and Farms as DeSantis Says 'It Could Have Been Worse' — Florida businesses hurt by Hurricane Isaias will soon be able to get no-interest bridge loans of up to $100,000, Commerce Secretary J. Alex Kelly said at Gov. Ron DeSantis' Sunday briefing in Milton. Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson said agricultural operations can apply for loans of up to $150,000; the Florida Phoenix reports the emergency program's limits as $100,000 for agriculture and aquaculture and $150,000 for citrus and cattle operations. Both urged owners to start at FloridaDisaster.biz. "It could have been worse," DeSantis said. U.S. Sen. Ashley Moody, who attended, said recovery "is underway" but "we have some work to do."

❖ Bernie Sanders Will Campaign With Angie Nixon in Tampa, Melbourne, Gainesville and Tallahassee — U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont will join Democratic U.S. Senate nominee Angie Nixon for rallies in Florida on Oct. 17 and 18, Creative Loafing Tampa Bay reports. Stops include Tampa's Cuban Club in Ybor City and Melbourne on Oct. 17, then Gainesville and Tallahassee on Oct. 18. The Ybor rally is free with an RSVP, with doors at 11 a.m. and speakers at 1 p.m. Sanders committed $23 million from his campaign war chest to Nixon's campaign last month. Nixon faces Republican Sen. Ashley Moody on Nov. 3.

❖ Jolly Tells Miami's Haitian Community He Would Fight Federal Immigration Policies and Back TPS — Democratic gubernatorial nominee David Jolly told Haitian American leaders and residents in North Miami that he supports extending Temporary Protected Status and would pursue legal challenges against Trump administration immigration policies, WLRN reports. Jolly, speaking with running mate Gwen Graham, also said he would seek to reverse Florida's requirements for local cooperation with ICE, while acknowledging immigration enforcement is primarily a federal matter. He also called for a path to legal status for immigrants without criminal records.

Receive Front Porch Florida Free Each Morning · Send to a Friend

❖ Life Time Opens 180,000-Square-Foot Club in Lakewood Ranch, Its 10th in Florida — Life Time is opening its first Lakewood Ranch location Monday, Oct. 12, bringing more than 180,000 square feet of fitness, recreation and social space to Lakewood Ranch Blvd. N., including an 86,000-square-foot athletic club, a nearly 50,000-square-foot beach club and a 14-court pickleball complex. It is the company's second Gulf Coast club after Tampa's Harbour Island and its 10th statewide, according to the company, TBBW reports.

❖ Bradenton's Median Listing Price Falls 5.56% to $400,000 as Buyers Gain Negotiating Power — Bradenton's median listing price was $400,000 in September, down 5.56% from September 2025, and homes sold for an average of 2.92% below asking, according to Realtor.com data cited by Tampa Bay 28. A local agent told the station buyers "can come in under asking," while 30-year mortgage rates of 7.28%, the highest since November 2023 per Freddie Mac, keep weighing on buyers and sellers.

❖ 264-Unit Pointe Grand Apartments Open in Palm Coast's Town Center — Developer Hillpointe has opened Pointe Grand, a 264-unit garden-style apartment complex at 746 Town Center Blvd. in Palm Coast, with two-bedroom units renting for $1,375 to $1,568, FlaglerLive reports. The company pitched it as "attainable housing" in Flagler County, which ranks as Florida's sixth-fastest-growing county.

Receive Front Porch Florida Free Each Morning · Send to a Friend

Cam Little's 57-Yard Kick at the Gun Lifts Jaguars Past Eagles 19-17 in London

Cam Little hit a 57-yard field goal as time expired, and the Jaguars beat the Philadelphia Eagles 19-17 Sunday at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Ameer Abdullah's 53-yard kickoff return set up the kick with 1 second left, after Jake Elliott's 48-yarder had put Philadelphia ahead 17-16 with 8 seconds to go. Trevor Lawrence threw for 331 yards and two touchdowns, both to Parker Washington, who had six catches for 124 yards. The Jaguars (4-1) stay in London to face Houston at Wembley Stadium next Sunday.

Burrow Throws Four TD Passes as Bengals Drop Dolphins to 0-5

Joe Burrow threw four touchdown passes and safety Jordan Battle intercepted Malik Willis twice as Cincinnati beat the Dolphins 31-24 Sunday at Hard Rock Stadium. Burrow completed 23 of 32 passes for 190 yards, including a one-handed 45-yard touchdown catch by Ja'Marr Chase. Willis finished 15 of 27 for 137 yards and scored on a 1-yard run with 45 seconds left, but the extra point hit the upright and the onside kick went out of bounds. Ollie Gordon ran 18 times for 88 yards. The winless Dolphins have a bye next week.

Rasmussen, Fresh Off Near No-Hitter, Opens ALCS for Rays Against Cleveland

Drew Rasmussen, who took a no-hit bid into the eighth inning and struck out 10 in the Rays' 1-0 win in the ALDS opener against the Yankees, starts Game 1 of the American League Championship Series against Cleveland on Monday at 8 p.m. at Tropicana Field. Lefty Foster Griffin is Cleveland's likely starter. It's a matchup of low-payroll, contact-first teams: the Rays won an AL-best 98 games and swept New York, while the Guardians, last in the majors in payroll at $75.5 million, rallied from 0-2 down to beat the White Sox in five games.

Scoreboard

Sun Oct 11 — Jaguars 19, Eagles 17 FINAL (London)

Sun Oct 11 — Bengals 31, Dolphins 24 FINAL

Schedule (all times ET)

Mon Oct 12: Panthers at Sabres, 1 p.m., Scripps Sports

Mon Oct 12: Guardians at Rays, ALCS Game 1, 8 p.m., TBS/truTV

Tue Oct 13: Panthers at Blue Jackets, 6:15 p.m., Scripps Sports

Tue Oct 13: Lightning at Rangers, 7:15 p.m., The Spot

Tue Oct 13: Guardians at Rays, ALCS Game 2, 8 p.m., TBS/truTV

Tue Oct 13: FIU at Jacksonville State, 8 p.m., ESPNU

Wed Oct 14: NYCFC at Inter Miami, 7:30 p.m., Apple TV

Wed Oct 14: Orlando City at Toronto FC, 7:30 p.m., Apple TV

Thu Oct 15: Rays at Guardians, ALCS Game 3, 6 p.m., TBS/truTV

Thu Oct 15: Kraken at Lightning, 7 p.m., The Spot

Thu Oct 15: Canucks at Panthers, 7 p.m., Scripps Sports

Fri Oct 16: Rays at Guardians, ALCS Game 4, 6 p.m., TBS/truTV

More Scores: NFL | MLB | NHL | NCAAF | WNBA

Receive Front Porch Florida Free Each Morning · Send to a Friend

Florida regular averaged about $4.09 a gallon Sunday (AAA, as of 10/11/26), down 2.2 cents from Saturday (about $4.11) and up about 0.6 cent from a week ago ($4.082). That is about 27.1 cents under the national average of about $4.36. West Palm Beach–Boca Raton is the most expensive metro at $4.279, and Pensacola is the cheapest at $4.000.

Receive Front Porch Florida Free Each Morning · Send to a Friend

❖ Coral Springs Museum of Art Opens in New Downtown Home With a Picasso Exhibit: The Coral Springs Museum of Art has moved to a new Downtown Coral Springs location at University Drive and Sample Road, opening with "Picasso: A Graphic Journey," which includes 57 original Picasso prints made between 1923 and 1972. Admission remains free. "This new space for our museum is huge," said museum director Juliana Forero.

❖ Villager Scores a Hole-in-One on a Par 4, a Rare Albatross: Eric Mathewson of the Village of Marsh Bend scored a hole-in-one on Hole #3 at the Lowlands Executive Golf Course on Sunday, Oct. 4. Because the hole is a par 4, his ace also counts as an exceedingly rare albatross.

❖ 89 Florida Scouts Earn Nuclear Science Merit Badges at Patrick Space Force Base: Eighty-nine scouts from across Florida gathered at Patrick Space Force Base on Sept. 19 to earn their Nuclear Science Merit Badge at an event hosted by the Air Force Technical Applications Center. They built 3D models of elements and isotopes, made cloud chambers and visited AFTAC's radiochemistry lab, where scientists perform atom-by-atom analysis.

❖ Ocala Therapy Horse Magic Celebrates 20th Birthday at Gentle Carousel Gala: Gentle Carousel Miniature Horse Therapy's Black and White Gala on Saturday night doubled as a 20th birthday for its horse Magic, perhaps the most decorated therapy animal in the nation. Ocala Mayor Ben Marciano offered a prayer and a proclamation in Magic's honor, and three of Nashville's most successful songwriters performed.

❖ Fort Pierce Artist's Ibis Drawing, Whose Eye Seems to Follow Viewers, Earns Backus Museum Recognition: Local artist Daniel Paul Carter earned an "Accepted Art" acknowledgment in the A.E. Backus Museum's Best of the Best contest for "IBBY," a pen-and-ink drawing of an ibis whose eye appears to follow viewers as they move around it. Carter combines freehand drawing, ink and airbrush work, and the piece will remain on display at the Fort Pierce museum through Nov. 13.

❖ UCF Students and Athletes Build Space-Themed Ride-On Cars for Children With Limited Mobility: UCF physical therapy students, student-athletes and Orlando Health team members are set to modify and decorate 10 battery-powered ride-on cars, with supportive seating and adapted controls, for Central Florida children with limited mobility. UCF says its Go Baby Go! program has provided more than 220 specially modified cars to children since its chapter began in 2015.

Today’s Quote

"Every Monday somebody holds a door, lets somebody in and says 'yes ma'am.' That's how a Florida week gets built."

— original / Front Porch

Florida Almanac

Moon: Waxing crescent Monday, Oct. 12 (about 4% illuminated). First quarter is Sunday, Oct. 18, and full moon is Monday, Oct. 26 (USNO).

Sunrise / Sunset: In Orlando on Monday, sunrise is at 7:25 a.m. and sunset at 6:59 p.m. EDT, for about 11 hours, 34 minutes of daylight. Times vary across the state, and Pensacola is on Central time.

Gardening Notes: Fall is herb-planting time, UF/IFAS Gardening Solutions says: rosemary loves full sun, tolerates drought and can thrive in Florida year-round, though it's best bought as a plant because it's hard to start from seed. Thyme is another drought-tolerant sun lover; trim it back whenever it gets leggy.

Coastal / Red Tide: FWC's latest update (Oct. 9) found background to very low red tide levels along the Gulf Coast and none on the East Coast.

Florida by the Numbers

Loggerhead sea turtles laid a record 71,009 nests on Florida's 27 core index beaches in 2023, more than double the low of 28,876 in 2007, according to FWC. The 2025 season topped 50,000.

Today’s Poll

Do you support requiring carbon monoxide alarms in every Florida home, given the danger of running generators after hurricanes like Isaias?

Yesterday’s Results

Do you support requiring Florida utilities to bury more power lines after Hurricane Isaias left hundreds of thousands of Panhandle customers without power?

Strongly support 100% · Somewhat support 0% · Oppose 0% · Not sure 0%