Hannah Denby, 14, Lea Denby, 36; DJ Denby, 9; and Rachel Hough, 12, came to Pensacola Beach to protest the government's handling of the oil spill. (Mike Greear/mgreear@pnj.com)
Archive for the ‘Photos’ Category
Crowds gather at beach for glimpse of Obama
In Gulf coast oil spill coverage, News, Photos on June 15, 2010 at 2:52 pmA beautiful day at Pensacola Beach, except for the oil
In Gulf coast oil spill coverage, News, Photos on June 11, 2010 at 6:33 pm
It took only 15 minutes for Shirley "Shark" Cotita and Sheila Arnette to scoop up a net full of tar balls and a plastic bag containing trash covered in oil from a 10-foot stretch of Pensacola Beach. (Mike Greear / mgreear@pnj.com)
Gallery: Pensacola Beach oil
In Gulf coast oil spill coverage, News, Photos on June 6, 2010 at 10:08 am
A team of about 20 volunteers arrived this afternoon to help clean up Pensacola Beach near the Fort Pickens gate. It was the largest response team PNJ crews had seen today. They are part of BP's Deepwater Horizons emergency response group. They weren't allowed to give information to media, but provided a number to BP's joint information center. Representatives at that number could not comment. (Mike Greear / mgreear@pnj.com)
The above photograph was originally published by the Pensacola News Journal for the story “Oil spill: Tar balls found at Pensacola, Navarre beaches,” which I also contributed some reporting to.
(Mike Greear / mgreear@pnj.com)
(Mike Greear / mgreear@pnj.com)
(Mike Greear / mgreear@pnj.com)
(Mike Greear / mgreear@pnj.com)
Boom is ready in the Fort Pickens area, near the Pensacola Pass.
Bags of material used to line beaches to catch oil lies ready at the Fort Pickens area of Pensacola Beach.
The above photographs were taken by me on June 4, 2010 as I was assisting reporter Kim Blair with coverage of the Gulf Coast oil spill, and were published by the Pensacola News Journal in an online gallery.
Navarre Beach Pier opens
In Gulf coast oil spill coverage, Local News, News, Photos on June 6, 2010 at 9:25 am
Excited children from Navarre help Santa Rosa County commissioners cut the ribbon at the opening of the new Navarre Beach Pier. The new pier replaces the one that was closed following Hurricane Ivan in 2004. (Mike Greear/mgreear@pnj.com)
Hundreds of people flocked to Navarre Beach on Saturday to help open the new and improved Navarre Beach Pier.
The ribbon-cutting ceremony for the opening of the $8.6 million pier was preceded by a speech from state Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, who said the pier is a symbol of Santa Rosa County’s resilience during a time of disaster. The previous pier was damaged by Hurricane Ivan in 2004 and Hurricane Dennis the next year.
“The comeback for Northwest Florida starts today with this pier,” Gaetz said. Santa Rosa County commissioners also spoke at the event.
For the local fishing community, the new pier has been a dream for nearly six years.
“We’ve been anticipating this forever,” said Tony White, 54, of Navarre.
White caught the first fish of the morning, a 40-pound redfish.
“It’s a good way to start,” he said.
The opening of the pier comes as oil and tar balls from the April 20 Gulf spill have begun washing ashore. Some fishing enthusiasts hope the pier provides a silver lining to that dark cloud.
“It’s ironic,” said Masami Lewis, 41, about the timing of the pier’s opening. “But you make the best of the worst situation.”
Some anglers said they prefer the Navarre pier over the fishing pier on Pensacola Beach, in part because it extends farther into the Gulf, where larger fish swim.
The new pier boasts an octagonal end with a wider surface area, as well as breakaway wood panels to prevent damage to the main structure during a storm.
“They did a good job,” said Milton resident Jerry Couey, 50, who has been fishing in Navarre since the first pier was opened. “It will be here for many years.”
