FBI investigates death of Titusville teen on cruise ship.
A young woman whose death on board the Carnival Horizon cruise ship is being investigated by the FBI was identified by her family as a Titusville high school senior. Anna Kepner attended Titusville’s Temple Christian School. She was due to graduate in May. Carnival Cruise Line confirmed a passenger had died on the Horizon that returned to PortMiami. Her school posted images of flowers placed by students on top her car on the school’s campus.
Future of Merritt Island holiday boat parade in doubt.
Plans for the annual Merritt Island Christmas Boat Parade are in jeopardy after the event’s main sponsor announced it will no longer host the parade. Blue Marlin real estate cited continuing lawsuits from last year’s boat crash. A boat designed to look like a Corvette crashed into another vessel during the parade, injuring several people. The boat’s driver later served 60 days in jail. The parade’s future remains uncertain as new leadership is needed to keep the tradition alive.
Blue Origin to try again Wednesday.
Blue Origin will try again Wednesday to launch its New Glenn rocket. The mission will send two spacecraft en route to Mars. The launch window will be open from 2:50 to 4:17 Wednesday afternoon. Blue Origin got a waiver from the FAA for the daytime liftoff.
Last night, SpaceX set the record for the most number of rocket launches in a year from the Space Coast - number 94.
Disaster loans available to Brevard flood victims.
If you were impacted by the flooding in north Brevard County, you may be eligible for a low-interest disaster loan through the US Small Business Administration. Loans are available to homeowners, renters, nonprofits and businesses to help cover repair, rebuilding, and recovery costs not fully covered by your insurance. Visit SBA.gov/disaster.
Bloodhound will help locate missing persons.
A bloodhound, donated by the Senior Resource Alliance, will help search for missing persons, especially seniors with dementia and Alzheimer’s. WFIT’s Terri Wright tells us more.
Max, a one-year-old bloodhound, has received specialized training to help locate missing persons, especially those with Alzheimer’s and other types of dementia. This year, the Senior Resource Alliance supplied the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office with 550 scent kits. These kits hold an individual’s unique scent, enabling K9 first responders to find them more rapidly if they stray away. K9 Max’s donation is part of the Senior Resource Alliance’s Bringing the Lost Home project, which has supplied seven bloodhounds to four Central Florida law enforcement agencies since 2021. These bloodhounds have successfully found 81 missing persons.
Gradual warmup expected.
The National Weather Service in Melbourne reports the wind chill dropped into the 30’s this morning along the Space Coast. Meteorologist Irene Sans from Florida Public Radio Emergency Network tells us how much longer the cold will linger.
“Temperatures will slowly increase through the rest of the week, with highs reaching the 70s by Wednesday and the mid to upper 70s by Friday—the next few nights lows in the 40s, but with light winds. Keep in mind that the dry air mass will remain in place all week, and with low humidity, any fires that start could spread quickly.”
She explains that this arctic blast doesn't necessarily mean winter will be cold; in fact, with La Niña likely to persist, winter could remain warmer and drier than average. So enjoy the cooler week.
