Victory casino ship seized over unpaid bills.
A federal court has issued a warrant for the seizure of the Victory I, the Port Canaveral-based casino ship that furloughed its entire staff this past month. Court documents show a South Carolina shipyard is suing the company, alleging nearly $800,000 in unpaid bills. Victory officials couldn't be reached for comment.
SpaceX wants to pipe natural gas across Brevard.
A natural gas pipeline dedicated for SpaceX operations at Cape Canaveral could extend over 32 miles across Brevard County. It would lead from uninhabited country about 1½ miles east of the St. Johns River northward up the State Road 407 corridor past Space Coast Regional Airport to the NASA Causeway. The pipeline would eliminate the need for hundreds of truckloads of liquid natural gas for each Starship launch. The details come from a Florida Public Service Commission docket filing.
Fast-tracking DeSantis’ anti-vaccine proposal.
Gov. Ron DeSantis has said he’s committed to passing his anti-vaccine policies before term limits force him out of office in January. He may succeed. A state administrative judge set aside one week in December to hear legal challenges that have been filed against a proposed new rule that reduces by four the number of vaccines children need to attend school and daycare.
Ballot order matters.
Republicans appear above Democrats on Florida's general election ballots. That's because of a 1951 state law giving the top spot to the party that won the last gubernatorial race.
Darren Grant teaches economics at Sam Houston State University. He's studied what's called the primacy effect. It's a phenomenon where voters tend to favor the first option on a ballot. Grant says it can give those candidates a beneficial bump.
["Candidates would spend millions of dollars in advertising to try to get a bump of one or two percentage points in the vote, so that really is quite consequential."]
Florida has had several close governor's races in recent years, with Rick Scott narrowly winning both times and Ron DeSantis winning his first race by just point four percent. Grant believes being on top on the ballot helped them.
Collapsed ceiling closes restaurant.
A popular restaurant in Cocoa Village, the Vintage Vault, has closed less than a year after opening. The closure was ordered by city officials after a ceiling collapse raised safety concerns. The Vintage Vault transformed a historic former bank building into a 1920s-inspired restaurant and lounge.
El Niño may be responsible.
King tides have battered Space Coast beaches. A possible sign of the future effects of global warming? WFIT’s Terri Wright has more.
Florida's Space Coast is experiencing coastal flooding fueled by seasonal high tides, strong easterly winds, and rising sea levels. Satellite Beach has closed dune crossovers where rough surf has made access dangerous.
Experts warn El Niño could bring heavier rainfall, higher temperatures, and more extreme weather this fall and winter.
NOAA reports global sea levels have risen six to eight inches over the past century, with the rate of rise more than doubling since 2006.
Low-lying areas along the Indian River Lagoon and Brevard's barrier islands face the greatest risks. Higher seas also increase hurricane threats, contributing to stronger storms and heavier rainfall. Similar coastal flooding is expected during the next full moon cycle, November 22nd through 27th.
Rainy weather coming.
Slow moving heavy rain and thunderstorms threaten the Space Coast as the first El Niño fueled system brings a risk of localized flooding. The system is expected late Sunday, into Monday morning. The details are not fully clear yet, but the system is an early sign that Florida’s usual “dry” season may not be very dry this winter.
