Nassau County

Margie Gandy will keep her Nassau County Ocean, Highway and Port Authority District 3 seat and Tammy Stiles will be the Republican candidate for property appraiser following a state-mandated recount.

Gandy received 5,507 votes to challenger Lear's 5,461 for a 46-vote victory after a recount by the Canvassing Board, Supervisor of Elections Vicki Cannon reported.

Stiles' margin of victory over Larry Williams in the three-way Republican primary for property appraiser was even slimmer – 32 votes. Stiles received 2,990 votes to Williams' 2,958.

By WENDI ZONGKER
wendi.zongker@mynassausun.com

YULEE — Votes from at least one Nassau County race will be recounted Friday due to the slim margin of victory, Nassau County Supervisor of Elections Vicki Cannon said today.

Property appraiser candidate Tammy Stiles appears to have beaten Larry Williams and Michael Franklin for the Republican spot on the Nov. 4 general election ballot.

She edged out Williams by 31 votes or .37 percent.

Cannon said Florida statutes require a machine recount if the race is won by less than .50 percent. Manual recounts are required if a race is won by .25 percent.

Nassau County and municipal offices will be closed tomorrow as the county braces for the heavy rains and gusty winds predicted as Tropical Storm Fay churns through Northeast Florida.

It was announced earlier today that Nassau County schools would be closed on Thursday.

The Sheriff’s Office will remain in operation and will be in charge of enforcing the county’s bridge closure policy if needed.

The policy calls for bridges to close temporarily when there are sustained winds of 45 mph or greater.

The felony court at the Nassau County Judicial Annex will be in regular session.

Yulee High School, 85373 Miner Road will open at 7 p.m. tonight as a general and special needs shelter.

Pets in crates will be allowed and owners must bring food and water bowls, animal food and medications. Owners should be able to care for their own pets but assistance will be available.

Residents in low-lying and flood prone areas are encouraged to take shelter at the school.

Nassau County Sheriff Tommy Seagraves said this afternoon that predictions were for to 8 to 12 inches of rain here over the next 24 hours.

“Flooding is the concern at this point,” Seagraves said.

That includes along the already high St. Marys River, he said.

The hurricane watch issued last night for Nassau was lifted earlier, but tropical storm and flood warnings remain in effect.

Storm tides could be 1 to 3 feet above normal tide levels and erosion is likely, according to a National Weather Service alert at 6 p.m.

Winds are expected to increase to 35 to 45 mph with higher gusts through early Thursday.

The Nassau County emergency phone line — 548-4980 or (800) 958-3494 — will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday.

Those with special needs or who need transportation assistance should call for help.

— Amelia A. Hart

• The candidate forum scheduled for 7 p.m. tonight, Aug. 21, at Nassau County Commission chambers in Yulee has been cancelled as county offices are closed today.

• Kinderstudios in Fernandina Beach will be closed Thursday, Aug. 21, in conjunction with the closure of Nassau County schools for the day.

• Due to the weather conditions, the campground at Fort Clinch State Park in Fernandina Beach has been closed.

The rest of the park remains open for regular day use.

• Due to Tropical Storm Fay, the Amelia Island-Fernandina Beach-Yulee Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours scheduled for Thursday, Aug. 21, at Amelia Urgent Care and Advance Rehabilitation has been cancelled.

As cooler water temperatures remain along our beaches, inlets and offshore, anglers need to change their fishing tactics to reap the benefits. If the predicted weather forecast comes through with northeast winds, these conditions should bring our water temperatures back into the normal range of 83 to 85 degrees.

Offshore anglers are usually live bait trolling this time of year, but with the lower water temperatures they have switched to bottom fishing all week and they are having excellent results. Grouper and snapper are being caught at most of your favorite inshore reefs. Further offshore, at the Brunswick and Elton bottoms, snapper, grouper and large numbers of beeliners are being caught. Live cigar minnows and sardines will work best when bottom fishing the local reefs and wrecks. Be on the lookout: there also have been large numbers of cobia in these areas, also.

By WENDI ZONGKER

wendi.zongker@mynassausun.com

Nassau County authorities say they are close to solving a string of bank robberies in Nassau County by masked gunmen.

The First Coast Community Bank in Yulee was robbed July 7, followed by the Southeastern Bank in Yulee on July 19 and the First Federal Savings Bank in Fernandina Beach on Tuesday.

David Sanders, 42, and Brendan Leighton, 20, are in custody and Nassau County Sheriff Tommy Seagraves said they were still being questioned Wednesday, but Sanders is charged with three counts of robbery and Leighton with one.

Trees and power lines are down all across Nassau County and a tornado may have touched down in Hilliard from severe storms that moved through the county earlier today.

Nassau County Fire Rescue Chief Chuck Cooper said the National Weather Service could not confirm if a tornado actually hit the area where a large oak tree was reported to have fallen on a mobile home.

Cooper said Fire Rescue responded to at least two dozen calls in 45 minutes. He said damage was spread across the entire county.

Cooper said a portion of Barnwell Road is closed from a tree that has fallen across a power line and is blocking the road.

Two adult gaming parlors were shut down Wednesday in Nassau County following an eight-month investigation.

Fifteen gambling machines, hundreds of debit cards and cash, together valued at $250,000, were seized from Cabana Gold in Callahan and Treasure Bay in Fernandina Beach, Sheriff Tommy Seagraves said.

Cabana Gold owner Carl Gibson and his brother Russell Gibson, who owns Treasure Bay, have not been charged with crimes.

A horse in Nassau County has tested positive for Eastern Equine Enchephalitis.

The virus, which is transmitted by bites from infected mosquitoes, primarily affects horses, but humans can become infected.

So far this year, there have been no reports of any Nassau County residents with mosquito-borne diseases, the county Health Department said in a press release this afternoon.

The Health Department officials reminds horse owners to ask their veterinarians about vaccines to protect their animals against EEE and West Nile Virus infections.

They also urge residents to protect themselves from mosquito bites:

by AMELIA A. HART

amelia.hart@mynassausun.com

The Nassau County School District has once again received an “A” from the Florida Department of Education.

Ten of the district’s 12 schools received A grades on school accountability reports released this morning by the department, including Fernandina Beach High and Hilliard Middle-Senior High which both received Bs last year.

West Nassau High School rebounded from last year’s D grade to earn a B grade for the 2007-08 school year.

In its second year, Yulee High School slipped from a C to a D.