Local

Bryce Lay loads up plywood at Home Depot on Monday as he makes preparations for Hurricane Ian. (MORGAN MCMULLEN/Lake City Reporter)

Bryce Lay loads up plywood at Home Depot on Monday as he makes preparations for Hurricane Ian. (MORGAN MCMULLEN/Lake City Reporter)

Shoppers prepare for Hurricane Ian by stocking up on supplies

MORGAN MCMULLEN
Monday, September 26, 2022
Bryce Lay isn’t taking any chances. The Lake City resident spent some of Monday afternoon stockpiling four large sheets of plywood on his trip to the local Home Depot, getting ready to board up windows in preparation for Hurricane Ian’s arrival.
Utility crews from across the country poured into the Florida Gateway Fairgrounds at a Florida Power & Light processing site Monday in preparation for emergency response efforts for Hurricane Ian. (RAY CARPENTER/Special to the Reporter)

Utility crews from across the country poured into the Florida Gateway Fairgrounds at a Florida Power & Light processing site Monday in preparation for emergency response efforts for Hurricane Ian. (RAY CARPENTER/Special to the Reporter)

Utility crews flock to FPL site at fairgrounds ahead of Hurricane Ian

JAMIE WACHTER
Monday, September 26, 2022
Lake City’s population swelled temporarily by a few thousand people Monday. It will grow again today as well. In preparation for Hurricane Ian, Florida Power & Light turned the Florida Gateway Fairgrounds into one of its two processing sites in the state.

LCPD ‘pretty active’ in investigating fatal shooting

NEWS STAFF
Monday, September 26, 2022
Lake City police officers are actively pursuing leads into the killing of a Jacksonville man Saturday morning in northern Lake City. According to the Lake City Police Department, officers conducting a traffic stop around 1 a.m. Saturday heard gunfire a few blocks away and responded.
Ian

Ian

Hurricane Ian: County will have sandbags available Tuesday

NEWS STAFF
Monday, September 26, 2022
As Columbia County emergency officials monitor Hurricane Ian, storm prep and emergency response efforts are underway. To help prepare for the storm and any impacts it may have on Columbia County residents, the county will distribute sandbags, starting Tuesday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
LCPD

LCPD

Jacksonville man shot, killed Saturday morning

NEWS STAFF
Saturday, September 24, 2022
Two people were shot and a Jacksonville man was killed in northern Lake City early Saturday morning. According to the Lake City Police Department, officers conducting a traffic stop around 1 a.m. Saturday heard gunfire a few blocks away and responded. When they arrived to 877 N.
Billy Dekle stands with a Piper Aztec plane in the late 1970s when he began flying trips to Central and South America to bring marijuana to Florida as part of a smuggling operation, which he has written about in ‘Flying High with Gringo Billy.’ (COURTESY)

Billy Dekle stands with a Piper Aztec plane in the late 1970s when he began flying trips to Central and South America to bring marijuana to Florida as part of a smuggling operation, which he has written about in ‘Flying High with Gringo Billy.’ (COURTESY)

Flying high with Gringo Billy, the ‘good bandito’

JAMIE WACHTER
Saturday, September 24, 2022
There are no such things as crashes in Billy Dekle’s experience. Any plane ride he can walk away from is simply a happy landing.

Council claims raise was worthy

TONY BRITT
Saturday, September 24, 2022
With its approval of the budget Monday, the Lake City Council gave itself a raise. During Monday’s meeting, resident Jerry Leszkiewicz wasn’t a fan of the pay increase coming the council’s way, starting Oct. 1.
Mickey Garrett (right), a Pathways Academy instructor and Columbia Teachers Association negotiator, speaks to a group of educators Thursday afternoon. (TONY BRITT/Lake City Reporter)

Mickey Garrett (right), a Pathways Academy instructor and Columbia Teachers Association negotiator, speaks to a group of educators Thursday afternoon. (TONY BRITT/Lake City Reporter)

Teachers organize, ask for salary increases

TONY BRITT
Thursday, September 22, 2022
Last week a collection of Columbia County veteran teachers went to the school meeting requesting a respectable salary increase to deal with inflation.