The Battle Over Green Space: Jacksonville’s Fight to Preserve Nature
Ambar Ramirez
Fishing Culture in Jax
Ambar Ramirez & Carmen Macri 28
Nightmare on Blount Island The Höegh Xiamen Ship Fire Disaster
Chip Drysdale
BEHIND THE COVER:
Nightmare on Blount Island
The Höegh Xiamen Ship Fire Disaster. Dames Point Marine Terminal.
Cover Story by Charles Chip Drysdale, firefighter for over 40 years. Photo shows Drysdale [right] in a strategic meeting mid fire disaster on the Höegh Xiamen Ship.
Photo provided by Public Information Officer Captian Prosswimmer while at the scene of the fire.
JOHN PHILLIPS President
TERESA SPENCER General Manager
KERRY SPECKMAN Copy
AMBAR RAMIREZ
MACRI
SHELTON HULL
KAILI COCHRAN Writer/Designer
CHIP DRYSDALE Contributor
DALE RATERMAN Crossword Curator
America’s founding ideals call us to recognize the inherent worth and dignity of every person. The Preamble to our Constitution affirms our collective mission to “establish justice, ensure domestic tranquility, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty.” The Pledge of Allegiance reminds us that we are “one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” Yet, today, we find ourselves at a crossroads where these principles are being challenged—not by foreign adversaries, but by the way we treat one another within our own communities.
Our society thrives when we embrace our shared humanity, even in the face of deep differences. Yet, across our nation and in our own city, we see the dangerous effects of dehumanization—when people are labeled as “other,” stripped of their dignity, and treated as if they are less than fully human. History teaches us that dehumanization is not just rhetoric; it paves the way for discrimination, exclusion, and even violence. It erodes our moral compass, weakens our democracy, and fractures the social fabric that holds us togeth er.
We cannot stand by and allow this to happen. As citizens of a nation founded on the belief in justice and equality, we must actively resist dehumanization. This means standing up and speaking out when we see language or actions that demean others. It means challenging policies and practices that strip people of their rights and humanity. It means fostering spaces for honest, respectful dialogue that acknowledges our differences while affirming our shared humanity. At OneJax, we are committed to building bridges of understanding and encouraging the difficult but necessary conversations that strengthen our civic and moral fabric. We believe in an indivisible nation and community, bound together by respect, empathy, and hope, and this work begins here at hom e.
As we navigate the challenges facing our city, we must stay focused on creating a culture of belonging right here in Jacksonville. We must ensure that every person feels valued, heard, and connected to the larger community. Our city’s strength lies in the beautiful mosaic of diverse people and cultures, and by embracing this, we can build a Jacksonville that truly reflects the best of America’s ideals.
Elizabeth Andersen, CEO of OneJax, Inc.
BOUQS & BRICKS
BOUQUETS BRICKBATS
To the North Florida Green Chamber and its dedicated members for championing our right to a cleaner, greener future. Their ongoing work to advocate for green legislation and promote sustainability — from clean energy and waste recycling to clean air, transportation, water quality and environmental justice — is absolutely essential. Together, they’re driving real change and showing that business and environmental responsibility can go hand in hand.
To the National Parks Service and its 4.1 million for boldly standing up in defense of our National Parks and the environment. They’ve become a vital source of truthful, unfiltered information—especially during times when our public lands and environmental protections are under threat, even from within our own government.
To President Donald Trump’s leadership that has us on the fast track to major economic trouble. He touted that his tariffs were going to bring manufacturing back to the U.S., but in reality, they have triggered trade wars, raised prices for American consumers, and are hurting key industries like agriculture and auto manufacturing. Instead of boosting the economy, many analysts argue these policies contributed to market instability and supply chain disruptions.
To Trump’s administration for causing the departure of thousands of federal workers, either through direct firings, resignations under pressure or positions left unfilled. This erosion of institutional knowledge and public service capacity has weakened key agencies, from the EPA to the State Department.
To Trump’s decision to bring in bizarre, seemingly irrelevant, tech billionaires to help run the country. Whether it was space policy, social media engagement, or even political rhetoric, for example, Trump often treats Musk not just as an advisor, but as a peer in power — a concerning development for a democracy rooted in accountability and elected leadership.
JACKSONVILLE JUMBO SHRIMP upcoming promotions
TUESDAY, MAY 6 – SUNDAY, MAY 11
Friday, May 9, 7:05PM NO PLACE LIKE HOME
Our take on the classic musical and 2024/25 movie remake! Prepare to click your heels three time to return home! Additionally, enjoy Friday Night Lites with $2 12oz. Miller Lites, presented by Miller Lite, and Friday Night Fireworks
Saturday, May 10, 6:35PM MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS
May is Mental Health Awareness Month and we are excited to partner with River Point Behavioral Health and VyStar Credit Union to present Mental Health Awareness Night. Also, Be one of the first 2000 fans through the Main Gate at the Baptist Health Centerfield Plaza to obtain a Jumbo Shrimp Beach Hat! Be sure to stick around after the game for Saturday Night Fireworks!
Sunday, May 11, 3:05PM MOTHER’S DAY
Take your favorite Mother figure to VyStar ballpark to celebrate Mother’s Day! It’s Baptist Health Sunday Family FUNday out to the center field gate where we will host catch on the field until 20 minutes after the gates have opened. Kids can also feel like the pros after each Sunday game by running the bases once the field is clear. Plus, face paint, balloon animals & more, presented by Baptist Health. TICKETS START AT JUST $5 $5
TUESDAY, MAY 20 – SUNDAY, MAY 25 VS VS
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April keeps the spotlight on you, but now it’s time to refine your strategy. The earlier solar eclipse revealed key personal insights — now you need to make them count. Mercury retrograde may cause delays or misunderstandings, especially with your goals or image, but don’t let it derail you. You’re still the main character — just hold off on the drama for now.
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Even flowers need a whole season of rest before they are ready to bloom, and the same could be said for you this April, Taurus. Your season is just around the corner and the best way to prepare is by following the three Rs rule (that we just made up), rest, reflect and reset.
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L i B ra
April’s putting your relationships under the microscope, Libra — and not in the “let’s analyze every little detail” way, but more like “who’s really vibing with me” kind of way. The solar eclipse on April 8 might shake things up, pushing you to get real about what you want (and what you don’t). Time for some honest talks — no sugarcoating.
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The solar eclipse on April 8 is all about getting to the root of things — whether it’s rethinking daily habits or uncovering buried emotions. It’s a cosmic invitation to dive deeper. Mercury retrograde means delays and miscommunications are likely, so double-check everything. Patience, as always, is your secret weapon (sarcasm).
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You’re in the midst of a shift this month, Cancer and all eyes are on you. With the solar eclipse and New Moon in Aries mid-month lighting up your career zone, you’re being nudged (OK, shoved) into bold moves professionally. Just remember: growth doesn’t happen in comfort zones or crab shells.
April’s got you in full social mode, Gemini, but with a twist. The solar eclipse on April 8 could bring some surprising shifts in your friendships or social circles. It’s time to evaluate who’s really on your team. Mercury retrograde mid-month could cause communication mishaps, so double-check plans and be clear with your words. Don’t let small mix-ups turn into bigger problems. L
April’s shaking things up for you, Leo. The solar eclipse on April 8 is pushing you to rethink what’s important — whether it’s diving into something new or finally breaking free from your routine. It’s a moment to take risks and embrace what excites you. Mercury retrograde mid-month might cause some delays or confusion, especially with plans or communication.
April starts with a strike of a match, Sagittarius—your fire’s officially re-lit. With the Aries solar eclipse electrifying your house of creativity and romance, you’re being cosmically dared to take bold risks in love, art or maybe that slightly chaotic group project you keep thinking about. Go big or go home, right?
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It’s time to clean up any old habits that aren’t serving you — whether it’s that daily latte or a toxic mindset around money. Spring cleaning and all. The solar eclipse on April 8 is pushing you to take a hard look at your value — not just what you bring to the table, but what you’re willing to accept in return. Time to raise your standards (and your rates, while you’re at it).
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April asks you to update your mental software, Aquarius — and no, turning it off and back on again won’t cut it. With the Aries solar eclipse zapping your communication zone, it’s time to say what you really mean, not just what sounds clever in the group chat. Speak your truth … even if it autocorrects the first time.
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With the Aries solar eclipse lighting up your transformation zone, this month is about letting go of what you think you need and making space for what actually works, Virgo. Consider it a spring declutter … for your soul. Mercury retrograde (your ruling planet, no less) means tech glitches, missed texts and
Stop romanticizing struggle, Pisces — you don’t have to suffer to sparkle. With the Aries solar eclipse lighting up your money and self-worth zone, the cosmos is giving you a bold nudge to rethink your relationship with value.
To Shoppers
These shops celebrarate earth day all year
“If food waste were a country it would be the third-largest emitter of greenhouse gases.” This is what Kevin Anderson, senior coordinator of Ogier Gardens at the University of North Florida, shared with me during a composting workshop he led. It’s a statistic that sticks with me whenever the topic of eco-friendly or zero-waste living comes up.
Waste has become such a regular part of our lives that we often don’t think twice about it. Even something as simple as not finishing all the food on our plates contributes to the problem.
With Earth Day approaching April 22, there is an increase in conversation surrounding the topics of reducing waste and saving the planet.
But why should Earth Day only come once a year? As I looked into how Jacksonville contributes to eco-friendly efforts, I found several local businesses that are working toward sustainability every day.
Take Eco Eclectic, for example. Founded by Sara Fagen, it is an eco-friendly shop that promotes the use of recycled material in everyday items. Offering anything from detergents and dish soaps to thrifted clothing, Eco Eclectic also offers “refill” stations to promote a more sustainable way of refilling your favorite products. The bottles Fagen sells her refill products in are even made from recycled plastics.
Then there’s Cultivate Jax which houses multiple small businesses. This shop sells handmade artwork, jewelry, bags and more. Almost everything in this shop goes toward the planet whether it’s recycled, handmade, or gardening and sustainability products.
Other businesses such as Plato’s Closet or Beam Thrift are helping with waste because they are focused on reusing products to the fullest.
At Plato’s Closet, you can bring in gently used clothing, shoes and purses and they will be re-sold to customers. At Beam Thrift, you can find second-hand furniture, books, home decor, and jewelry.
There are a good handful of stores I haven’t mentioned that also take precautions to promote a healthier planet. But even so, you don’t have to shop at these locations to make a difference. Making small adjustments to your daily routine can help reduce waste.
For example, switching from plastic to reusable bags when shopping, carrying a large bottle to refill, and donating or passing along clothes and household items before throwing them away.
Earth Day may be a reminder, but the real challenge is making eco-friendly choices part of our everyday lives.
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Reducing Waste: Benefits & Facts
Reusable water bottles, shopping bags and composting help reduce emissions and save costs.
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If you are traveling and your destination is within walking or biking distance, you not only help the planet (each gallon of gas spews 19 pounds of carbon dioxide in the air) but by riding a bike or walking, you also save money on gas.
Plastic bags can take between 500-1,000 years to decompose. They make up 10% of garbage, polluting U.S. beaches.
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Roughly 80% of items buried in landfills could be recycled instead.
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The average office employee throws away over 300 pounds of recyclable paper each year.
Words by Teresa Spencer
FOLIO WEED
Home Grown
Ah, the Mary Jane enthusiasts — the passionate crowd that loves more than just the high. We’re talking about folks who appreciate the plant, the process, and the purpose. Whether it’s for medical relief, growing the perfect bud, crafting edibles or just vibing with like-minded people, the cannabis community is vast, creative, and steadily growing (pun very much intended).
Although you can get your medical marijuana card in the state of Florida if you have qualifying health conditions that are diagnosed by a doctor who then can prescribe you the precious plant, many Floridians are pushing for the opportunity to cultivate marijuana at home.
This group is finding a louder voice recently and note, they’re not just users — they’re advocates, gardeners, entrepreneurs, and sometimes even scientists experimenting with strains, terpenes, and THC/CBD balances. And polls tell us that cannabis consumers in Florida are inclined toward home cultivation in efforts to save money, control product quality assurance and experience personal satisfaction.
A recent survey by The Harris Poll indicated that 81% of cannabis consumers nationwide believe all Americans should have the right to cultivate marijuana at home. In Florida, approximately 26% of cannabis consumers reported having already grown marijuana at home with many others expressing interest in doing so, according to Compassionate Healthcare of Florida.
So, what’s the scoop on when us Floridians may be able to have some good ol’ homegrown cannabis? Senator Joe Gruters proposed Senate Bill 546 (SB 546), which was introduced in the Florida Senate on Feb. 7, 2025.
Key Provisions of SB
546:
• Cultivation Certificate: Qualified patients must apply to the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services for a certificate authorizing home cultivation. The department is tasked with establishing procedures for issuing, renewing, and revoking these certificates, including rules for the inspection and registration of each cannabis plant.
• Plant Limit per Residence: Regardless of the number of qualified patients residing at a single location, no more than two cannabis plants may be cultivated at that residence.
• Location and Security: Cultivated plants must not be visible to the public without special aids and must be grown in an enclosed, locked space to prevent access by unauthorized individuals and those under 21 years of age.
• Landlord Consent: Applicants leasing their residence must provide documentation demonstrating that the property owner consents to marijuana cultivation on the premises.
• Penalties for Non-Compliance: Violations of the proposed provisions would constitute a first-degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in jail and a fine of up to $1,000.
As of April 10, there have been no further actions or updates on the bill since its introduction. The legislative process involves multiple stages, including committee reviews, potential amendments, and votes in both legislative chambers. The timeline for these proceedings c an vary, and as of now, no specific schedule has been announced.
Words by Kaili Cochran
WELLNESS, BUT MAKE IT UNEXPECTED
When it comes to wellness, it’s easy to think we’ve heard it all — yoga, meditation, green smoothies. But, as self-care is increasingly all over our For You page, some unique and creative ways to approach wellness have emerged.
Looking at goat yoga, for example. People are paying over $30 to do yoga in a barn full of goats. Goat yoga, which gained popularity almost a decade ago, is still as common today. During a 45-minute yoga session, you are surrounded by playful baby and adult goats who will climb on top of your back and stomach as you move through poses like a downward dog or bridge. There are even videos where goats will jump back and forth between participants’ arched backs.
In Jacksonville, The Little Peeps Farmers offer goat yoga classes on weekends in the morning or afternoon, and they’re even kid-friendly for families to join in. Goat yoga has been proven to reduce stress and increase happiness while connecting people and animals. The goats’ involvement helps lower first-timers’ potential anxiety by joining a yoga class and making it more relaxing and fun.
Another form of wellness is stretch therapy. Stretch Zone offers an experience where clients are strapped to a table and assisted by therapists to stretch and loosen muscles. Located on San Jose Boulevard, Stretch Zone, helps relieve stiffness and soreness and increase mobility.
There are many benefits to assisted stretching, especially for older adults. According to a study by the National Center for Biotechnology Information, active-assisted stretching programs can improve flexibility and enhance daily living activities and overall quality of life. While the Stretch Zone is particularly beneficial for older adults, people of all ages can enjoy relief from discomfort.
The owner of two Stretch Zone locations in Jacksonville, Ramiah Martin, struggled with chronic back discomfort from his daily activities and discovered Stretch Zone through a friend. He chose to acquire Stretch Zone Mandarin and Stretch Zone Ponte Vedra. This year, he opened a Stretch Zone in St. Johns.
“My hope is that our studio can significantly improve the quality of life for our members and encourage them to push their flexibility to new heights,” Martin said.
If you’re curious to try it out, Stretch Zone offers a free 30-minute session upon your first visit.
Two other contrasting wellness treatments are infrared sauna and cryotherapy. Both available at Degree Wellness and Be Still Float Studio in Riverside, offer a choice between these services where you can either sweat it out or freeze your way to recovery.
Infrared saunas use light to generate heat, allowing the body to warm up without heating the surrounding area. According to Brent A. Baurer, director of the Department of Internal Medicine at Mayo Clinic, infrared saunas provide the same benefits as traditional saunas such as sweating and increased heart rate but at lower temperatures providing a more comfortable choice for those who can’t tolerate the high heat produced in regular saunas.
On the other end is cryotherapy. This treatment involves putting the aching parts of your body under cold temperatures for 2 to 3 minutes which helps reduce inflammation, accelerate recovery, and boost metabolism. Cryotherapy has proven to be especially effective for athletes looking to recover quickly from intense training.
These wellness trends allow for a different approach to self-care and well-being. Whether you’re looking to relax with goats, stretch it out or sweat and freeze your way to relieve discomfort in your body, these treatments could be your next go-to wellness experience.
Make America
It’s been more than a decade since “Extreme Couponing” aired on TLC, but the hunt for deals is still going strong — the tactics just look a little different now.
Couponing might seem like a relic from the early 2000s—something your mom did with a binder and a stack of flyers—but honestly, it deserves a comeback. Prices are up, paychecks aren’t stretching as far and saving a few bucks here and there isn’t just smart — it’s necessary. Gone are the days of spending hours clipping paper coupons at the kitchen table (though I’m not knocking it); now, there are apps, influencers and Facebook groups doing most of the work for you. All you need is a little patience, a Wi-Fi connection and maybe a notes app to keep track of your haul.
And beyond the savings, there’s something oddly satisfying about the hunt. Scoring a BOGO deal or finding out you can stack coupons on top of a clearance item? Feels like a tiny win in a world full of overpriced everything. Plus, with social media making it easier than ever to share tips, tricks and screenshots of your cart total dropping from $80 to $12, there’s a whole community of savvy shoppers out there turning couponing into a lifestyle — and it’s about time we joined them.
Growing up, one of our family rituals was gathering around the kitchen table with the weekly coupon inserts in hand—my brothers, my parents, and me, all calling dibs on the best deals we could find. Nine times out of ten, those deals took us to Winn-Dixie, where we’d pile into the car and race through the aisles like bargain-hunting bandits, grabbing every BOGO we could.
Annabella
Words by Carmen Macri
At seven years old, I was bright-eyed, bushy-tailed, and laser-focused on anything loaded with sugar and preservatives (not much has changed, except my driver license).
As we got older, the couponing tradition started to fade, and truth be told, we were never particularly great at it. Compared to the couponing legends who turned grocery store hauls into viral videos and science projects, we were amateurs at best. But for a while, clipping those coupons felt like a sport — and we played with heart.
There was a time when it felt embarrassing to coupon, don’t ask me why, but I think we all went through that awkward phase where everything was embarrassing. But luckily, I, along with everyone else in their 20s, grew out of that, and now saving money is all I can think about. And while I usually involuntarily throw away the Money Mailer, there are new ways to coupon. One of the most popular is the app Honey, it does the dirty work for you—scouring the internet for deals and coupon codes, then automatically slapping the best one on at checkout while you sit back and feel smug. However, this is only for online shopping, not grocery shopping, which is usually where all of our money goes every two weeks.
Couponing influencers are everywhere these days — scroll through just about any platform and you’ll trip over a dozen of them. But one I follow religiously is Torok Coupon Hunter. With over 3 million followers, she’s constantly dropping deals on groceries, household essentials and anything else you’d normally overpay for. She’s on top of clearance events at big-name stores, walks you through finding and stacking online coupons like a pro and even shows you how to preserve your stockpile once you’ve hauled it home. I’m not exaggerating when I say she’s saved me hundreds of dollars—probably more.
Mami Couponz blew up by spotlighting cheap finds at big-name stores like Target, Ikea and Whole Foods. Her signature move? “What $5 can buy you at ___?” — and somehow, it’s always way more than you’d expect. She knows her way around inflation and thank god she is sharing it with the rest of us. And then there’s Livy Coupons, who pretty much floods your feed with every deal known to mankind—when it’s happening, where to find it and what to expect. Like I said, it’s all about knowing where to look and who’s worth the follow.
And to keep things local, there are a bunch of Facebook groups worth digging into—like Jacksonville Couponing Mama, who shares deals specifically happening around town, or For Cheap or Free Jacksonville, which has over 167,000 members swapping secret steals, flash deals and sometimes just giving stuff away for free. It’s basically a gold mine if you know where to look. And let’s not forget about Facebook Marketplace, which basically sponsors my entire apartment. Couch, coffee table, TV stand, kitchen chairs, rugs, art — literally everything in my place is courtesy of a good scroll and a quick pickup.
Make America coupon again!
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Words by Kaili Cochran
YOU Dining Out Is SAVING LIVES
Before the mid-1990s, having HIV was considered a death sentence but with modern treatment, someone with HIV can have a similar lifespan as someone who is HIV-negative.
Northeast Florida Aids Network is the only organization in Northeast Florida that focuses on HIV. Since its founding in 1989, NFAN’s mission has grown from focusing on end-of-life care to now providing long-term resources.
Although there has been an advancement in technology and treatments, HIV is still a risk to anyone. But because it is no longer life-threatening, it has become a less talked about subject.
NFAN no longer receives as many invitations to speak at schools or companies as they once had. Donna Fuchs, executive director of NFAN, suggested it could be due to the common belief that HIV is now easily manageable with medication.
“People think this is now just a chronic illness where you just take some medicine and you’ll be OK. Which if you do get the medicine, is pretty much true but everybody is still just as vulnerable if you make a bad decision,” Fuchs emphasized.
But there’s more to NFAN than providing medicine to those with HIV, it helps with the priorities that one may have before they can get medication.
“HIV primarily affects demographics that typical ly don’t have healthcare insurance,” Fuchs said. “HIV sometimes isn’t even the most serious thing they have going on in their life.”
NFAN helps assist with other barriers that are more pressing in a person’s life and it can range from homelessness, mental illness, drug abuse or domestic violence.
“So you have our case managers that get through all of those other barriers and issues because the person that’s hungry, homeless, has mental health issues probably isn’t going to take their medicine anyway,” Fuchs said.
NFAN contributing to more than HIV treatment was an idea derived by Mary H. Lewis.
Lewis was diagnosed with HIV and was told she was going to die. But, she had two kids and looked for other options to help her prolong her life. She eventually found NFAN and was able to get treatment.
But it was still frowned upon for her to have HIV, and her license was revoked, which as you can imagine, was a setback for a mother who needed to provide for her family. At this point, NFAN provided her with everything but a food source.
It was Lewis’s idea to create a place where food was obtainable for those who were going through what she had gone through herself. Lewis later passed in 2000 and the food pantry was renamed in her honor. It is known today as the Mary H. Lewis Food Pantry and is constantly being stocked by the community.
Although there has been a progression in helping those facing HIV, the stigma around having HIV remains a major issue and is just as present in 2025 as it was in 1989. The stigma and lack of public awareness continue to limit community support and visibility.
Going on 20 years, Dining Out For Life is a Dining Out For Life is an annual dining fundraising event raising money for community-based organizations serving people living with or impacted by HIV all across the country with events based in specific cities. All you have to do is eat out at participating locations and 25-50% of restaurant profits will go directly to NFAN and be used to help support those in need. In 2024, Mary H. Lewis food pantry and Dining Out For Life® provided 15,388 meals to 595 families.
And beyond helping fight hunger, overall NFAN provided 570 clients with medical case management, 900 people were provided education, 491 families were provided housing assistance and 137 individuals were provided 1,259 months of health insurance premium assistance.
Now, 36 years after its founding, NFAN is still showing up for people in need, offering plenty of resources to make sure they help everyone they can.
THE BATTLE OVER GREEN SPACE:
JACKSONVILLE’S FIGHT TO PRESERVE NATURE
When the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) revealed its 2024-25 Great Outdoors Initiative last year, Florida residents took to the streets for protests. As a quick reminder, the Great Outdoors initiative planned to make Florida’s State Parks more accessible by expanding public access, increasing outdoor activities by building pickleball courts or golf courses and implementing new lodging options. As you can imagine, this proposed initiative didn’t land (pun intended) with the public as the DEP may have hoped and after seven days, the bill was quickly redrawn. In a press conference two days later, Governor Ron DeSantis admitted the proposal was “half-baked” and “not ready for prime time,” declaring it effectively dead: “They’re going back to the drawing board.”
In Northeast Florida alone, the FDEP had some big (and frankly, baffling) ideas for our state parks. The plan included building a massive 350-room lodge right in the middle of Anastasia State Park and adding multiple golf courses to Jonathan Dickinson State Park. Thankfully, St. Johns County Commission Chair Sarah Arnold didn’t waste any time shutting it down, rejecting any proposed development in those parks.
It’s ironic that something called the Great Outdoors Initiative was what finally tripped up DeSantis — not culture wars, not his crusade against higher education or banned books, but a collective demand to leave Florida’s wild spaces alone. And while the plan may be shelved, the fight over green space is just heating up—especially in rapidly developing cities like our very own Jacksonville, where the battle to balance growth and preservation is playing out in real time. So, to borrow a phrase from the Governor himself: back to the drawing board we go.
There are always two sides to every story — and when it comes to history, you’re either on the right side of it or the wrong one. Thankfully, for those of us who call Jacksonville and Northeast Florida home, we can confidently say we’re standing on the right side. While the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) — spearheaded by Elon Musk’s White House advisory team — is busy gutting the National Park Service and the Trump administration is pushing executive orders to ramp up logging, Northeast Florida is proving to be the exception. A beacon, if you will. A glimmer of what it actually looks like to balance protecting green spaces with thoughtful, sustainable growth.
Proposed in 2003 by the St. Johns County in collaboration with HDR, National Parks Service’s River Trails & Conservation Assistance program, the Greenway, Blueway and Trails Master Plan are proof that conservation initiatives can be implemented in a way that protects natural spaces instead of paving over them. The current FDEP group sees luscious green spaces and protected species as an opportunity to build concrete sidewalks and disruptive structures whereas this Northeast Florida Blueway project sees a way to connect the public with nature through various activities like boating, canoeing, kayaking, birding, hiking, and fishing, while also contributing to the protection and restoration of the region’s land and water resources.
Words by Ambar Ramirez
Known for his walkable and admirable community, planner Dan Burden had this to say within the St. Johns County Greenway, Blueway and Trails Master Plan final report:
“A trail offers its users awareness of their surroundings. Trails preserve vistas. Trails preserve ecosystems, which allow natural sounds to drown out urban sounds. Trails invite touch and discovery. Trails protect and preserve fragrance. The trail experience offers users feelings of bigness and connection with the earth. Trails unfold the mystery, offer surprise, and preserve the detail. In fact, well-designed trails offer the hikers, bicyclists, skaters or other adventurers new sensations each time they are used.”
The Northeast Florida Blueway Project is part of the DEP’s Florida Forever Plan and over the years has made some impactful moves. Take the expansion and protection of the Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve, for example—safeguarding vital estuarine ecosystems that endangered species like the Florida manatee call home. In 2019, Fish Island was acquired and preserved thanks to a joint effort between the North Florida Land Trust and the FDEP. Not only did that move protect a slice of valuable coastal habitat, it also opened up new recreational opportunities for locals and visitors alike — proving that when done right, conservation and smart development can coexist.
In more recent news, the Emerald Trail is a 30-mile network of bicycle and pedestrian paths currently weaving its way through Jacksonville. Led by Groundwork Jacksonville in collaboration with the City of Jacksonville, the project aims to connect 14 historic neighborhoods to Downtown, the St. Johns River, and nearby waterways like McCoys Creek and Hogans Creek.
One standout example of the project’s commitment to protecting and restoring natural spaces is the McCoys Creek Stream Restoration. Set to wrap up by fall, the plan will return the creek — once a vibrant natural waterway that flowed through downtown — to its original state. And this isn’t just about aesthetics. The restoration is expected to reduce chronic flooding along McCoys Creek Boulevard and nearby neighborhoods. On top of that, the revamped creek will tie directly into the Emerald Trail and offer public access for canoeing and kayaking. Now that’s what we call a win-win.
With more initiatives and conservation efforts that aim to embrace nature’s beauty instead of covering it up, maybe more states, government agencies and executive orders will see the beauty in it too.
Fishing Culture in Jax
There are plenty of fish in the sea
We recently came across a report ranking Florida as the second best fishing state in the U.S. — just behind Alaska. And it got us wondering: What makes Florida such a top-tier fishing destination? Honestly, the only fishing expertise we had came from endless Instagram posts and dating profiles of guys proudly holding up their latest catch, grinning like they just discovered fire. In other words, we knew absolutely nothing. So we got to digging, or should we say, we got to fishing (and quickly found out Ambar does not have her sea legs)
Fishing in Northeast Florida, as you can imagine, has been around since the dawn of time. The Timucua people, an indigenous tribe predating European colonization, were heavy fishers, making the most of the region’s geographical goldmine. With the St. Johns River, Intracoastal waterways and Atlantic Ocean right at their doorstep, the Timucua used weirs, plant fiber nets and bone hooks to reel in their catch from the river and nearby tidal creeks. Shell mounds — giant piles of discarded oyster shells — can still be found in parts of Northeast Florida, a testament to just how central seafood was to life here.
Once the Spanish settled in St. Augustine, fishing in Northeast Florida had already become an essential player in the economy, and by the 1800s, Jacksonville developed into a port town. Commercial fishing also expanded in tandem with the city’s growth during this period. Fishing wasn’t just about dinner now, it was about business.
The 20th century, though, is when fishing truly hit its stride. In the early years, the shrimping industry took off, especially around Mayport and Fernandina Beach. Small, family-run boats would head out daily, returning with massive hauls that didn’t just feed Florida but much of the southeastern U.S. As Mayport shrimp became a regional delicacy, the need for places to eat it arose — enter the fish camp. What started as informal gatherings where fishers camped out, fished, and swapped stories
Tournaments kicked off. And magazines jumped on the bandwagon.
while cooking their catch over a campfire soon morphed into something bigger. By the mid-20th century, more evolved fish camps popped up all along the East Coast, offering bait and tackle sales, boat rentals and seafood dining. It was a reflection of the growing love for recreational fishing and the lifestyle it spawned.
Recreational fishing really took off during the postWWII boom. More folks had boats, extra cash and the free time to use both. The post-war era marked a new wave of enthusiasm for outdoor activities, and fishing was no exception. Charter captains began operating out of Mayport, offering offshore trips targeting kingfish, snapper and other prized species. The rise of boating culture also meant people could fish in both saltwater and freshwater, exploring the city’s many creeks and riverbanks for bass, catfish and bream. As demand for fishing grew, so did the infrastructure. Piers went up, got stocked and were quickly packed with anglers. Fishing clubs were formed.
In July of 1981, the very first Greater Jacksonville Kingfish Tournament hit the water. The idea came from a group of local businessmen who’d been casting lines in other coastal tournaments and thought, “If they can do it, why not Jacksonville?” Turns out they were onto something. The tournament ended up being a game-changer for kingfish competitions across the Southeast. Fishing, once divided into recreational, commercial and charter categories, suddenly had a fourth contender — tournament fishing. And with it came pride, camaraderie and a boost in tourism. It wasn’t just about the catch anymore — it was about the bragging rights.
And that leads us to the current state of Jacksonville’s fishing hub. Today, the fishing scene is a hybrid of old-school grit and high-tech gadgets. While there’s now sonar, GPS, fish-finder and faster boats, there are still grandpas teaching their grandkids how to cast a net barefoot at sunrise.
Now that we got that out of the way, let’s dive into the people who keep the culture alive and well in Northeast Florida.
Words & photos by Ambar Ramirez & Carmen Macri
Commercial Fishing
Dustin McIntire is about as salty as they come — and that’s a compliment. A Jacksonville native through and through, McIntire grew up with a rod in his hand and saltwater in his veins. Right after graduating from Fletcher, he went straight to the docks, joining Captain George Strait aboard the Mayport Princess as a licensed mate. He spent the better part of a decade on that boat, cutting his teeth and chasing fish. Eventually, he took his talents out west, relocating to San Diego to work aboard The Spirit of Adventure, a legendary long-range fishing vessel, where he spent a few years adding Pacific trophies to his resume.
After spending several years working on a boat for stretches of 6 to 12 days at a time, seven months out of the year, McIntire once again shifted gears.
“I bought my commercial boat right after that and commercial fished here at Safe Harbor with the rest of the commercial fleet for another six years,” McIntire shared. “And then I started selling my fish here to Ben Groshell; that’s how I got the job here [Southern Provisions].”
Commercial fishing is the large-scale harvesting of fish and other seafood to sell for profit, usually to markets, restaurants and other distributors. It’s fishing for business, not pleasure. Though, McIntire did enjoy his time out on the water.
“I would get up, and I would fish until I basically couldn’t stand up anymore. You have to figure out when the fish want to bite. They don’t bite all day, all night. So each trip, I would try to figure out the first day when they’re biting the best and then you capitalize on that time period,” McIntire recalled. “So if they’re biting from 3 to 3, you better be fishing from 3 to 3. It’s a whole lot of fishing. I definitely love it. I’ve been, like I said, fishing my whole life.”
Relying on Mother Nature for your paycheck makes living a sustainable life tough. Add the stringent National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) regulations on fishing seasons, and McIntire decided it was time to switch gears once again.
“And that’s another reason why I got out of full-time commercial fishing,” McIntire shared. “Before, commercial fishermen would go out for, you know, 5 to 7 days at a time and come back with like 4 or 5,000 pounds of fish. Nowadays, you can’t put a lot of fish on the boat. They only give us a three-month season commercially, and you’re only allowed 75 pounds of shrimp, which is kind of a joke. Everything else, you’re allowed 1,000 pounds.”
Now, McIntire manages Southern Provisions while doing part-time commercial fishing on his boss’ 40-foot catamaran, The Invincible.
“It has commercial permits on there, and I take it out as much as possible. I’m not full-time by any means, but I take it out in the summertime,” McIntire explained. “All that fish goes straight from the boat and straight here.”
Southern Provisions is the trusted source for top-notch fish and seafood across some of the area’s best spots, including North Beach Fish Camp, Julington Creek Fish Camp, St. Augustine Fish Camp, Palm Valley Fish Camp, Valley Smoke, Billy Jack’s BBQ, Dockside Seafood, Marker 32 and AB Kitchen.
Charter Fishing
“Mother Nature is my boss.”
Adam Petnuch is a true Illinoisan — with his waders firmly planted in the Great Lakes. But his real fishing roots came during his adolescence, spending countless hours with his dad on the waters of northern Wisconsin, reeling in memories — and plenty of fish — that would stick with him for life.
“I always had a love for fishing,” Petnuch shared. “I’ve been fishing my whole life.”
Around 18, Petnuch started making regular trips to Florida to fish in our diverse waterways. That’s when he realized what he’d been missing out on — he was hooked. So, in 2016, at the age of 21, he packed up his bags, rods and reels, and made the big move to St. Augustine, ready to cast his lot in the Sunshine State. A year later, Petnuch started his fish charting business — the Reel Dream.
“I went down to the Keys when I was a little bit younger and booked my first charter down there that I paid for myself. And I remember thinking to myself, ‘Wow, I just paid this guy to go fishing, he’s got it figured out, he’s getting paid to go fishing, I should do this for a living,” Petnuch explained. “I did personal training at the time, and it was fine, but it just wasn’t fishing for a living.”
Charter fishing is essentially hiring a pro to take you out on the water for a personalized, guided fishing trip on a boat that’s operated by a licensed captain and crew. These trips are all about giving you the chance to catch some serious fish without having to worry about the boat, gear, or where the fish are hiding and it’s a big part of Northeast Florida’s coastal culture.
“I enjoy this way more. Getting to be on the boat and take people out that, you know, haven’t ever caught a tuna or mahi or wahoo and they get to catch their first, is memorable,” Petnuch said. “I don’t get that same excitement from every wahoo or every tuna myself anymore, so I get to see their excitement, and it’s kind of like that first time catching that trophy fish every time.”
Charter fishing comes in a few flavors — inshore, offshore and specialty trips. What sets the Reel Dream apart is that they don’t just stick to one lane — they offer all of the above.
“There aren’t a lot of guys in Northeast Florida that will offer yellowfin tuna fishing or swordfishing. For both, you have to have a fast boat to get out to that area,” Petnuch explained. “The speed of our boat allows us to go to those further spots and target those more elusive, bigger fish. And, you know, the cool part about having a fast boat is that you’re able to do those different kinds of fishing.”
Petnuch believes there are great fishing spots all over the world, each offering something unique. While he hasn’t fished everywhere, the places he has been to each have their own strengths. What stands out to him about Jacksonville is its versatility — if you have the right boat, you can target just about everything. That’s exactly why he built the Reel Dream.
From running east of the Gulf Stream to catch yellowfin tuna to landing big mahi or going swordfishing, Jacksonville offers it all. Sure, it might take a longer run and more effort, but it’s possible. Unlike other areas where certain types of fishing are off the table — whether due to geography or overfishing — Jacksonville still has strong opportunities across the board. That variety and consistency, he says, are what makes it one of the top fishing destinations.
“When we go out fishing, it’s usually me and one or two deckhands, just depending on the day. And sometimes, they just want to go because they know the fishing’s good, and they don’t want to miss out,” Petnuch shared. “And sometimes they just want to ride along for the day and just be out there because we all love it. That’s one thing that I look for when I get people asking me if I’m hiring. If I don’t see the love for it, you know, if their first question to me is how much do you pay? Or what’s the compensation? I don’t even respond. Because you have to have the love for it. You can make a lot more money a lot of different ways. We do it because we love it.”
Tournament Fishing
Marcus Nelson grew up with salt in his blood and a cast that’s been practiced since childhood. Growing up in Jacksonville Beach, Nelson caught his first flounder before he could tie his own shoes. Raised on bait and sea breeze, Nelson fished in his first tournament when he was only 7 years old.
“I started fishing in tournaments when I was seven with Randy Nader, a local guy here. He introduced me to tournament fishing, and I knew how to fish, but he was the first person that was like, ‘Hey, do you want to do these tournaments?” Nelson shared. “There’s junior anglers that come in fish junior angler tournaments, but he actually asked me if I wanted to come fish with the adults. So seven years old was when I first actually started doing this.”
Tournament fishing is a structured, competitive event where anglers fish under a defined set of rules for a specific goal — typically to catch the biggest or most fish of a certain species. These events are organized by clubs, organizations or sponsors and range from small-town derbies to massive, internationally known competitions with hundreds of boats, TV crews and six-figure payouts.
Nelson’s been fishing for three decades and tournament fishing for nearly 28 years with over 250 tournaments under his belt. From his early days as a junior angler, he’s racked up more than 20 wins, proving he’s not just in it for the fun — he’s in it to dominate.
“I get asked this a lot, like why do we do these tournaments and why do we really
Nelson remembered that when he was younger, fishing was something a lot of people his age did, while the older crowd stuck to the weekend warrior routine. But over the years, he’s seen the sport grow, with more people getting involved. He thinks that’s partly why politics have crept into fishing — to manage the increase in interest.
“I think NOAA and the regulations are kind of overzealous. I think it’s not research, it’s just businessmen trying to make business decisions without any experience or knowledge of the actual population of the fish,” Nelson said.
He also pointed out that his generation fishes more than the one before it — whether it’s after work, during the week, or at night on weekends. And in his eyes, today’s fishermen have a much better understanding of the water than ever before. With bigger, faster boats, anglers can explore more of Florida’s waters than in the past. Adding on that fishing has taken on a bit of a cultural shift, especially with social media. Where people once flaunted flashy cars, now it’s all about showing off fish photos — sometimes, it seems like people are even looking for fishermen for that reason.
For Nelson, who’s spent most of his life on the water, fishing has always been about the thrill of the catch. While he’s hooked some impressive wahoo and redfish over the years, it’s the rush of king fishing that keeps him coming back for more, sleep deprivation and all. As Nelson put it, it’s one of the best feelings offshore.
While we’re on the subject of kingfishing, it’s worth tipping a hat to Chris Ebreo—a familiar face in Jacksonville Marine Charities for over 17 years. He’s earned the respect of more fishermen than you can count, all while serving on the board for events like the Greater Jacksonville Kingfish Tournament.
trip would be really hard. But the expe
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deprive ourselves the sleep. To point my finger on a favorite
riences that we get during these tournaments, not everybody can say they have,” Nelson said. “We’ve woken up in Jacksonville, put the boat in Mississippi, drove through the Mississippi River across the Louisiana Delta and almost hit Texas to go fishing. The experience alone is what I look for, not necessarily the trophies. The trophies are good and the money’s good, but having fun doing that, that’s me.”
As a tournament fisherman, Nelson is not just casting lines when there’s a trophy on the table — he’s out there at least twice a week, every week of the year. When tournament season heats up in the summer, he kicks it into high gear. One week, it’s five days straight, the next might be three, then right back to five. It ebbs, it flows.
“The biggest misconception is that it’s all fun. People see our Instagrams and our fishing photos and they say, ‘Hey, I want to go fishing,’ but then when you tell them what time to be at the boat or how long we’re going to be out for, and then you go 250 miles out in one day and not catch a fish and then come home. It’s not what it’s cracked up to be,” Nelson explained.
“People who fish and love to fish actually love it, it’s not a fad. But nobody knows the actual work that goes into it and how many days I have not caught a fish. It’s a lot of work; you have to love it.”
“Events like the Greater Jacksonville Kingfish Tournament and the Redfish Roundup are two highlights of the local fishing calendar each year that people look forward to and that I’ve had the pleasure of helping with. However, they are just part of a larger scene. Most tournaments in Jacksonville support charitable causes, which is what initially drew me to Jacksonville Marine Charities many years ago,” Ebreo explained. “These tournaments attract anglers from various backgrounds and experience levels, ranging from charter captains and fishing teams to first-timers eager to catch that big one and win it all. Jacksonville’s extensive waterways offer a diverse range of fishing opportunities, making it an ideal location for tournament fishing.”
Sport Fishing
Cade Macri has been hooked on the ocean since he could walk. Growing up with the Intracoastal as a backyard, rigging tackle became second nature to him. He started out fishing rivers, ponds and creeks, but once he made his way offshore, there was no looking back.
Macri kicked off his offshore career like so many others — diving into a kingfish tournament. Right from the start, he was hooked by the thrill of it all, constantly chasing that next adrenaline rush. As time went on, he found himself gravitating toward a different kind of fishing. One where the goal isn’t to take the fish home, but to release it back into the wild. Sounds simple enough, right? Except the fish they’re after aren’t your average catch — they’re some of the fastest, most elusive creatures in the ocean.
“It was on the 4th of July in 2015, I was with Hayden in the Bahamas on a family trip and it was one of our last days fishing,” Macri recalled. “I caught my first Blue Marlin. First one I’ve ever seen, first one I’ve ever caught, and the biggest one I’ve ever caught. I was hooked from then on out.”
Florida is the sport fishing capital of the world and is less about filling a cooler and more about chasing the thrill. It’s casting lines for the fun of it — for the quiet, the technique, and maybe that one perfect fish. It’s fishing for fun, skill, and sometimes a challenge — usually trying to catch specific species, using certain gear and practicing catch and release.
Macri found himself drawn to billfishing in particular. Billfishing focuses on species with long, sharp bills, like marlin, sailfish and swordfish. These fish aren’t just massive — they’re built for speed, power and endurance, making them a real challenge for any angler. It’s a test of skill and stamina every time. There is a certain level of tactical strategy used, specifically in billfishing, that other types of line-and-reel action don’t adhere to.
“Everyone’s kind of getting into the meat fishing. They’re going out there and trying to catch a wahoo or trying to catch a kingfish. And there’s really a sport behind it,” Macri explained. “But you know, this is kind of a different type of fishing. This one’s a little more tactical.”
Billfishing tournaments are few and far between, overshadowed by the plethora of offshore tournaments. They also have to adjust for anglers who aren’t as keen on the idea of catch-and-release, preferring instead to take home their catch. The Bluewater Tournament in St. Augustine is a prime example. Its main focus is on the catch-and-release of blue marlin but includes a kill portion for other blue-water species to attract more participants.
“I love catching blue marlins because they’re one of the toughest fish to capture in the ocean, for me. Some people would say otherwise, that a red snapper might be the hardest here, but I think the blue marlins are kind of tricky to catch, and there’s an art to it,” Macri said. “From tying the hooks to respooling the rods to rigging the bait to building the dredges to building the squid chains, you know, there’s so much that goes into just trying to capture one of these fish that are fairly difficult to catch.”
Alongside his passion for sport billfishing, Macri found a bit of relief working as a part-time freelance mate. After graduating, he quickly realized that being broke outside of college wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. “Once you graduate, it’s time to find a real job,” he says.
“Well, what we’ll do is we’re the guys in the cockpit. So you got a captain who runs the boat, and then somebody who has to rig the bait, tie the hooks, you know, make sure everything’s turnkey, there’s a lot that goes behind the scenes. You can’t just go out there with some Walmart fishing pole and try and catch something,” Macri explained. “You got to put some sweat equity into it.”
With freelance work, you’re on call with no set schedule. So when the call comes in—“We’re fishing tomorrow” — Macri’s off to the races. He and the crew gather the bait, rig it up, prep the boat and head offshore. He’s one of the guys who hooks the fish. A fish shows up on the chain, and he’s the one pitching the bait and handing off the rod when the moment’s right. A lot of times, it’s hook-in-hand action from the jump.
Whether he’s strictly working as the mate or out there fishing with friends depends on the operation. Some days, he’s all about the technical work — hooking and handing. Other days, he’s got a rod in hand, right in the mix with the rest of the crew.
Lady Anglers
Born in Charleston, South Carolina, and raised under the Florida sun, Shannon Spalding was practically destined to fall in love with fishing. She swears she caught the bug back in high school, when afternoons meant casting lines with friends instead of hitting the books. Since then, it’s been all water, all the time—whether she’s offshore chasing big game or tucked into the riverbanks reeling in the day. If there’s a rod and reel involved, chances are, Spalding’s not far behind.
“Being a female fisherman in a male-dominated sport has provided me a unique and enriching experience. Of course, there are some challenges, but all of my challenges have been overcome due to the amount of support the fishing community provides. In order to be respected as a true fisherman, you feel the need to break stereotypes by demonstrating your skills, knowledge and passion for the sport,” Spalding shared. “Female anglers often bring unique perspectives and approaches to fishing, including different communication styles and techniques. I think there are many men who appreciate these perspectives and enjoy having females on the boat as much as their male friends.”
Spalding is just one of many women who is breaking the stereotype that fishing is a man’s sport. While fishing was a fun pastime for Spalding, her passion grew when she got into tournament fishing. On average, Spalding competes in about six or seven tournaments a year.
“I did not start to compete in tournaments until later on and it added an exciting layer to my passion for fishing. The competitive environment fosters teamwork and camaraderie, which is very rewarding for me,” Spalding said. “I also appreciate the structure of being on a team for the tournaments where everyone has a role and is held to the same standards. I do not like to be underestimated, and I want to be able to provide the same amount of value as everyone else on the boat.”
Spalding finds it hard to pinpoint a single moment that defines her love for fishing—each outing serves as a reminder of why she’s so passionate about the sport. Whether it’s a long, cold day spent chasing Wahoo without catching a single fish or a successful trip with a full cooler, she always steps off the boat with a smile. For her, every day on the water is different, full of unexpected sights and new experiences.
“No matter how good of a day of fishing you have, you are always going to have some time to enjoy the calm and peace being on the water brings to you. It may be the ride out to your spot or a period where the bite is slow,” Spalding shared. “Any chance that I am on the water, I love every minute of it, whether it is the chaos of catching a monster fish and getting it in the boat or enjoying the beauty of the scenery around me.”
Superstitions
Let’s be honest — fishing isn’t just about rods, reels and the right bait. There’s a whole world of rituals, lucky charms and downright bizarre beliefs lurking beneath the surface. That’s why we had to ask these fishermen about their superstitions. I mean, how else are you supposed to explain why bananas are banned from boats or why someone swears by wearing the same “lucky” hat that hasn’t been washed since ’08? In a sport where the catch can hinge on the tiniest twist of fate, these quirks aren’t just fun—they’re practically sacred.
Folio: Fishermen are known for their superstitions. Are there any that you believe in?
McIntire : I’m not very superstitious. Just no bananas on the boat.
Petnuch: No, no, no bananas on the boat. It’s a joke at this point; we know it’s not a real thing. There’s guys that actually go fishing with bananas jokingly because they, you know, want to disprove it. They’re like, look, we catch fish with bananas, but bananas are bad luck on boats.
Nelson: Well, everybody knows no bananas. That’s a big one. I really don’t know the history behind no bananas; I just know it, and I follow it. No banana peppers on sandwiches. No banana boat sunscreen. No banana-scented sunscreen. For me, it’s no fruit, no watermelon, no anything. I’ve been known to have fruit on the boat, not know it, not catch a fish, throw the fruit in the water, and then catch a fish.
Spalding: We never bring a banana on the boat, and we never wear a shirt that’s brand new, but hats are OK. I won’t even eat a banana before getting on the boat.
Macri: I don’t follow the banana rule. I bring bananas on the boat all the time. It’s like the arrow or the bow, right? Sometimes it’s not the arrow, it’s the guy shooting it. You know what I mean? So bananas or not, I’m just saying I bring them all the time. Eat your potassium out there.
NIGHTMARE ON BLOUNT ISLAND
THE HÖEGH XIAMEN SHIP FIRE DISASTER. DAMES POINT MARINE TERMINAL.
What follows is the story of the drama and intrigue surrounding a ship named the Höegh Xiamen that caught fire at Jacksonville’s Blount Island Marine Terminal on June 4, 2020. Some of JFRD’s (Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department) top officials were the cause of explosions that critically injured many firefighters. Their conspiracy to cover up their mistakes and carelessness was, at best, dishonorable and, at worst, could be considered criminal. The next ship fire at Blount Island could be catastrophically worse unless significant changes are made.
How could it be worse? This ship, Höegh Xiamen, transported cars. Imagine if we had a similar fire in a ship carrying bulk gasoline or, God forbid, military munitions. Unless JFRD is prepared, properly trained and equipped, Jacksonville could suffer a catastrophe greater than the 1947 Texas City Disaster or the 2020 Beirut Port explosion. Texas City’s fire involved a ship carrying fertilizer. The resulting explosion is still considered the deadliest industrial accident in U.S. History. It is also considered one of history’s largest non-nuclear explosions.
Some fire officials put their concerns about losing their appointed positions over the future safety of Jacksonville’s citizens and its firefighters. Many facts surrounding one of JFRD’s worst disasters, the Höegh Xiamen fire, have been concealed. The hard lessons learned about their catastrophic mistakes should be presented honestly and loudly to all.
My name is Charles (Chip) Drysdale. I have worked in the firefighting service for over forty years. Being a small part of the firefighting mission to save lives and property has been very meaningful and sustaining. Sadly, the JFRD mission has been compromised. Many of the facts about the Blount Island disaster that I am about to describe were kept secret from the public, state and federal investigative agencies, and the National Fire Service community.
I was strongly warned by several of JFRD’s executive-appointed chiefs and one union president not to reveal the truth. I understand that by revealing the hidden facts about this fire, my credibility will likely be attacked.
One government agency investigator warned me to fear retaliation from JFRD Director Keith Powers. Many fellow firefighters have told me the truth will not make any difference. But I have told them that we all have been risking our lives by charging into fires to save lives our entire careers; why should we not do as much as possible now to ensure the future safety of our citizens and firefighters?
Based on the information I have just shared, and the facts I am about to present, please decide for yourself whether you believe there is a crisis of integrity that demands an upgrade.
Currently I am a battalion chief. I supervise nine fire stations and am also responsible for the Marine Division. For over forty years, as part of JFRD, I have been privileged to work with women and men who demonstrate exceptional courage, skill and integrity. I will retire later this year. It is because of the affection and respect I have for my colleagues, my concern for the safety of my community, and all communities, that I write now.
Photo provided by Public Information Officer Captian Prosswimmer
THE FIRE
It was a warm summer day at the Dames Point Marine Terminal. Red and white tugboats pushed large ships onto and off the wharf. During an early afternoon rain shower, one of these ships, the Höegh Xiamen, had been moored alongside Berth 20. [ii]
The Höegh Xiamen belonged to a class of car carrier ships called RoRos. This term describes how vehicles are “rolled onto and rolled off” the ramps inside the windowless steel ship hulls. At 600 feet in length, Xiamen was essentially a giant floating parking garage. That afternoon, port stevedores had jammed her eleven decks with 2,420 cars.[iii]
These cars were not new imports to be unloaded at U.S. ports. They were used cars destined for Western Africa.[iv] The stevedores described them as “junk cars.”[v] Many of the cars were in such disrepair that they had to be towed or carried by forklifts.[vi]
Xiamen’s crew had turned the fire alarm system off during the car-loading operations. This is standard practice for RoRos. Car exhaust fumes can cause false alarms in the tight deck spaces.[vii] The stevedores loaded the last car around 3:00 PM.[viii] The ship’s Chinese crew then prepared the Xiamen for departure. At this point, a crew member should have turned the fire alarm system back on.[ix] Unfortunately, this was not done.[x]
Xiamen’s chartering company, Grimaldi Deep, has published procedures requiring the disconnecting of all car batteries.[xi] This reduces the risk of a car catching fire during transit. After the fire, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigation found that many vehicles loaded onto Xiamen had their batteries connected. The NTSB’s investigation concluded that a spark or short in one of the components from a connected battery likely started a fire in a car engine compartment.[xii]
At approximately 3:45 p.m., Xiamen’s Chief Mate, Xiulei Zhang, saw smoke flowing from a vent on the top deck.[xiii] The ship’s crew was then alerted to a fire on deck 8. Despite their efforts, the fire increased in size. According to the NTSB, faulty or unsecured dampers allowed the fire to extend from deck 8 upward to decks 9, 10, and 11.[xiv] The review of the port camera footage later showed smoke flowing from the vents at the ship’s top deck throughout the incident.[xv]
Despite the fire’s discovery, Xiamen’s Captain, Shilian Zhang, did not call 911 or the Coast Guard on VHF Channel 16, the international marine distress radio frequency.[xvi] It was not until 15 minutes after the fire was discovered that a passerby who saw smoke coming from the vessel called 911.[xvii]
According to the global consulting company Strategic Risk, “Car carrier vessels, in particular, can be more exposed to fire and stability issues than other vessels and require additional emphasis on risk management.” [xviii] Xiamen’s fire risk plan included a carbon dioxide deck flooding system. Carbon dioxide displaces oxygen, which helps to smother the flames. Regrettably, the crew did not deploy carbon dioxide (CO2) until 30 minutes after discovering the fire. Because of this delay, the NTSB concluded that the CO2 was ineffective in suppressing the fire. [xix]
Along with JFRD’s firefighters, I arrived soon after the 911 emergency system was activated. From the onset, it proved exceedingly difficult to communicate with Captain Zhang, who spoke very broken English.[xx]
As the fire progressed, he gave us inaccurate and, at times, conflicting information about the ships’ fire protection systems, structural layout, and access to the decks. [xxi]
Due to Captain Zhang’s inaccurate information, several reconnaissance entries of the interior ship were required. Vital details were needed, such as whether the ship used CO2 or water mist as its fire suppression system, whether the stairwells had standpipe connections for fire fighting hoses, and what type of ramps were used to access the deck spaces.
Xiamen had its stern ramp lowered to the concrete wharf deck. This ramp allowed vehicles to be loaded into Deck 5. Along with several firefighter crews, we entered the port stern stairwell on Deck 5 and climbed up the stairwell to investigate the interior of the upper decks, 6 through 11. Based on what we had seen and after reviewing the ships’ fire plan, the other Chiefs on the scene and I developed an initial fire attack plan. Captain Zhang stated that the ship utilized an interior spiral ramp to move the vehicles from deck to deck. A third reconnaissance entry determined that Captain Zhang had made another false statement. [xxii]The ramps were “express” ramps. This required repositioning the engines and hose layouts. Every delay resulted in an increase in the “reflex time.” Reflex time is the time it takes after the arrival of the Fire Department and when a firefighter hose team applies the first water to the fire. Longer reflex times cause the fire to grow larger and more intense.
Photo provided by Public Information Officer Captian Prosswimmer
FIRE RAGES OUT OF CONTROL, AND EVACUATION
Soon after the second hose team entered Deck 8, I found that Deck 10 had dramatically changed from a normal warm air temperature to extremely hot. I was very concerned about this rapid change. I immediately rushed down the stairwell to order the firefighters to evacuate the ship. They did not need much encouragement to leave deck 8. Car tires had begun exploding from the rapidly rising temperatures. [xxiv] The exiting crew told me they thought they had found the fire. But it was not a fire. One of the Officers said to me, “Chief, we were chasing headlights.” This further showed me that the heat inside the ship had become too dangerous for interior operations. The wiring harnesses had begun to melt, causing electrical shorts that charged the headlights.
The attack hose line was left in place to hasten the evacuation from the ship. After checking to ensure everyone was off the ship, I ordered the Accountability Officers, Captain Tom Crow and Lt. Nate McNamee, to move away from the ship ramp and not let anyone back on the ship. I told them that we were going “defensive.” [xxv] A defensive firefighting strategy is used by firefighters when a fire is too large or dangerous to attack from the inside of a structure.
I then rushed over to the command center. [xxvi] Inside the air-conditioned “Command Van” were Director Keith Powers, Division Chief Steve Riska, Assistant Division Chief Mike Lesniak, Incident Commander, Chief Ryan Lundy, and others. I told them of the rapid buildup of extreme heat on decks 8, 9, and 10. I relayed that the hose line crews could not find the fire, let alone extinguish it. I told the Command Staff I had removed all firefighters from the ship. Due to possible structural collapse from the runaway fire, I recommended that the engines and other equipment be moved further away from the ship. I told the Command Staff that we needed to stay “defensive.” As the most experienced and knowledgeable marine firefighter in the room, I felt Director Powers and the other chiefs would have followed my recommendations.
Chief Lesniak then ordered me to “Rehab” and relieved me from my “Forward Operations” position. “Rehab” is an area in which firefighters are rehydrated and assessed for heat-related illnesses. Chief Daryl Holsenbeck took over “Forward Operations.” Before leaving the Command Center, I saw that the thermal camera image displayed on the large screen revealed a shocking picture. The entire four upper decks of the ship were glowing white
hot. [xxvii] This meant decks 8 through 11 were full of burning vehicles, extreme heat, and combustible smoke. I was confident that this ship was done for and was relieved that no one had been hurt. I could not have imagined that the Command Staff would soon put firefighters back into that giant steel oven filled with over a thousand “junk” cars on fire.
The fire inside Xiamen continued to burn. At one point, the smoke billowing out of the ship’s uppermost deck began slowing down. The firefighters sitting in the rehab area noticed this change. One firefighter asked me, “Chief, is the fire going out”? I told him, “I think it’s starving for oxygen.”
One of the first lessons a fire service instructor teaches a firefighter student is the principle of the “fire triangle.” The fire triangle has three components or sides: fuel, heat, and oxygen. All three must be present for a fire to exist.
A dangerous situation can occur when only two sides of the fire triangle, heat and fuel, are present. The fire itself can consume all the available oxygen. Every firefighter has been trained to recognize the warning signs of this potentially deadly condition.
SHIFT FROM DEFENSIVE TO OFFENSIVE ATTACK
The Command Staff made a fateful decision. They ignored my advice to remain defensive. They assembled fresh firefighter teams and ordered them to climb back inside Xiamen. Chief Lesniak and the Command Staff thought the firefighters could extinguish the raging inferno of hundreds of burning cars on multiple decks with a single handheld hose line. The Command Staff were ordering these firefighters to attempt the impossible. According to SSA Atlantic, one of the defendants in a suit filed after the ship fire in a Motion filed with the United States District Court, “The rapid heat build-up, discoloration of the exterior hull paint, and the distressing thermal image showing the superheated multiple decks did not in any way support the idea that the fire could be extinguished by using an offensive attack.” [xxviii]
Chief Mike Lesniak led the firefighters up the ramp to the ship. [xxx] This confused and concerned Captain Tom Crow. I had ordered Captain Crow not to let anyone back inside the ship. Captain Crow told Chief Lesniak, “Chief Drysdale said we are going defensive. What are we doing?” Chief Lesniak responded, “We are going in. We are going to put this thing out.” [xxxi] As a former Navy sailor and firefighter aboard an aircraft carrier, Captain Crow understood the untenable and dangerous
conditions the firefighters were being sent into. He pleaded unsuccessfully five times with Chief Lesniak not to send anyone back inside the ship. “Mike, we need to stop. This ship is telling you what it will do.” [xxxii] As have all firefighters, Captain Crow had been trained to “read smoke.” The color and force behind the smoke can warn us of dangerous conditions. Captain Crow saw that the Xiamen’s smoke was “turbulent and being pushed out the port side.” He described the fire based on what he saw in the smoke as “angry” and “pressure building up.” [xxxiii]
Chief Lesniak remained outside the ship after ordering the firefighters into Xiamen’s raging inferno.
THE FIRST EXPLOSION
SSA Atlantic wrote, “JFRD restarted the attack, continuing to send in waves of firefighters. Then, JFRD made another critical mistake. Even though its commanders knew that firefighters were inside the Vessel, those commanders ordered JFRD personnel to introduce oxygen into the superheated interior of the Vessel”. [xxxiv]
How did the Command Staff add oxygen, the missing side of the fire triangle, into Xiamen’s superheated explosive internal atmosphere?
With the firefighter teams inside Xiamen on deck 8, Chief Holsenbeck placed electric fans at the doors to decks 7 and 8. This placement provided a pressurized source of fresh oxygen underneath and at the base of the superheated and smoke (fuel) enriched decks. The fresh air only served to increase the fire intensity. Imagine putting a lawn blower into the lower vent of a charcoal grill or fire pit. The effects are dramatic. At 6:37 (and 36 seconds) PM, Chief Holsenbeck ordered Ladder 7’s crew to open the port and starboard vents to decks 7, 8, and 9 without knowing which were supply or exhaust vents.[xxxviii] He radioed to them, “Anything that you can open that would access those three decks would be great.”[xxxix] This final reckless decision would soon light the fuse that would seal the fate of the firefighters inside Xiamen.
SSA Atlantic wrote, “JFRD utterly neglected training and proceeded with its attack and venting despite indisputable signs it should not.” [xl]
Ladder 7’s Lt. Richard Harman wrote, “Chief Holsenbeck told ladder 7 to make sure the vents on the port and starboard sides were open and flowing. We then received an order to open all vent doors.” [xli]
Ladder 7’s Engineer, John McMullen, wrote, “So we began opening vents on both the dockside and river side of the ship. These vents were large square boxes with large access doors leading into each one of them.” “About 60 seconds after forcing the vent on the river side of the ship, you began to hear a loud roar that sounded like a jet engine. The ship began to shake, and we all took off. I yelled at the guys, “Run, run, run!” as the loudest, most violent purge of heat/exhaust blew from that vent stack.” [xlii]
At or around 6:43 (3 seconds) p.m., Ladder 7 Lieutenant Harmon radioed Chief Holsenbeck, “We just had a pretty forceful ventilation out of one of those stacks. We had it open for about thirty seconds, and that thing blew.” [xliii]
Lt. Harmon told me in a phone conversation on November 16, 2024, that when the first explosion occurred, “we ran like their lives depended on it.” He said the steel deck they were standing on was so hot that their fire boots were melting.
JFRD Director Powers gave a press conference interview immediately after the first explosion. He stated, “You can see the side of the ship that is burnt.” Director Powers ironically then said, “The goal of the commanders, and I have been in there (Command Van) the whole time, is to ensure we do it safely. There was a minor explosion while they (firefighters) were inside. I am not sure what that was. We have no injuries yet. Our goal is to make sure they get home safely to their families. “ [xliv]
Captain Crow was on Xiamen’s loading ramp during the explosion. He stated, “I heard what sounded like a jet engine warming up, and I could feel the ground begin to shake. Smoke was pushed out port side and aloft.” [xlv] After the explosion, Captain Crow advised Chief Lesniak, “We need to get them out now. It just warned you.” [xlvi]
Unfortunately, Chief Lesniak and the Command Staff did not heed Xiamen’s warning signs about what it was threatening to do. Chief Lesniak did not evacuate the firefighters from the interior of Xiamen.It was obvious to many that the opening of the vents had caused the first explosion. Engineer McMullen wrote, “I remember telling Lt. Harmon that I felt like we caused the explosion. We vented the hatch/vent/stack and allowed cool air to get down into the superheated space when it did. BAM.” [xlvii]
THE INJURED FIREFIGHTERS
While I pulled up my protective fire pants, I saw Chief Holsenbeck and a group of firefighters running up the ship ramp toward the interior of Xiamen. I thought, “That doesn’t make sense. They should not be going in. They needed to move back.” [lix]
Lt. Nate McNamee, our Accountability Officer, ran to me and said, “Chief, we need eight rescues.” I then mentally switched from wondering what had happened to responding to the immediate problem. I announced on the radio, “Fire Com, send me five more rescues. Fire 4 is establishing a Medical Branch.” [lx]
I moved towards the ship and appointed two rescue chiefs to supervise Treatment and Transport. I assumed responsibility for the initial Triage.
Captain Tom Crow approached the first Firefighter walking out of Xiamen. FF Tim O’Brien had his hands extended. He told Captain Crow, “Oh my God, Tommy! So, fucking hot. Anyone above me is hurt or dead. Tommy! I am burning. They are dead if they were above me.” [lxi]
Captain Crow then saw Chief Joe Deloach walking towards him. He wrote, “He had both hands extended and a blank stare on his face. The skin on his hands and ears was sloughing off. His hair melted, and his face had what looked like first-degree burns. He was not responding to me when I called him Chief. But when I grabbed him and said, “Joe!” He looked at me and said, “I am hurt bad, Tom! Tell my wife and kids that I love them and take care of them.” [lxii]
I continued triaging the injured firefighters after they were wheeled away from the ship on stretchers. The men had third-degree burns, open fractures, faces covered in blood, and deformed hands. “Trauma alerts” were called, hospital capabilities checked, and rescues were rapidly loaded and sent to the Trauma Center. I was extremely concerned that the two chiefs were going to die before they reached the hospital. Five of the injured were so severely burned that they were sent to the Shands Burn Center in Gainesville, Florida.
As the light of the day faded, you could hear the last rescue siren growing faint in the distance. Everyone seemed like they were in a daze. But the ship was still burning.
QUESTIONS BEGIN
I had warned the Command Staff earlier about a possible structural collapse. The situation was now even more dire. I thought we still needed to move our vehicles and equipment further away. I rushed to the Command Van and was met by Chief Lesniak walking down the stairs. Chief Lesniak looked shellshocked and said, “What have I done, what have I done, what have I done”? This was very confusing to me. I was still confused about why the firefighters were inside the ship after I had evacuated them. It would be several years later before I would know that the Command Staff had not only shoved them back into the inferno; they purposely vented Xiamen, which caused the explosion that injured the firefighters. The March 21, 2024, NTSB Report on the Höegh Xiamen Fire states, “It is likely, not coincidental, that the “explosion” occurred about the same time that the firefighters opened the exhaust (vent). The deck likely contained a rich atmosphere of heated flammable vapors, which rapidly combusted when fresh air was introduced via the opening of the ventilation trunks for decks 9 and 10/11. [lxiii]
Photo provided by Public Information Officer Captian
THE COVER UP
Less than a week after the fire, several members of the JFRD Executive Staff and the Local IAFF Union President, Randy Wyse, would begin a conscious and deliberate effort to conceal the mistakes that were made that resulted in one of the worst disasters in JFRD’s 140-year history.
Four days after the explosion that injured the firefighters, Captain Tom Crow’s wife, Sharon Crow, authored a heartfelt email to Director Powers. One of the many concerns she addressed was in response to a local news interview comment by President Wyse. She wrote, “I watched on the news when President Wyse stated that ‘ALL JFRD personnel receive extensive training in shipboard firefighting.’ Hmm, in the 30-plus years I have lived in Jacksonville, I do not recall a shipboard fire being this big, nor do I ever remember so many firefighters being injured in one single incident, along with not ever recalling my husband being involved in “extensive” shipboard firefighting training, I feel that the “extensive” comment is incorrect.” [lxix]
Two days after Ms. Crow’s email expressing concerns about President Wyse’s comment, JFRD Director Powers appointed President Wyse to a committee tasked to investigate the JFRD’s performance in the Xiamen fire.
Director Powers created the Blount Island Shipboard Fire Committee to “investigate this incident and complete an after-action report.” The committee would be composed of only three people. President Wyse, Chief Darin Hooten (Battalion Chief), and Chief Eric Courtis (President of the JFRD Fraternal Order of Fire Chiefs). [lxx]
Several days after the fire, Charles Chapman, Investigator for the Florida State Fire Marshal, requested relevant SOGs, reports, statements from key personnel, and radio transcripts from the JFRD Committee. The next day, in an email to Investigator Chapman, Chief Hooten stated, “The committee priority would be to gather statements from 30-40 personnel.” [lxxi]
The JFRD Committee initially withheld at least two completed statements from key personnel from the State Fire Marshal’s office, including Captain Crow and myself. Both of our withheld statements described our concerns about the shift from a defensive attack to an offensive one. Our statements also suggested that the JFRD needed more shipboard firefighting training.
When the State Fire Marshal’s Investigator, Susan Schell, learned of the omitted official statements, she requested copies from Captain Crow and me. When we both searched our work email for our “Statement” sent to the JFRD Committee, we discovered the typed responses to our Statement questions had been mysteriously erased. Fortunately, we kept hard copies of our statements and sent them to Investigator Schell.
It should be noted that the JFRD Investigative Committee did not give the recording of the two-way radio communications from the fire to the SFM. Instead, Chief Darin Hooten sent a written transcript created by his wife, JFRD Chief Tracey Hooten. [lxxii] This is in stark contrast to most public safety agencies. Most choose to use professional transcription services to produce accurate and complete documentation that can be relied on as evidence in formal investigations and legal proceedings.
On August 27, 2020, the Florida State Fire Marshall received the JFRDs Investigation and After-Action Report. Section 4 of the report stated, “The committee ascertains that from all outward and inward appearances, the fire on this ship appeared manageable and did present itself as a fire that could be extinguished by an interior attack.” The Report stated, “The Incident Commander, chiefs inside the ship, and chiefs leading the fire attack teams had good reason to believe that the fire could be extinguished by using an offensive attack.” [lxxiii]
The Committee’s statement that an offensive attack could extinguish the fire based on “all outward and inward appearances” appears to conflict with the multiple reports from the chiefs on the scene and what the Command staff could see from inside the Command Van. [lxxiv]
As early as 5:00 PM, Chief Deloach had radioed to Command that there was “heavy smoke on floors seven through eleven and heavy heat on floors eight through eleven.” Afterward, he radioed that “char marks” were on the ship’s side. At 5:42 PM, Chief Deloach told Command, “There’s been an explosion on the eighth floor, and everyone is out.” [lxxv]
After I evacuated all personnel from the ship and put all operations into a “Defensive” mode, I told the chiefs in the Command Van about the rapid heat build-up on decks 8, 9, and 10. I said, “We must stay defensive and consider moving all the apparatus further back from the ship.” [lxxvi]
The Command Van’s large screen displayed the thermal camera image of the four white-hot upper decks, clearly visible to the command staff.
The “inward and outward appearances” were also obvious to Captain Crow, who wrote, “On the starboard side of the vessel, the paint on the ship’s hull was blistered and continuing to blister to larger areas to the point that portions of the paint were falling off the vessel’s hull.” These “outward appearances” distressed Captain Crow. He had unsuccessfully pleaded five times with Chief Lesniak not to send anyone back inside the ship: “Mike, we need to stop. This ship is telling you what it will do.” [lxxvii]
Even Director Powers knew of the serious outward and inward appearances before the fateful offensive attack. In a First Coast News press conference (before the second explosion that injured the firefighters), Director Powers said, “Firefighters on board are dealing with zero visibility and enough heat to make the paint peel off the outside of the vessel. There was a minor explosion while they (firefighters) were inside. I am not sure what that was.” [lxxviii]
Based on these “appearances,” it should have been clear that an interior attack using a single handheld hose line would not have even come close to extinguishing the hundreds of burning cars jammed into four floors totaling over five acres of deck space!
SSA Atlantic wrote, “JFRD utterly neglected training and proceeded with its attack and venting despite indisputable signs it should not.” [lxxix]
On July 15, 2020, I met with Division Chief Steve Riska and Assistant Division Chief Mike Lesniak. I felt that the JFRD Administration would now be willing to train its firefighters in ship fire operations because of the Xiamen fire disaster. I built a PowerPoint presentation that proposed creating a JFRD shipboard firefighting training program. The presentation outlined the challenges of ship firefighting and a plan to meet those challenges. At the presentation’s conclusion, Chiefs Lesniak and Riska told me there would be no ship firefighting training program. And then, both Chiefs told me to “stop pointing fingers at the Fire Department.”
Within ten minutes of leaving the meeting with Chief Riska and Chief Lesniak, I received a call on my personal phone from our International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Local Union President, Randy Wyse. He ordered me to report to his Union office at 9:00 a.m..
The next morning, President Wyse told me in a closed-door meeting to “stop pointing fingers at the Fire Department.” I asked him what he meant by this. Wyse said, “You are telling people that you pulled the firefighters out of the ship and went Defensive.” I stated that I had pulled the firefighters out of the ship and then went to the Command Van and told the Command Staff what I had done. I told him that I then recommended they remain “Defensive.”
Wyse asked me, “Who heard you say this?” I told him, “Chiefs Lesniak, Riska, Lundy, Director Powers, and others.” Wyse then became quiet and stern. He said clearly and slowly, “No one heard you say that.”
SSA Atlantic stated, “Chief Drysdale correctly moved them to a defensive posture. Drysdale precisely communicated this in the Command Van. Chief Drysdale’s testimony is unequivocal.” [lxxx]
I then told Wyse that I had met with Chief Lundy to understand how the firefighters had been injured. We discussed how I had removed the firefighters from the ship due to rapidly rising heat conditions on multiple decks. Wyse said, “I talked with Chief Lundy, and he does not remember your conversation with him.” At this point, I could feel the hair on the back of my neck standing up. Wyse and the JFRD Executive Staff were not interested in the safety of our firefighters. I could only assume they were “circling the wagons” to defend their jobs.
The JFRD Administration did not feel it was enough for one Division Chief, an Assistant Division Chief, and one of the three JFRD Ship Fire Investigation Committee members to tell me not to talk about the defensive shift. They instructed the second of the three appointed members of the Committee, Battalion Chief Darin Hooten, to “counsel” me in two meetings with him. Chief Hooten told me to stop talking about the defensive shift. Chief Hooten used phrases such as ‘You need to let it go” and “It’s water under the bridge.”
It should be noted that nowhere in the JFRDs Committee’s Investigative Report submitted to the Florida State Fire Marshal (SFM), NTSB, or the Coast Guard, was there any mention of the defensive shift and evacuation of the firefighters to safety before the explosion that injured the firefighters. The Report did not mention the clear signs of an out-of-control ship fire before the firefighters were sent back inside the ship. The Report instead makes multiple dubious references to how the “fire could be extinguished by an interior attack” and that there were no audible or transcribed specific, imminent dangers to the firefighters prior to the “event” (explosion). [lxxxi] There was no mention of the first explosion, an obvious and fateful warning sign. Nothing in the Report mentioned the tragic decision to vent the ship twice while the firefighters were inside the ship.
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THE GREAT CHEVY CHEW-UP
People are prone to bicker about every little thing in this community, but one thing we all seem to have in common is our love for cars. Whether it’s illegal drag racing on residential streets or legal drag racing at the speedway, weekend meetups in random parking lots or the full-on finery of the Concours d’Elegance, everyone loves a fine vintage automobile, and Jacksonville is a great city to see them in the wild. That said, you will surely share our disgust at the sorry fate of a classic Chevy Impala, purchased by a local man with intentions of getting the old muscle car back into shape. Unfortunately, the storage unit where he housed the car was besieged by rodents who treated the Impala’s interior like Elon Musk is treating the federal government. Between the various hoses and wires chewed up, and the waste produced from that, they did an estimated $10,000 in damage, but the storage company only offered him $1,000, leading to legal action that remains in dispute. He could always sue the rats for damages, but that seems a futile pursuit.
Words by Shelton Hull
OPERATION: OOPS, THAT’S A COP
When you hear “Operation Lucky Charm,” your mind might wander to someone sneakily scarfing down marshmallow cereal while pretending to stick to a diet. But the real Operation Lucky Charm? A bit more serious — and yes, it still involves some questionable indulgences. On April 2, JSO took to Facebook with the headline: “Inside A High-End Prostitution Sting: Operation Lucky Charm.” Here’s how it went down: someone pays for sex through a prostitution site, sets up a date at a Jacksonville hotel and walks in thinking they’re about to get lucky — only to discover their “date” is actually an undercover detective. Surprise! And just outside the door? JSO, ready with handcuffs instead of champagne. The sting took place on March 18 and 19, and by the end of it, 10 individuals had been arrested for soliciting or offering prostitution. Not exactly the kind of charm they were hoping for.
REVENGE GONE WRONG
We’ve all had messy breakups. It’s basically a dating rite of passage— everyone needs at least one for character development (some overachievers collect a few). But this Volusia County native? She took it to a whole new level.
We all grew up on movies where if someone wrongs you — or worse, your bestie — the obvious next step is vandalism. Egg the house, spray paint the car. Classic teen justice. Full Avril Lavigne energy. But for this 18-year-old, the plan went sideways. Instead of tagging her ex-boyfriend’s car — the one who allegedly owed her $700 — she accidentally spray painted the neighbor’s ride. The ex’s car? Parked peacefully across the street, untouched.
Not only did she get slapped with a vandalism charge, but — because, of course —she was well under the influence at the time (shocking, I know). But the grand total for damages? A cool $5,000. That’s one seriously expensive heartbreak. Honestly, she would’ve been better off eating the $700 and launching a good old-fashioned rumor campaign. Way less jail time, way more satisfaction.
THE SHRIMP SCAM
This next story doesn’t actually relate specifically to Northeast Florida, not as far as we know, anyway. But it might, and that is a terrifying, disgusting possibility. In a disturbing revelation, a recent study conducted by SeaD Consulting, a food safety technology company, has uncovered widespread shrimp fraud in Florida. If you’re like us, you probably had no idea there was such a thing, but it’s apparently far more pervasive than we’d have ever imagined. The study, which utilized genetic testing, found that many restaurants claiming to serve locally caught Gulf shrimp are actually serving imported shrimp from countries like India, China, and Vietnam (These are the shrimp that don’t change color, remaining opaque and rubbery, no matter how much heat is applied, you can’t get the kind of Maillard reaction that you’d expect from eating, say, Japanese teppanyaki. SeaD did random testing of 44 restaurants, selected in various Gulf Coast cities, including Tampa Bay, and the results were alarming: 96% of the restaurants in Tampa Bay and St. Petersburg tested were found to be serving imported shrimp, which were being marketed and sold as locally sourced — at a significant markup, of course. Only two out of the 44 restaurants sampled were actually serving authentic Gulf shrimp. Try pulling a stunt like that here with Mayport shrimp,
Words by Ambar Ramirez
Words by Shelton Hull
The girls talk about the rising coast
AMBAR: Between 1982 and 2002, futurist and psychic Michael-Gordon Scallion released a series of “Future Maps” depicting dramatic changes to Earth’s geography following cataclysmic events. His maps captured the public’s imagination — and concern — with bold predictions: entire coastlines redrawn, cities submerged and lost lands, like Atlantis, reemerging. One of the most striking transformations was Florida. According to Scallion, much of the state would be underwater, with only the area north of Tampa remaining somewhat habitable. And with the current state of rising sea levels and shrinking coastlines, Scallion’s predictions may not be so far off.
CARMEN: Thanks to warming oceans and melting ice sheets, sea levels have crept up about 7 inches since 1970. And it’s not slowing down. If things stay on their current track, we’re looking at another 9 inches by 2050. That is now 4 feet above high tide, which doesn’t seem like a lot, but it could be catastrophic to businesses, residents and wildlife along the coast. According to Climate Central’s sea level rise program, more than half the population in over 100 towns and cities across Florida lives on land that sits less than 4 feet above sea level. Yeah — just four feet.
AMBAR: And Jacksonville isn’t exempt from this. Unfortunately, we’ve got the St. Johns River cutting right through Downtown, making our city a flood’s dream. I mean, have you ever tried driving through Riverside or San Marco during a storm? Probably not—unless your car can magically turn into a boat.
CARMEN : Not to sound like alarmists and conspiracists, but we are here to alarm and conspire. And no, we’re not going to sit here and convince you that switching to paper straws will help (it might). F*ck a paper straw. Soggy little shits. I enjoy a paper with my coffee, not IN my coffee.
AMBAR: No, but in all seriousness, there are some things we can do to put off being underwater…right?
CARMEN: I’m so glad you asked! Yes, but it’s tough and it requires a whole lot of people to be on board with it. Aside from the things you’ll see in the leftist woke plastic-Marxist media (shout out, fan mail), like reducing your carbon footprint, helping restore the natural buffers like wetlands, mangroves and dunes. And voting for local politicians who actually care is a step in the right direction.
AMBAR : Sometimes the buttercup snowflakes (i.e., me) have some good points. For example, going back to our roots — reduce, reuse, recycle. That’s right, baby, we’re making reducing the use of carbon emissions
sexy and cool. What’s even hotter? Not the ocean because you’re gonna be getting involved in community cleanups and planting vegetation.
CARMEN: And use paper straws!!! Kidding. We could also stop building where water wants to go. I know, revolutionary, right? You’d think it’d be common sense, but developers are still building homes and businesses in high-risk flood zones. Smarter zoning and urban planning could put a stop to that — if we actually used them.
AMBAR: What’s your beef with the sea turtles?
CARMEN: How you came up with that from what I said eludes me, but I’m going to continue anyway…weirdo. Building more “living shorelines.” Instead of slapping up more concrete seawalls, a lot of places are turning to hybrid fixes—like oyster reefs, coir logs and native plants — that not only protect the coast but actually help it adapt over time.
AMBAR: As Senator Cory Booker put it in his 25-hour speech, it doesn’t have to be right or left; it’s right or wrong.
CARMEN: Damn, that was good.
AMBAR: You mean “dam,” right?
CARMEN: You got me there.
Words by Ambar Ramirez and Carmen Macri
KIDS ACTIVITY PAGE
MOWER MAZE
Solve this puzzle like a regular sudoku, but instead of using numbers, use the letters
(for the local Thai restaurant, Blue Orchid) to fill each row, column and box.
