Local News Now

Headline Surfer® graphic / Labor Day turned tragic with the drowing of a 20-month-old boy in  swimming pool on Ferendina Drive in Deltona as shown in this locator map.

DELTONA -- The Volusia County Sheriff’s Office received a frantic 911 call at 7:45 p.m. about a lifeless baby boy, only 20 months old, being pulled out of a relatives' swimming pool at a in thre 1300 block of  Ferendina Drive on this Labor Day evening.

"Adults at the scene were attempting CPR while awaiting the arrival of deputies and paramedics, but they reported that the child wasn’t responding," Sheriff's spokesman Gary Davidson told Headline Surfer®. "Emergency units began arriving at the house about two minutes after the call was received."

Headline Surfer® photo / Volusia County GOP Party Chairman Tony Ledbetter (in orange shirt) is shown Friday at the recount for the at-large County Council race, hours before he was tossed for complaining about what he perceived as the slow pace of things while paying $300 an hour for an attorney. The race was non-partisan.

DAYTONA BEACH -- Tony Ledbetter, the chairman of the Republican Party of Volusia County, was escorted out of the canvassing board's voter recount in the at-large County Council race late Friday at the historic Volusia County Courthouse in DeLand by a Sheriff's deputy, Headline Surfer® has learned.

HOLLY HILL -- John Penny won the race for mayor outright in the primary.

John Penny Aug. 27
From your new Mayor, John Penny: I would like to thank the hundreds of people and community leaders who supported my campaign and share my vision for a bright future for Holly Hill. I owe a special Thank You to my family for supporting my campaign. It is especially gratifying to have prevailed. A three-way race poses particular mathematical challenges, so I appreciate the confidence of the voters and the fact that they voted in numbers great enough to settle the contest outright. I share their passion for Holly Hill and look forward to working together with them to improve our infrastructure, pursue positive growth and compete in the economic development arena.

Best way to avoid getting in trouble in surf: Swim in front of a lifeguard 

Headline Surfer® video / It's a changing of the (life) guard at mid-afternoon Friday in this scene setter on the beach off the International Speedway Bouleard approach in Daytona Beach.

DAYTONA BEACH -- Always be aware of your surroundings while on the beach, especially in the surf, with rip currents on this holiday weekend. It's a good idea to swim in front of a lifeguard in case you get into trouble in the choppy waves.

Parents, & adults: Keep small children in front of you where you can see them at all times

And parents, granfdparents and other adults responsinle for small children. Always keep them in front of you where you can see them. Little ones, especially toddlers, love to chase the birds and often they aren't paying attention to what is around them, including motor vehicles in the drive zones.

These are perhaps the two greatest tips to offer for a safe beach experience on this Labor Day weekend that typically represents the end of summer.

Headline Surfer® video / Danger Zone: Little ones play in water's edge. Notice how close the little boy in the video a toddler, no older than 2 or 3, comes to the passing vehicles while pushing his giant Tonka truck across the wet sand. Though he never leaves the water's edge  in the minute and 53 seconds of this video clip.

DAYTONA BEACH -- Event sponsorships and participant registration are still available for Neighbor To Family, Inc.’s second annual “Sibling Stampede 5K Fun Walk/Run” at Sun Splash Park on Saturday, with proceeds helping improve the lives of sibling foster children in the organization’s care. 

Campaign over for Deltona City commissioner Webster Barnaby

DAYTONA BEACH -- The recount for the at-large county council primary between Webster Barnaby and Pat Northey is over. And now so is the campaign of Barnaby as Northey moves on to a November showdown with incumbent Joyce Cusack.

Photos for Headline Surfer® /

PALM COAST -- State Sen. John Thrasher easily defeated Putnam County Tea Party hopeful Derek Hankerson in in Tuesday's Republican primary in all four counties that comprise his district 6 seat. 

Though he remans a contender for president at Florida State University, his alma mater, Thrasher said his No. 1 is re-election in November when he faces Democrat Kathleen Trued, a retired St. Augustine teacher who lost to him two years ago, and fellow challenger Greg Feldman, who is running as an independent.

Headline Surfer® graphic / George Sheldon, shown far left, prevailed in the Democratic primary for Florida attorney general over Perry Thurston, but he has an uphill battle against incumbent Republican Pam Bondi, shown below, who has greater financial resources and name recognition.

DAYTONA BEACH — George Sheldon of Tampa defeated Perry Thurston of Fort Lauderdale in the Democratic primary for Florida attorney general and now moves on to face GOP incumbent Pam Bondi in November.