Local News Now

DAYTONA BEACH -- John Wes Townley started on the pole and finished in Gatorade Victory Lane Saturday capturing the 50th annual Lucas Oil 200 presented by MAVTV American Real at Daytona International Speedway.

The race marked Townley's eighth start at the "World Center of Racing," and his first career pole and win in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards. His previous best finish in the series also came at DIS when he finished third in 2010.

Headline Surfer photos by Henry Frederick / Nicole and Mike Kirkland of Edgewater with their 1-year-old son, Nolan, dressed as a shark, take in the annual New Smyrna Beach Halloween Parade.

NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- Nolan Kirkland of Edgewater didn't win any trophies for his costume at the 2012 Halloween Parade, but his costume certainly was an eyecatcher. The 1-year-old Edgewater baby was dressed as a shark.

And how appropriate considering New Smyrna Beach's South Jetty is known for its shark bites among the surfing crowd.

The Halloween parade comes in at No. 59 in Headline Surfer's countdown of the top 100 stories of 2012.

Paul Rooy, 56, shown here at left, was a pilot and patent attorney with his law office in Daytona Beach. He died Wednesday in a plane crash at the age of 56.

NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- A pilot was killed when his single-engine airplane crashed shortly after take-off this afternoon from New Smyrna Beach Airport, a Volusia County Sheriff's official said.

"The Cessna 337 had taken off from the airport when it went down sometime later in an open field near the city’s sports complex," Sheriff's spokesman Gary Davidson said. "The tower manager at the airport called in the crash at 1:13 p.m. The plane broke apart upon impact, killing the pilot. No one else was on board, and no one on the ground was injured."

EDGEWATER -- Yes, in the past few years here in the United States we have had many school shootings most recent Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., where 20 kindergarten children and six adults were killed' We ask why.

Why is this violent act keep happening? Either the shooter is mentally ill or looking for revenge, or comes from a broken home, poor upbringing lacking love, and discipline and respect.

EDGEWATER -- Odd how people are all up in arms about the Boy Scouts maybe changing their policy and letting in scouts and leaders who are gay. Are they naïve enough to believe that gays have never been in any scout groups in the past?

North Samsula Drive and Strawberry Lane in Samsula was the scene of a deadly wreck Saturday night as shown in this locator map.

SAMSULA -- A 37-year-old New Smyrna Beach man was killed Saturday night when he was ejected from a car that struck a cement culvert and flipped.

David Legler, who was not wearing his seat belt, was pronounced dead at the scene of the 11:20 p.m. crash on North Samsula Drive and Strawberry Lane.

The driver, Donna Leo, 48, also of New Smyrna Beach, suffered only minor injuries behind the wheel of her 1996 Honda Accord. She was transported to Halifax Medical Center in Daytona Beach. 

Gracias por sus oraciones. Sabemos y confiamos que Dios esta al control. Todo saldra como esperamos para la gloria y honra de El.

NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- A message in Spanish to family and friends on Facebook is how Moises Hernandez Rivero is communicating with family and friends while he prays for a miracle as the authorities continue searching the waters off the North Causeway for his missing Apopka father, who left behind a vehicle and empty trailer Wednesday night at the city boat ramp and has been missing since.

Drugs and ledger recovered in wooded area of Oak Hill

EDGEWATER -- An Edgewater woman is facing numerous drug charges after she was spotted walking into the woods with what turned out to be a portable meth lab in a bag, a Volusia County Sheriff's official said.

Narcotics investigators also recovered a ledger that appeared to be used to document drug sales, agency spokesman Gary Davidson said, leading to the arrest of 33-year-old Jennifer Huffman (on charges that included manufacture of methamphetamine, possession of methamphetamine, trafficking in methamphetamine, possession of listed chemicals and possession of drug paraphernalia. Her initial bond was set at $155,000.