Top 100 Stories

Construction Zone

Headline Surfer® graphic / An outdoor burn is in effect for all  unincorporated areas of Osceola County, effective Jan. 22 as demonstrated in this snapshot.

KISSIMMEE, Fla. -- Unincorporated areas of Osceola County are under an outdoor burn ban due to lack of rainfall throughout the county that has sent its Keetch-Byram Drought Index over 500.

The ban, which took effect Jan. 22, is for all types of outside burning, including open fire pits, campfires, and yard debris. It be enforced by Osceola County Code Enforcement, Law Enforcement and Emergency Services personnel. Osceola County Fire Rescue will continue to monitor conditions to determine when the burn ban will be lifted.

Race red-flagged early on by horrific crash that sent two drivers to hospital

DAYTONA BEACH -- Joao Barbosa and the No. 5 Corvette DP took the checkered flag to win the Rolex 24 at Daytona International Speedway, red-flagged for 90 minutes early on by a horrific crash that sent two drivers to the hospital with serious injuries including one with a broken back.

Headline Surfer® graphic / At left is a snapshot of the live streaming grid by Fox Sports streaminglive track coverage of the Rolex 24 from Daytona International Speedway.

DAYTONA BEACH -- For those of you who can't be here at Daytona International Speedway for the Rolex 24 at Daytona, especially now in the closing hours, here's the link for streaming live video that gives you a unique perspective from inboards cameras in several race cars: http://stream.speedtv.com/rolex24.

Headline Surfer® graphic / Debra Annette Smith's badly decomposing body was found in an open field off of South Leisure World Drive near Barwick Road, as shown in this locator map. 

DEBARY -- A decomposed body found  in an open field in DeBary was identified as that of 48-year-old Debra Annette Smith, last seen alive eight days earlier in Nov. 8, when she left her home after getting into a minor verbal dispute with her partner, a Volusia County Sheriff's official said.

DAYTONA BEACH -- With so many major media outlets covering the Rolex 24 at Daytona, especially with the horrific crash less than three hours into the race that sent two drivers to the hospital, it's Headline Surfer® right there in the thick of things as demonstrated in the online news directories.

Photo for Headline Surfer® /

DAYTONA BEACH -- Scott Dixon No. 02 Target/Telcel Ford EcoBoost/Riley has dominated the second hour of the Rolex 24 at Daytona International Speedway with Joao Barbosa briefly taking the point in the No. 5 Action Express Racing Corvette DP following’s Dixon’s routine pit stop.

Photo for Headline Surfer® / Donald Murray is out on bond on child porn charges lodged against him in November.

APOPKA, Fla. -- The Seminole County Sheriff's Office Crimes Against Children Unit arrested an Apopka man on nearly a dozen child porn charges. on Nov. 26.

Donald Murray, 49, was arrested on a warrant, alleging 10 counts of possession of obscene material/child pornography and one count of distribution of obscene material/child pornography.

The kiddie porn arrest comes in at No. 73 in the Headline Surfer® countdown of the top 100 stories of 2013.

Photo for Headline Surfer® /

DAYTONA BEACH -- Alex Gurney was on the pole for the Rolex 24 in his No. 99 DP Corvette as the 24-hour endurance race got under with rhe dropping of the green flag at this adfternoon at Daytona International Speedway.