Tuesday, February 17th: Below are the top stories WTXL ABC 27 is following around The Big Bend, South Georgia, nationally, and your forecast.
1) Civil rights leader Jesse Jackson dies at 84 after battle with neurodegenerative disease. Jackson's relatives said he died "peacefully" Tuesday morning, surrounded by family. Jackson rose to national prominence in the 1960s, advocating for racial equity, economic justice, and voting rights, working closely with the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.
2) Leon County students protest ICE actions during school day off outside the Florida Capitol. The small but determined group of students said they wanted to build momentum following recent rallies by students across the County, including a walkout at Lincoln High School that drew over 100 participants.
3) Wakulla County parents speak against potential rezoning of Crawfordville Elementary School. The rezoning proposal affects addresses east of Crawfordville Highway and south of Dr. Martin Luther King Memorial Road. Parents say the change would force students who currently travel nearly 2 miles to school to instead travel 8 to 10 miles to reach their new campus. The school board is set to vote on the matter Tuesday night.
4) Florida House advances restrictions on emergency fund as Senate pushes larger, looser version. Since 2022, more than $4.7 billion has flowed through the Emergency Preparedness and Response Fund, which governors can tap quickly during declared emergencies such as hurricanes. But the fund has come under increasing scrutiny after a state report found Gov. Ron DeSantis used more than $573 million of it for immigration enforcement, including building migrant detention centers and deploying personnel out of state.
5) Tuesday Forecast: Our warming trend continues. We'll get into the mid 70s with mostly sunny skies. Lows will be in the upper 40s. This trend will continue into the weekend, where we could break some records. First to Know Meteorologist Ryan Gold has the details below.
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