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Your Florida Daily: Dangerous rip currents, child playing with fireworks burns down Ocala home

Plus: Florida’s oldest newspaper

Lifeguards warn of rip currents along Brevard coast after drownings

Just as big crowds get ready to head to the beach for the holiday week ahead, lifeguards along the coast are warning of dangerous rip currents.

In Brevard County, the strong surf may already be to blame for a man’s death.

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Cocoa Beach police said on Sunday evening they responded to a report of a possible drowning at Lori Wilson Park.

They said when they arrived, several people were pulling Ronald Bailey, 66, from the ocean.

He was rushed to the hospital where he was later pronounced dead.

Brevard County lifeguards said dozens of others had to be rescued from the rough surf this weekend.

They’re urging anyone heading into the water to use caution and to swim near a lifeguard.

A dog was rescued from an Ocala apartment fire that was started by a child playing with fireworks, according to Ocala Fire Rescue. (Ocala Fire Rescue)

Fire officials are warning the community to be careful after an apartment in Marion County went up in flames over the weekend.

They say a child was setting off fireworks inside the home.

Everyone evacuated and firefighters say they also rescued a dog who was trapped inside one of the units.

Ocala Fire Rescue says the flames impacted four apartments.

They’re asking the public to be vigilant when it comes to firework safety ahead of Fourth of July celebrations.

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Two sales tax holidays are now in effect, giving Floridians the chance to save hundreds on household appliances.

Under the Energy Star Sales Tax Holiday, washing machines, clothes dryers and water heaters under $1,500 dollars are tax-free.

Refrigerators and freezers costing up to $4,500 hundred are also included.

A separate sales tax holiday is also in effect for gas ranges and cooktops.

The year-long sales tax exemption went into effect on July 1 and includes any range that is fueled by propane, natural gas or butane.

Both tax holidays expire on June 30, 2024.

Random Florida Fact

Florida’s oldest continually published weekly newspaper is the News Leader.

It was founded in 1879 in the city of Starke in Bradford County more than 143 years ago.

Starke was a boomtown in the 1880s and 1890s from Florida’s citrus industry but saw its downfall during the state’s great freeze in the winter of 1894.

The city boomed back post-WWII thanks to its strawberry fields.


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