Protests continued in Clearwater, Tampa and St. Petersburg on Friday.UPDATE 11 P.M.: Protests ended Friday night peacefully and without incident across Tampa Bay.A quiet evening in Downtown Tampa where a TV reporter finished a standup in front of a mostly empty Curtis Hixon Park and a couple police vehicles remained outside City Hall. — Divya Kumar (@divyadivyadivya)“Another successful night,” said Terron Gland, one of the leaders as the march wrapped up. “No one got hurt, no one went to jail. The police left us alone, they finally did their job, finally. This is getting better, little by...…Protests continued in Clearwater, Tampa and St. Petersburg on Friday.UPDATE 11 P.M.: Protests ended Friday night peacefully and without incident across Tampa Bay.A quiet evening in Downtown Tampa where a TV reporter finished a standup in front of a mostly empty Curtis Hixon Park and a couple police vehicles remained outside City Hall. — Divya Kumar (@divyadivyadivya)“Another successful night,” said Terron Gland, one of the leaders as the march wrapped up. “No one got hurt, no one went to jail. The police left us alone, they finally did their job, finally. This is getting better, little by...WW…

The city was just one degree shy of a new record high. The Gulf of Mexico is why Tampa has never reached 100 degrees — so far, that is.Tampa tied its hotter temperature ever on Friday and was just one degree shy of a record-high of 100 degrees.The National Weather Service reported that Tampa reached a high temperature of 99 for the day at 1:51 p.m., matching the record-high temperature that was reached on June 5, 1985.Though feels-like temperatures are regularly in the triple digits in Tampa, the official temperature has never made it to the century mark. That was the case again this week...…The city was just one degree shy of a new record high. The Gulf of Mexico is why Tampa has never reached 100 degrees — so far, that is.Tampa tied its hotter temperature ever on Friday and was just one degree shy of a record-high of 100 degrees.The National Weather Service reported that Tampa reached a high temperature of 99 for the day at 1:51 p.m., matching the record-high temperature that was reached on June 5, 1985.Though feels-like temperatures are regularly in the triple digits in Tampa, the official temperature has never made it to the century mark. That was the case again this week...WW…

/Chief Brian Dugan said his officers' morale is low amid nationwide scrutiny of police, and criticized Hillsborough State Attorney Andrew Warren.TAMPA — Police Chief Brian Dugan on Wednesday went on ” and vented about an incident in V.M. Ybor this past weekend where he said his officers were “ambushed” by hundreds.The Tampa police chief discussed the June 20 incident, which he said took place just after 1 a.m. on a Saturday, and said it has lowered his officers’ already depleted morale.“In this incident, we actually sent nine officers and it was clearly just a setup to get the cops there...…/Chief Brian Dugan said his officers' morale is low amid nationwide scrutiny of police, and criticized Hillsborough State Attorney Andrew Warren.TAMPA — Police Chief Brian Dugan on Wednesday went on ” and vented about an incident in V.M. Ybor this past weekend where he said his officers were “ambushed” by hundreds.The Tampa police chief discussed the June 20 incident, which he said took place just after 1 a.m. on a Saturday, and said it has lowered his officers’ already depleted morale.“In this incident, we actually sent nine officers and it was clearly just a setup to get the cops there...WW…

Earlier this month, Hillsborough County State Attorney Andrew Warren declined to prosecute 67 arrests tied to recent marches over the death of George Floyd. TAMPA — The streets of downtown were once again lined with protesters on Wednesday afternoon, but this time they wore ties and business slacks.The protesters were a part of a march called the “Lawyers March for Racial Justice,” which began at the George Edgecomb Courthouse at 5 p.m. It was organized by Tampa Bay attorneys to show solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement, after the death of Minneapolis man George Floyd.There are a...…Earlier this month, Hillsborough County State Attorney Andrew Warren declined to prosecute 67 arrests tied to recent marches over the death of George Floyd. TAMPA — The streets of downtown were once again lined with protesters on Wednesday afternoon, but this time they wore ties and business slacks.The protesters were a part of a march called the “Lawyers March for Racial Justice,” which began at the George Edgecomb Courthouse at 5 p.m. It was organized by Tampa Bay attorneys to show solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement, after the death of Minneapolis man George Floyd.There are a...WW…

“If it takes us 365 days for change to come, then we’ll be out here for the next year,” one protester said.UPDATE: 10 P.M.: After pausing to listen to speakers on the steps of City Hall, protesters took to the streets again in downtown St. Petersburg Wednesday night. The group of more than 100 chanted, danced and cheered for one another as they walked. They moved into south St. Pete neighborhoods, where they paused to learn more about the history of these areas of town. Carla Bristol pointed out ”that yellow building over there" in the heart of the 22nd Street South business district. It’s...…“If it takes us 365 days for change to come, then we’ll be out here for the next year,” one protester said.UPDATE: 10 P.M.: After pausing to listen to speakers on the steps of City Hall, protesters took to the streets again in downtown St. Petersburg Wednesday night. The group of more than 100 chanted, danced and cheered for one another as they walked. They moved into south St. Pete neighborhoods, where they paused to learn more about the history of these areas of town. Carla Bristol pointed out ”that yellow building over there" in the heart of the 22nd Street South business district. It’s...WW…

/The 17-year-old is one of three people charged Friday in the July 15 hack of Twitter.TAMPA — A 17-year-old from Tampa is at the center of a Twitter hack scheme which gave him and two others access to the high-profile accounts of Bill Gates, Barack Obama and many other celebrities with millions of followers, authorities say.Graham Ivan Clark was arrested Friday at his home in Greater Northdale, according to the Hillsborough State Attorney’s Office. The two others charged Friday are 22-year-old Nima Fazeli of Orlando and 19-year-old Mason Sheppard of the United Kingdom, according to the U.S....…/The 17-year-old is one of three people charged Friday in the July 15 hack of Twitter.TAMPA — A 17-year-old from Tampa is at the center of a Twitter hack scheme which gave him and two others access to the high-profile accounts of Bill Gates, Barack Obama and many other celebrities with millions of followers, authorities say.Graham Ivan Clark was arrested Friday at his home in Greater Northdale, according to the Hillsborough State Attorney’s Office. The two others charged Friday are 22-year-old Nima Fazeli of Orlando and 19-year-old Mason Sheppard of the United Kingdom, according to the U.S....WW…

/Potential Tropical Cyclone Nine will likely strengthen into a tropical storm. But there's a lot of uncertainty surrounding this storm.The only thing that seems certain is that Potential Tropical Cyclone Nine will soon strengthen into Tropical Storm Isaias.There is a 90 percent chance that it will grow into a tropical storm in the next 48 hours, according to the National Hurricane Center’s 11 p.m. Tuesday advisory. The latest storm track shows the tropical storm reaching the Tampa Bay region on Sunday night.But there is a high degree of uncertainty surrounding the current forecast, storm...…/Potential Tropical Cyclone Nine will likely strengthen into a tropical storm. But there's a lot of uncertainty surrounding this storm.The only thing that seems certain is that Potential Tropical Cyclone Nine will soon strengthen into Tropical Storm Isaias.There is a 90 percent chance that it will grow into a tropical storm in the next 48 hours, according to the National Hurricane Center’s 11 p.m. Tuesday advisory. The latest storm track shows the tropical storm reaching the Tampa Bay region on Sunday night.But there is a high degree of uncertainty surrounding the current forecast, storm...WW…

Our coronavirus coverage is free for the first 24 hours. Find the latest information at . Please consider or . /The "dustiest" plume on record — bigger than the continental U.S. — created a summer lull that kept storms from forming. But those plumes are receding as forecasters predict a very busy hurricane season.The Saharan Air Layer was our summer friend, helping disrupt the conditions that develop Atlantic storms.But now our pal SAL is leaving at the worst possible time: the peak of hurricane season.This summer, in the midst of what could turn into a historic storm season, a historic...…Our coronavirus coverage is free for the first 24 hours. Find the latest information at . Please consider or . /The "dustiest" plume on record — bigger than the continental U.S. — created a summer lull that kept storms from forming. But those plumes are receding as forecasters predict a very busy hurricane season.The Saharan Air Layer was our summer friend, helping disrupt the conditions that develop Atlantic storms.But now our pal SAL is leaving at the worst possible time: the peak of hurricane season.This summer, in the midst of what could turn into a historic storm season, a historic...WW…

//Franklin, a city commissioner from Lakeland, said he ran against Rep. Spano over fears that he would not be able to beat a challenge from a Democrat in November.An upset had been brewing for Republican Rep. Ross Spano’s 15th Congressional District seat since he took office in 2018.That upset became reality on Tuesday when Lakeland City Commissioner Scott Franklin won with 51.3 percent of the vote in the Republican primary, claiming him a spot to face off against Democrat Alan Cohn and a chance to retain the coveted seat for Republicans in November’s general election.Florida’s...…//Franklin, a city commissioner from Lakeland, said he ran against Rep. Spano over fears that he would not be able to beat a challenge from a Democrat in November.An upset had been brewing for Republican Rep. Ross Spano’s 15th Congressional District seat since he took office in 2018.That upset became reality on Tuesday when Lakeland City Commissioner Scott Franklin won with 51.3 percent of the vote in the Republican primary, claiming him a spot to face off against Democrat Alan Cohn and a chance to retain the coveted seat for Republicans in November’s general election.Florida’s...WW…

/Jae Passmore was detained by Tampa police officers, according to fellow protesters, then taken to the hospital.TAMPA — A prominent Black Lives Matter activist was detained Wednesday night by police while leaving a downtown protest and then hospitalized, according to fellow protesters and video posted to social media.Jae Passmore, who has been at the forefront of the Tampa protest movement the past three months, is the protester seen on the ground in video posted to social media, surrounded by a dozen or so Tampa police officers, according to the posts and witnesses.Protestors shouted at...…/Jae Passmore was detained by Tampa police officers, according to fellow protesters, then taken to the hospital.TAMPA — A prominent Black Lives Matter activist was detained Wednesday night by police while leaving a downtown protest and then hospitalized, according to fellow protesters and video posted to social media.Jae Passmore, who has been at the forefront of the Tampa protest movement the past three months, is the protester seen on the ground in video posted to social media, surrounded by a dozen or so Tampa police officers, according to the posts and witnesses.Protestors shouted at...WW…