Showing posts with label St. Petersburg FL. Show all posts
Showing posts with label St. Petersburg FL. Show all posts

Monday, January 12, 2009

St. Petersburg Florida Reservist dies after PT



Reservist dies after PT

The Associated Press
Posted : Monday Jan 12, 2009 13:04:35 EST

PINELLAS PARK, Fla. — Authorities say an Army reservist from St. Petersburg died after doing physical fitness training with his unit.

The soldier’s name was not released Monday, pending notification of his family. A statement from the Army Reserve Medical Command says the 50-year-old died Sunday morning, shortly after being transported to Bayfront Medical Center. The cause of death was also not immediately released.

He was assigned to Company B, 345th Combat Support Hospital in St. Petersburg.

Monday, November 17, 2008

St. Pete police shoot armed suicidal man

St. Pete police shoot armed suicidal man
Nov 17, 2008
St. Pete police shoot armed suicidal man
ST. PETERSBURG -- A police officer shot and wounded a man that pointed a gun at officers who were responding to a report of a domestic dispute Sunday night.

The shooting victim has been identified by police as Roberto Garcia Lara, 42, of 6528 12th St. N.

The incident started when St. Petersburg police received a call from an alarm company at about 9 p.m. in reference to a woman screaming.

Police said the woman may have pushed a panic button on the alarm system at the home at 6528 12th St. N. Representatives with the alarm company heard the woman yelling and notified police.

When officers arrived, they found a "very emotional" woman in the front yard, said St. Petersburg Police spokesman Bill Doniel. The woman told police her husband was suicidal.

"She told officers they were having an argument and that he wanted to kill himself," Doniel said.
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Monday, November 10, 2008

Search for bodies begins in St. Petersburg after fire

Search for bodies begins in St. Pete
"I opened my door and the hallway was smoky," Douglas Parks, 41, said. "I looked out back and black smoke was just rolling over the fence. I said, 'this baby is on fire' and dialed 911." Four minutes after the call, firefighters were on the scene battling the blaze. It took more than 100 firefighters to quench the blaze.

Thursday, October 16, 2008

VFW reports 4 VA offices involved in document shredding

VA claims found in piles to be shredded

By Rick Maze - Staff writer
Posted : Thursday Oct 16, 2008 16:35:50 EDT

Department of Veterans Affairs regional offices have been ordered to immediately stop shredding documents after an investigation found some benefits claims and supporting documents among piles of papers waiting to be destroyed.

Claims often include personal records supplied by veterans that are not duplicated in government files and might be difficult to replace, such as certificates for births, deaths and marriage.

In a statement, VA Secretary James Peake said only a handful of documents were found among piles of documents set aside to be shredded. But he is not pleased.

“I insist on the highest possible standards for processing and safeguarding information in VA’s custody,” Peake said. “It is unacceptable that documents important to a veteran’s claim for benefits should be misplaced or destroyed.”

Peake said three of VA’s 57 regional offices were involved, without naming them. Veterans of Foreign Wars said they were told four regional offices — in Detroit, St. Louis, St. Petersburg, Fla., and Waco, Texas — were identified as having documents in shredding bins that should not have been there.

VFW National Commander Glen Gardner said the problem could be significant.

“The VA inspector general conducted a routine investigation of Detroit’s mailroom and discovered five documents in the shredder bin, then three pieces are found in St. Louis, two in Waco, and some more in St. Petersburg,” he said. “The question that begs to be asked and answered is how many veterans had their disability and compensation claims disappear down a paper shredder?”
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http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/10/military_va_stopshredding_101608w/

Sunday, May 18, 2008

For veterans, a homecoming in St. Petersburg

For veterans, a homecoming
By Aaron Sharockman, Times Staff Writer
In print: Sunday, May 18, 2008



ST. PETERSBURG — Once a proud business owner, Sgt. 1st Class Robert Thomas now has trouble helping his youngest son finish simple school assignments.

Thomas, 46, cannot feel his right arm. Sometimes, he says, he can hardly walk.

Yet Thomas, a career Army reservist who was wounded by an improvised explosive device in Iraq, could not be stopped from reuniting on Saturday with fellow veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

Even though he recently left the Tampa Bay area for South Carolina, where his wife took a new job, he maintains local ties. And he drove down specifically to swap stories and meet fellow veterans at a "Welcome Home" picnic hosted by the Bay Pines VA Medical Center.

The picnic is part of a nationwide effort by the Veterans Affairs Department to help veterans readjust.

"This is where I'm comfortable," said Thomas, who has spent time in combat zones in Grenada, Bosnia and in was part of both wars with Iraq. "I tried to be the tough guy and do it on my own. But this time it hit me harder."

The afternoon event, which was co-hosted by the Pinellas County Gator Club, was as much about reminding veterans they remain part of something, as it was about free hot dogs, sodas and brownies.

All too often, experts say, veterans returning from war find it difficult to acclimate to peace time life. The change can lead to drug use, depression and difficulty keeping a job.

Jayne Blacklin, the program manager for returning Afghanistan and Iraq veterans at Bay Pines, said the Tampa Bay area has the highest unemployment rate in the nation for returning Iraq and Afghanistan veterans at 9 percent.

Making matters worse, only about 30 percent of veterans go to VA hospitals, officials say.

Veterans like Thomas need obvious help, because their problems are physical. But that doesn't begin to detail the depth of the situation, Blacklin says.

Overall, Bay Pines is treating 1,400 veterans returning from either Iraq or Afghanistan.

"A lot of times, there's this mentality that you've been through worse, suck it up," Blacklin said. "We're trying to create an environment — that's maybe a little different from a big standard hospital — where people might come in for help."

Blacklin said a few patients brought friends Saturday who may also need help.

Chris Bufford, 23, shows no physical scars from his seven months in southwest Baghdad.

But the National Guard specialist is dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury. Bufford sought treatment at the advice of his father, a Vietnam-era veteran.
go here for more
http://www.tampabay.com/news/localgovernment/article512249.ece