News-Press from Fort Myers, Florida • Page 37

5B STATE NEWS-PRESS, SUNDAY, DECEMBER 18, 1994 PLUNGE REACHES 417 FEET Reefs left in rubble: after tropical storm TP Park model stung from riding on 'Scorpion' The Associated Press gt rtl? "-its "It will take a long time for the reefs to recover from Gordon," Lir- i man said. The reefs' recovery after Andrew demonstrates that storms are a ma- i jor mechanism for reef growth, he said. What's unclear is whether the natural recovery can take place in a system pushed to the limit by human-' kind. "They obviously are able to survive storms," Lirman said of the" reefs. "Add noise or pollution or boating or nutrients from solid waste or bleaching from ultraviolet light nobody knows how they're going cope with natural changes and pollution superimposed.

They don't seem to be doing very well when they have both sources of stress acting at thesametime." I(; The reefs Lirman studied Elk horn and Ball Buoy reefs off Elliott Key are in better shape than the troubled reefs farther south. There are fewer boats and divers in Biscayne National Park, but every week, Lir-. man finds evidence of more boats running aground on the reefs. Lirman arrived at UM two weeks before Andrew. The Biscayne National Park science staff arranged for Lirman, a researcher in the Rose nstiel School of Marine and Atmr" spheric Science, and associate Peggy-Fong to assess Andrew's damage to the reefs.

The huge reefs off South Florida are created by coral polyps tiny cousins of jellyfish. They secrete car-: cium carbonate that forms the shells. When they die, other corals live in the shells, meanwhile secreting" more calcium carbonate to form 1 morecells. Knlght-Ridder News Service MIAMI Tropical Storm Gordon, the unwelcome cyclone that sputtered and staggered over South Florida for a week, left a trail of rubble where showcase reefs once bloomed, researchers have found. Waters off the coast of Florida roiled and rolled beneath the winds of Gordon like a giant blender, with loose coral and other debris smashing into the reefs, grinding delicate coral castles to rocky wreckage.

By comparison, Hurricane Andrew was a Johnny Appleseed of the reef, pruning limbs and stems of coral that settled on the bottom and nurtured new growth. "It was very strong, but came by so fast" that living coral fragments could rain down and become thriving new colonies, said Diego Lirman, a University of Miami doctoral student who has been examining the intricate world beneath the waters of Biscayne National Park, southeast of Miami. But Gordon uprooted young colonies before they could anchor themselves to the ocean floor, Lirman said. And, unlike Andrew, Gordon pummeled the reef for days, turning the seas into a churning cauldron. "You had waves over 10 feet high, pounding constantly for three days," said Lirman.

Elkhorn coral stems that had survived Andrew were snapped off. So was much of the new growth. Churning waters picked up old debris from Hurricane Andrew, including chunks of dead coral. Not only did Gordon destroy much of the living coral, it also smothered a big section of reef, covering it with rubble. The Associated Press Francisco "Pipin" Ferreras, 32, gasps for air as he is aided by safety divers Saturday off Key Largo after completing a 417-foot free dive on a single breath of air.

Diver breathes easy affteir breaking record The Associated Press Lawsuit: Injured workers denied fair compensation The Associated Press open air," Patrick said. "It's just phenomenal what he does." Cuban-born Ferreras, who broke the 413.28-foot (126-meter) mark he set July 30 at the Blue Olympics in Syracuse, Italy, seemed to take Saturday's descent in stride. "I beat the record and I'm happy about that," said Ferreras, after he resurfaced to about 150 applauding spectators aboard a flotilla of 10 boats. "It's just one more step on my way down to 500 feet." Born in Mantanzas, Cuba, Ferreras gained the experience and self-taught knowledge to swim deep, motivated by a desire to spear large fish. "The deeper you go, the more chances you have to catch bigger fish," he said.

"When I was 12 years old, I was going down to 1 25 feet." He began his professional career in 1987, after working with Cuban and Russian naval researchers. KEY LARGO A Key Largo free diver broke his own deep-dive record Saturday, plunging to 417 feet on a single breath of air off the Florida Keys. It took 32-year-old Francisco "Pipin" Ferreras two minutes 22.45 seconds to descend a rope-covered cable on a 140-pound sled and use an inflatable float to rocket back to the surface, trailing a massive stream of air bubbles. The record, which took place in 450 feet of water, 2i2 miles east of the Key Largo National Marine Sanctuary, was certified by judges affiliated with the Florida Skin Divers Association. "It's official, Pipin achieved his goal," said Allen Patrick, association president.

"It's a third longer than a full football field. "The pressure at that depth is about 12 or 13 times what it is in the rmti'intlllillirilr! The Associated Press BATED BREATH: Francisco "Pipin" Ferreras uses a 130-pound underwater sled for descent and an inflatable float for his return. class action by Sarasota workers Earl Cramer and Robin Kessler. Kessler said she pulled her lower back, right leg and right foot in March while working at a Dixie grocery store. Under the current workers compn formula, Kessler will qualify $2,700 in benefits.

But if she had been -injured before the legislative revi i sions, she would have been eligible for about $7,000 a year for 10 said the two workers' attorney, Alex Lancaster. Jon Shebel, president and chief executive officer of Associated dustries, the state's largest employer trade group and a workers' comp insurer said such a suit was expected. "They took us to court last time we passed a new law. It's just lawyers trying to protect their obnoxious fees," Shebel said. "They always saj they're doing it in the name of some injured person, but it's for their benefit." This is the first lawsuit challenge ing a workers' comp law on the grounds it violates the constitutional rights of disabled persons, Lancaster said, though similar challenges are in preparation in four other states.

5 TAMPA A federal lawsuit seeks to force legislators to rewrite Florida's year-old workers' compensation law and make insurers and employers pay more than $100 million in lost benefits to thousands of disabled workers. Insurance industry representatives call the action filed in U.S. District Court Friday a "nuisance suit," a predictable attempt by lawyers to preserve their turf in a once-lucrative area of the law. The lawsuit states that the current workers' compensation law was drafted by executives of the Sara-sota-based FCCI Fund, the state's largest underwriter of workers' compensation, and rushed to enactment by lobbyists for the insurance industry and major employers. The resulting law is an intentional subversion of the protections of the federal Americans with Disabilities Act, passed in 1992, the lawsuit contends.

The lawsuit was filed in federal district court on behalf of all workers allegedly denied adequate benefits since the Florida law was passed in November 1993, represented in the Mother, son found guilty in scam TAMPA A model is suing a Tampa theme park for forcing her to get on a roller coaster she, literally, couldn't get off. According to a lawsuit filed last week, Judy Abercombie Parker appeared at Busch Gardens to play the role of wife and mother in a promotional film involving a family. Her lawsuit claims she was asked to ride the "Scorpion" roller coaster, but that after one trip on the ride she began complaining of neck pain and a headache. She asked to be allowed off the ride, but according to the suit, Busch Garden representatives refused to let her off. Theme park officials required "her to continuously ride the attraction numerous consecutive times followed by numerous rides on the all of which occurred with minimal or no breaks between each such ride," according to the lawsuit.

Her employers threatened to withhold her $1,000 fee and blackball her from modeling in Central Florida if she didn't stay on the rides, Parker said Friday. As a result of the injuries she received, Parker hasn't worked at all since. The suit charges Busch Gardens with negligence and false imprisonment. She seeks in excess of $15,000 in compensatory and punitive damages. A spokeswoman for Busch Gardens said the company does not comment about pending litigation.

Deputy fired after viewing of sex tape The Associated Press TAMPA When Hillsborough County sheriff's deputy Charles Roberts was accused of having sex with a woman at her mobile home while on duty, he denied it. Then investigators cut to the secretly recorded videotape showing him in a sexual encounter with the woman, who also provided detailed notes of the times of the trysts to prove the deputy was on duty. "I'm guilty of being stupid," Roberts told investigators. "I think I was just lured over to commit something I know is wrong." Sheriff Cal Henderson fired Roberts, 37, last week for being at the woman's mobile home on three occasions during the past year when he should have been on patrol duty. According to an internal investigation, the woman, Cindy Love, met Roberts in August 1993 when he responded to a domestic disturbance involving her.

She concealed the video camera in a stack of clothes inside her mobile home and took the tape to sheriff's investigators in October because she feared what Roberts might do if she rebuffed his advances. During one visit, Roberts told dispatchers he was en route to back up another deputy responding to a domestic violence call. But Roberts never arrived at the call, leaving the deputy and residents in danger, the investigation concluded. Love, 37, told investigators Roberts had sex with her on all three occasions while he was supposed to be on duty. Roberts denied it, telling investigators he would visit Love occasionally, but only while he was off duty.

But in addition to the videotape, Love presented other evidence such as notes she jotted down after each sexual encounter detailing the times and the messages she heard crackling over his police radio. Store owner: I was targeted because of race LAKELAND It's a simple six-pack of beer that Emad F. Abdelme-seh says has cost him years of frustration. Four years after he was charged with selling beer to a minor working for police during a sting operation, Abdelmeseh filed suit in federal court on Thursday arguing the city violated his civil rights. Abdelmeseh, the Egyptian-born owner of Emad's Texaco in north Lakeland, said police and the state Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco targeted him because of his race and nationality.

He contends he was wrongfully charged because the woman presented a falsified ID that showed she was older than 21 Florida's legal drinking age. His suit also says he was targeted In a second stlngafter he complained vigorously about the first operation. Police deny he was targeted because of race or nationality. rr The Associated press "There were a whole lot of people who were fleeced over the years." According to testimony and evidence, Weeks-Katona began selling investments in the mid-1980s to clients who listened to a Sunday morning radio show she paid to have broadcast on several stations around the Tampa Bay area. A former girlfriend of Weeks told authorities mother and son spoke of killing Merryday.

TAMPA A mother and son face 10 years in prison after a federal jury found them guilty of running a $7.7 million pyramid scheme and plotting to kill the federal judge who shut it down. Jan Weeks-Katona, 49, and Jason Spencer Weeks, 24, were found guilty for a litany of charges, including wire and mail fraud, money laundering, obstruction of justice and conspiracy to murder U.S. District Judge Steven Merryday. "I think they deserve it," Lawrence Klar, who was swindled out of $12,000, said after Friday's verdict. idled out of $12,000, said after Friday's verdict.

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Gold fUi Vlr' 9:30 Invocation: Pastor Chuck Ezelle-Home Church of Cape Coral Pledge ol Allegiance Public Comment on the Consent and Administrative Agenda Commissioners' Items and Committee Appointments Consent Agenda Administration Agenda 10 00 Appeals Agenda '2 00 Lunch PUBLIC HEARINGS 4 10 ACTION REQUESTED: Adopt amendment to Lee County Ordinance 82-43, Pelican's Nest PUD. 4 20 ACTION REQUESTED: Execute a resolution to approve an amendment to agreements for operation maintenance of High Point Sewer System. 4:30 ACTION REQUESTED: Adopt a resolution declaring the County's intent to utilize the Uniform Method of Collection for Non-Ad Valorem Special Assessments, in particular, for the Lee County Solid Waste Collection Disposal Program. 4 50 Public Presentation of Matters by Citizens 5 05 Second Public Hearing 1 1 1 ACTION REQUESTED; Re-adopt Chapter 1 Article III, Divisions 1 Wellfield Protection provisions of the land Development Code. (2) Second Public Hearing ACTION REQUESTED.

Amend Chapter 14, Article II, Division 3 of the IDC, Southern Bald Eagle Ordinance. (3 First Public Hearing ACTION REQUESTED: Review receive comments on the Southwest Florida International Airport Federal Aviation Regulation, FAR, Part 1 50 Noise Compatibility Study Update. IF ANY PERSON DECIDES TO APPEAL ANY DECISION MADE BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONf-RS, THE COMMUNITY REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY BOARD, THE LEE COUNTY LEASING CORPORATION OR THE LEE COUNTY PORT AUTHORITY WITH RESPECT TO ANY MATTER CONSIDERED AT THIS MEETING OR HEARING, HESHE WILL NEED TO ENSURE THAT A VERBATIM RECORD OF THE PROCEEDINGS IS MADE, WHICH RECORD INCLUDES THE TESTIMONY AND EVIDENCE UPON WHICH THE APPEAL IS TO BE BASED. P.O. A50O514 1 1 Bell Tower Financing Available.