Dateline Florida

By Times Wires
Published February 28, 2008

Yo-heave-ho frees stuck yacht 

Six months of slow pulling, sometimes only 10 feet per day, have freed the 158-foot luxury yacht Legacy from a protected area off Key West. The yacht was trapped in shallow tidal flats by sea grass during Hurricane Wilma in 2005 and languished there while owner Peter Halmos argued with the government for more than two years over how to free it without doing too much damage to the Great White Heron National Wildlife Refuge. During the removal, Halmos has either lived aboard the Legacy or on a set of connected houseboats nearby to ward off pirates and thieves.

Fletcher memorial to be Saturday

WTSP-Ch. 10 has announced a public memorial for meteorologist Dick Fletcher at 11 a.m. Saturday at the 2,500-seat Suncoast Cathedral, 2300 62nd Ave. N in St. Petersburg. WTSP news director Darren Richards said Fletcher's immediate family, including three adult children, will also have a separate, private ceremony. The station doesn't plan to air the entire memorial service, though it will film parts of the event for a news story to air later. WTSP will also rebroadcast its hourlong tribute to Fletcher at 8 a.m. Saturday.

Corrections

-Warren McFadden purchased pieces of the Berlin Wall, which are on display at the St. Petersburg Clay Co., 11 years ago. The monument is 10 feet high and 8 feet wide. A story Wednesday was incorrect on those points.

-Citrus County deputies knocked on John Couey's door at 8:15 p.m., about half a day after Jessica Lunsford was reported missing on Feb. 24, 2005. A story Wednesday was incorrect on the time.

[Last modified February 28, 2008, 00:14:33]