Wewahitchka family loses home to fire
At 11:23 p.m. Central time on Monday, Jan. 31, the Gulf County Sheriff’s Office Communication Center received a report of a residential fire on Jehu Road in Wewahitchka.
After firefighters arrived at the scene, the house was declared a total loss. No injuries were reported.
The responding firefighters called the Red Cross to aid the family, and a firefighter from Wetapo Creek Volunteer Fire Department drove the family to stay with relatives in Apalachicola.
At this time, the cause of the fire is unknown.
North Florida Child Development in Wewahitchka is taking donations for the family.
The children are aged 3 months, 4, 5 and 6, and clothing is needed in the following sizes:
- 3-6 months girls
- 4 to 7 boys
For more information about the family’s needs, please call North Florida Child Development at 850-728-0997.
This report will be updated as more information becomes available.
Meet the Editor
Wendy Weitzel, The Star’s digital editor, joined the news outlet in August 2021, as a reporter covering primarily Gulf County.
Prior to then, she interned for Oklahoma-based news wire service Gaylord News and for Oklahoma City-based online newspaper NonDoc.com during her four years at the University of Oklahoma, from which she graduated in May with degrees in online journalism and political science.
While at OU, Weitzel was selected as Carnegie-Knight News21 Investigative Fellow among 30 top journalism students from around the country. She also was senior editor managing a 12-person newsroom in coordination with Oklahoma Watch, a non-profit news organization in eastern Oklahoma.