FWC will spend $1M to treat hydrilla on 3 Lake waterways

HOWEY-IN-THEHILLS – Roddy Tate is exasperated by the difficulty of boating on Little Lake Harris because of spreading hydrilla that has become a crisis for the small Lake County town of Howey-in-the-Hills.

“You can almost walk across it,” Tate, 65, said during a Town Council meeting Monday night attended by about 75 people to hear plans to deal with the invasive aquatic weed that has grown thick and impeded boat navigation. “It’s far worse than bad.”

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officials came to the meeting — moved from the tiny town hall to the Lake Hills School because of the expectation of a large crowd — armed with a plan to deal with the hydrilla problem on Little Lake Harris and two other lakes in the Harris Chain of Lakes.

Nathalie Visscher, an FWC invasive plant management biologist, said the agency plans to use herbicide to treat 640 acres on Little Lake Harris, 475 acres on adjoining Lake Harris and 470 acres on Lake Eustis.

The treatments will cost about $1 million, she said. The herbicide will be applied along areas where people and businesses have docks.

“You’ll be able to navigate through the lake,” she assured those on hand.

Howey-in-the-Hills Mayor Chris Sears said dealing with the hydrilla is a priority for the town of 1,200 about 40 miles northwest of downtown Orlando. The problem is worst along the shoreline along North Lakeshore Boulevard, stretching the distance of a couple of football fields across the lake.

“Obviously, this is a huge issue for our town,” he said, adding that the town will work with lawmakers to look for other answers — and funding to get rid of the hydrilla — from Tallahassee.

Hydrilla is a submerged plant with a long stalk and clusters of leaves that poke above the water surface, creating dense mats that make it hard for boats to maneuver.

Visscher said the hydrilla was spread by Hurricane Irma’s high winds in September.

Some questioned the use of an herbicide to combat hydrilla and advocated for using a mechanical harvester to remove the weeds.

But Robbie Lovestrand, another FWC official, said going that route would be more expensive and only allow for eradicating a fraction of the hydrilla that can be treated with an herbicide. He also said the technique isn’t as effective, either.

“We’ve had a long history of success in treating hydrilla,” he said. “This is the best we can do with the budget we have and the tools we have.”

Visscher said treating hydrilla in August isn’t ideal because of the high water temperature, so it’s important to get the right herbicide.

“We don’t want to create more issues like a fish kill,” she said.

She said the herbicide is ordered and FWC is just waiting for delivery to get started, which could be in a matter of days. But she cautioned that getting rid of all the hydrilla might take some time. FWC will reassess the situation in the fall and act accordingly.

Relief can’t come fast enough for residents who say they haven’t seen the hydrilla this bad in decades.

“Every day we see two or three boats stuck in it,” said Lou Howell, 68. for the decedent to have discharged a weapon at this angle.”

Linquanti died of her injuries July 29, and the Orange-Osceola Medical Examiner’s Office ruled her death a homicide.

In an interview with police on the night of the shooting, Pruitt said he remembered eating dinner with Linquanti that evening but had no memory of the incident other than calling 911 about 12:15 a.m.

He told police the shooting could have been caused by one of the three dogs in the home, who are “very smart,” according to the affidavit. He believed the gun used was one of the ones he kept in a safe in the closet, police reported.

He told detectives he and Linquanti hadn’t had a fight in weeks, according to the affidavit.

However, detectives found a video on Pruitt’s phone from July 21 that showed an argument between Pruitt and Linquanti about 12:08 a.m., according to police.

Four scratches police discovered on Pruitt’s body were believed to have been caused by a recent fight with Linquanti, authorities said. They were “fresh wounds,” not yet in the healing process, police reported.

Pruitt told police they were caused by his dog.

In a search of Pruitt’s cellphone, police discovered he made dozens of calls immediately following the 911 call and throughout the early hours of July 21, mostly to family members.

But four calls were made to a retired homicide detective, who told police he had supervised Pruitt in the past. The man said when he eventually talked to Pruitt that afternoon, Pruitt gave him details of the incident and asked him specific questions about homicide investigations, according to the affidavit.

“[The man] stated the conversation was extremely suspicious to him,” police wrote in the warrant.

Police also obtained text messages from Linquanti’s friend’s cellphone, which showed a conversation between the two with details of a domestic incident that took place in December.

Linquanti said Pruitt put a gun to her chest and cocked it while drunk Dec. 21.

“Justin Pruitt threatened to ‘KILL’ the decedent. The decedent specifically stated ‘NOT HURT – KILL,’” according to the affidavit.

Linquanti told her friend police came to the apartment that night and removed the guns, though court records do not indicate charges were filed against Pruitt on that date.

Linquanti worked at AT&T and attended Valencia College, where she studied business and human resources, according to her mother, Lilia Linquanti.

“Tiffany was full of life, full of laughter,” her mother said. “She lived life to its fullest, and someone took that away from me.”

Lilia Linquanti said she was at her daughter’s side in the hospital for nine days, waiting for answers. Pruitt’s arrest, she said, felt like someone lifting part of the burden off her shoulders.

“God is good because justice came. You know how long we’ve been waiting for this justice?” Lilia Linquanti said. “It came.”