The 52-foot, 60,000-pound houseboat that graced Holly Hill for four months finally hit the water Wednesday morning after three tugboats yanked and yanked and yanked, and freed the vessel from its sandy perch on a tiny island off Riverside Drive.

A wrongful death lawsuit against the Flagler County School Board member's wife whose car officials say struck and killed a Palm Coast woman has been settled for $1.25 million -- less than two weeks after it was filed, an attorney said Wednesday.

The slot-machine debate that put last week's Volusia County Council meeting into a tactical weeklong recess appears headed for another delay today -- as the county and the local poker room wait for action on a state Senate proposal that could usher in a voter referendum on slots.

An extradition agreement with Brazil in a 2003 local murder case is being carefully reviewed by a defense lawyer after the charge against his client was upgraded by a grand jury Wednesday to first-degree murder.

Volusia County Chair Frank Bruno said guaranteeing a potential convention hotel's success with bed-tax funds is not an option the County Council will consider, despite the recommendation of a recent study on the feasibility of adding a new hotel on the beachside.

There's a cartoon-like drawing of a doe-eyed Lady Liberty taped to an office window inside Flagler Palm Coast High School. Local veterans say the student-generated image, and others like it, are distasteful and "un-American." The teacher who gave the assignment said she felt it was just the opposite.

Temperature: 65.7°F / 18.7°C | Humidity: 69% | Pressure: 30.12in / 1019.9hPa (Falling) | Conditions: Mostly Cloudy | Wind Direction: North | Wind Speed: 8.0mph / 12.9km/h

Today - Considerable cloudiness. Highs around 70. Northeast winds 10 to 15 mph.

Tonight - Considerable cloudiness. Lows in the upper 50s. Northeast winds 5 to 10 mph.

Friday - Considerable cloudiness. A slight chance of afternoon showers. Highs in the mid 70s. Northeast winds around 5 mph becoming east 5 to 10 mph in the afternoon. Chance of rain 20 percent.