Home Care In Tampa, FL

A lot’s changed but PBR still has the rankest bulls matched with ridiculously courageous athletes in epic David vs. Goliath matchups all night long.

By Taylor Riemersma

For those in the Tampa Bay area and beyond, the waiting is over. For the first time since 2012, PBR (Professional Bull Riders) will bring its elite Unleash The Beast to Tampa, January 23-24, 2026.

The best riders and rankest bulls in the world will meet at Benchmark International Arena for the most unpredictable and explosive 8 seconds in sports wrapped in a rock-show, family-friendly production.

Over two days, the riders and bulls will go head-to-head with the action starting at 7:45 p.m. EST Friday night and continuing 6:45 p.m. EST Saturday to announce an event champion.

When the tour last came to Tampa in 2012, Guilherme Marchi walked away the event champion, edging out second-place by three-fourths of a point, riding three bulls on the weekend. Marchi, the 2008 PBR World Champion, would go on to become the most prolific rider in PBR history, registering 635 qualified rides.

While PBR will sell fans the whole seat, most fans only use the edge. Tickets are available at PBR.com and ticketmaster.com. PBR Rewards members can call 800-732-1727.

PBR Elite Seats are available for avid fans who want an exclusive VIP experience while enjoying the world’s top bull riding circuit. These tickets, available in two tiers, offer premium seats, personal on-sire concierge at the PBR fan loyalty booth, and more. For more on elite seats, click HERE, or call (800) 732-1727.

Stay tuned to PBR.com for the full 2026 Unleash The Beast schedule announcement along with the latest news and results. Be sure to follow the sport on all social media platforms at @PBR.

EVENT FAST FACTS

Photo courtesy of Bull Stock Media

A Brandon single mom suffered a stroke two days after emergency room visit for severe headache.

BRANDON — Chiaka Stewart’s headache was so painful that emergency responders rushed her to a Brandon free-standing emergency room run by Tampa General Hospital.

She told the nurse in July 2021 her pain was the worst she’d ever known and that she had just gone back on birth control, a risk factor for blood clots.

Stewart, 41, was also at a higher risk because she was overweight and had diabetes. But no one at the free-standing emergency room ordered a CT scan, which would have shown the presence of a blood clot, said her attorney, Adam Hecht.

Instead, she had blood work and a COVID-19 test and was discharged four hours later with headache medication.

Two days later, the Brandon resident suffered a stroke and was rushed to Tampa General’s main hospital, where imaging revealed extensive blood clots in her brain, court records show.

It was too late to prevent permanent brain damage. Stewart will live the rest of her life mostly blind, with some paralysis on her left side. A single mom with two kids, she also now has problems memorizing and concentrating and suffers from a severe stammer. She is unlikely to ever be able to work again.

After a two-week civil trial in Tampa, a jury on Thursday awarded Stewart $70.8 million in damages for the emergency department’s failure to spot and treat her life-threatening injury.

But Stewart may only receive a fraction of that money since she is on Medicaid. A Florida law limits noneconomic damages in medical malpractice cases when the injured party is a Medicaid recipient to $200,000. Whether this will apply to her case will likely hinge on a future hearing.

The lawsuit, filed in August 2023, named Tampa General, InPhyNet Contracting Services, and their agency nurse, Heather Anderson, an advanced practice registered nurse, as defendants. The jury found Anderson negligent in her treatment of Stewart and that she was acting as an agent of Tampa General.

“(Stewart) had all these risk factors,” Hecht said in an interview with the Tampa Bay Times. “The nurse, for some reason, just treated her like this was someone who came in and said, ‘I always have a bunch of headaches.’”

Tampa General staff declined to answer questions about whether it will be appealing the jury’s decision in appellate court and what percentage of the damages the hospital would be required to pay.

“The health and safety of our patients is our top priority. Federal law (HIPAA) prevents the disclosure of patient data and information,” a statement provided by the hospital said. “In compliance with the law and as part of our commitment to patient privacy and protection, we are not able to speak to the circumstances of this case.”

The hospital referred questions about the case to InPhyNet’s parent company, TeamHealth, which has partnerships with more than 2,400 acute care hospitals and clinics. Company officials said they plan to appeal the decision but declined to comment further, citing ongoing litigation.

“Our hearts go out to the patient and family affected in this case,” the statement said. “At the same time, TeamHealth stands behind our clinicians, who deliver compassionate care guided by our mission, vision, and values. We are committed to supporting both patients and the professionals who care for them.”

Dr. Dainius Drukteinis, the emergency department physician who was on duty when Stewart first sought treatment, was also named in the lawsuit. Like the emergency department nurse, he worked at the hospital through a contract with InPhyNet, court records state. He agreed to settle out of court before the case went to trial, Hecht said.

It’s unclear if Drukteinis ever examined Stewart. Medical records indicate that he did not, although Anderson testified that she consulted with the doctor about the patient, Hecht said.

In 2020, Florida lawmakers approved a bill that allows advanced practice registered nurses who meet certain criteria to practice “autonomously,” or without physician supervision, in some settings. That includes diagnosing, ordering and interpreting tests, and managing treatment plans by prescribing medications.

Drukteinis testified that Tampa General’s operating policies did not require him to review or sign off on a patient’s medical chart compiled by a nurse practitioner before the patient was discharged.

CT scan images of Stewart’s brain taken after her stroke were central to the trial.

A neuroradiologist serving as an expert witness for Stewart said the clotting in her brain was so extensive that some clots would have been present two days earlier when Stewart was first rushed to the hospital, Hecht said.

A radiologist put on the stand by attorneys for Tampa General and InPhyNet agreed the clotting was extensive but said it’s inconclusive whether they would have been present two days earlier, Hecht said.

The Brandon emergency room is fitted with a CT scan machine. Stewart’s visit there coincided with a statewide surge in COVID-19 cases from the delta variant.

“Maybe if COVID wasn’t around, I feel like my outcome may have been different,” Stewart said in an interview with the Times. “I feel like my care was rushed because the hospital was so busy.”

Stewart worked for a mortgage credit company before her stroke. Her two children, who were 16 and 10 at the time of her medical episode, are now her main caregivers.

The damages payout would enable the family to have paid caregivers come to the home to reduce the burden on her children.

“It’s still tough for them — they can see that Mama hasn’t ‘given up,’ and they are very strong kids,” Stewart said. “I’m going to do my best to be positive and think positive and make the best out of this life, whatever that’s going to look like.”

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Invest 92L is likely to strengthen into Tropical Storm Gabrielle this week as it moves across the Atlantic, forecasters said.

A weather system named Invest 92L, currently moving across the Atlantic, will likely strengthen into Tropical Storm Gabrielle this week, according to the National Hurricane Center.

The low pressure area, located about midway between the Windward Islands and the west Africa coast, is producing showers and thunderstorms Tuesday morning.

Environmental conditions are conducive for the system to develop, NHC said.

There’s a 90 percent chance a tropical depression or storm will form in the next day or two as the system moves west-northwest at 10 to 15 mph across the ocean, the agency said.

“The tropical wave moving through the Atlantic will reach an area with low wind shear later this week. This wave could intensify quickly once it passes north of the Leeward Islands and reaches an area with conditions that are ripe for intensification. We expect the next tropical storm to develop by the end of the week,” said Alex DaSilva, AccuWeather lead hurricane expert.

Matt Devitt with WINK News wrote in a Facebook post, “18 days and counting since we've had an active Atlantic tropical system. That'll likely change this week, but still a small victory. Plenty of season left, stay positive and updated!”

The last time the Atlantic was storm free from Aug. 28 through Sept. 15 was in 1939, Paul Dellegatto with Fox 13 added in a Facebook post.

Forecasters are also watching a tropical wave emerging off Africa’s west coast for possible development.

This system is producing an area of disorganized showers and thunderstorms, the NHC said.

It could see some slow development toward the middle to later part of the week as it moves west across the Atlantic at 15 to 20 mph, according to the agency. It has a 20 percent chance of becoming a tropical depression or storm over the next week.

“Broad low pressure in the central Atlantic is getting better organized and a tropical depression or storm may form over the next day or two. This system is likely to turn more NW with time. Behind it, another wave may develop slowly as it moves west. Neither system is a concern for Florida right now,” Denis Phillips, chief meteorologist for Tampa Bay 28, wrote in a Facebook post.

There’s also “a compact but vigorous storm” that has been developing off the North Carolina coast since Sunday, AccuWeather said. “However, it likely has only a brief window to organize before moving onshore on Tuesday or Tuesday night.”

Even if this system doesn’t strengthen into a tropical storm, it will bring heavy rains and gusty thunderstorms to eastern and central North Carolina, southeastern and central Virginia, eastern Maryland and Delaware, experts said.

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TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Two church leaders with ties to Tampa were indicted Wednesday on federal charges alleging the organization forced its members into labor, isolated them and threatened to withhold food, among other alleged abuses.

The indictment included an address in Tampa’s affluent Avila neighborhood, where the FBI executed a search warrant on Wednesday morning.

David Taylor and Michelle Brannon were arrested in Durham, North Carolina and Tampa, Florida, respectively. The indictment identifies them as the leaders of Kingdom of God Global Church, formerly known as Joshua Media Ministries International.

Taylor described himself as an “Apostle and Jesus’ best friend,” claiming to have had multiple face-to-face encounters with God, according to the indictment. Brannon was described as the organization’s executive director.

The Department of Justice alleged the pair forced church members to staff call centers located in Michigan, Florida, Texas and Missouri, and to serve as Taylor’s “armor bearers.” They lived at the call centers or in a “ministry house” and were not allowed to leave without permission.

“Armor bearers were Taylor’s personal servants who fulfilled Taylor’s demands around the clock,” the DOJ wrote in a news release. “Taylor demanded that his Armor Bearers transport women from ministry houses, airports, and other locations to Taylor’s location and ensured the women transported to Taylor took Plan B emergency contraceptives.”

The call center workers were subjected to long hours without pay, tasked with “unobtainable” goals for obtaining donations to the church.

“If victims disobeyed an order or failed to reach his monetary goals, Taylor and Brannon punished the victims with public humiliation, additional work, food and shelter restrictions, psychological abuse, forced repentance, sleep deprivation, physical assaults, and threats of divine judgment in the form of sickness, accidents, and eternal damnation,” the DOJ said.

Taylor and Brannon were accused of using millions of dollars in donations each year to fund their lavish lifestyle, which included buying luxury properties, pricey cars, and items like boats, ATVs and jet skis. The indictment said the church has received $50 million in donations since 2014.

“For twelve years, Brannon has loyally followed Taylor’s instructions and teachings,” the indictment said. “His teachings include encouraging self-inflicted violence and violence against others, including law enforcement, when and if his organization is confronted by law enforcement.”

During a meeting with workers, Taylor was accused of condoning violence against federal agents that may target the church.

“God’s gonna to get you. And I am going to make sure he do, too. I am going to make sure I speed it up,” Taylor said, according to the indictment. “I’m going to be looking at you in Hell and you are going to be having your little FBI jacket on. Who gonna save you then?”

“I have been given power by the only one who counts,” Taylor allegedly said. “We will watch you burn and the flesh melt off of your bones.”

Taylor and Brannon were each charged with conspiracy to commit forced labor, forced labor, and money laundering.