Naples community unites, raises over $360,000 at annual breast cancer walkCollier County chase on I-75 ends in arrest after PIT maneuver
NAPLES Naples community unites, raises over $360,000 at annual breast cancer walk The annual fundraiser that’s been making strides in Southwest Florida toward fighting breast cancer is happening.
Collier County chase on I-75 ends in arrest after PIT maneuver A high-speed chase on Interstate 75 ended when Florida Highway Patrol troopers arrested a driver following a PIT maneuver near Mile Marker 101 in Collier County.
THE WEATHER AUTHORITY Clouds and sun with seasonal temperatures for your Saturday plans The Weather Authority is tracking clouds and sun on Saturday with only a chance for a few showers.
WINK NEWS SWFL Scoreboard: High School Football Week 9 Check out southwest Florida high school football teams in action with several district titles on the line in week nine.
CLEWISTON Remembering Ja’yhanna Johnson; Loved ones pay final respects to teen killed at party A family is paying their final respects to a teen, gone too soon. Sixteen year old Ja’yhanna Johnson was a cheerleader, and had a strong sense of faith.
Former FBI agent speaks on deadly deputy-involved shooting A former FBI agent said that deputies appeared to take the steps they could before jumping to lethal force.
BONITA SPRINGS Bonita Springs residents petitioning to stop demolition of school Bonita Springs residents have a little more than 200 signatures on their online petition to prevent the demolition of Bonita Springs Elementary School.
Nicotine pouch trend grows amongst teens The number of teens using tobacco products is at a 25-year low, but at the same time, kids are ditching cigarettes, and many are picking up another habit: nicotine pouches.
PUNTA GORDA Punta Gorda funeral home supports community during Milton Two years ago, Hurricane Ian came and turned the Johnson Funeral Home in Punta Gorda into rubble.
FORT MYERS Drive-thru-only Starbucks enters construction phase while traffic concerns grow It looks like a construction zone for the time being, but soon it will be a one-of-a-kind Starbucks in Fort Myers.
Charlotte County releases body-cam footage of fatal deputy-involved shooting Charlotte County has released the body and dashcam video of the deputy-involved shooting incident that occurred on Wednesday afternoon on Sandy Pine Drive.
PORT CHARLOTTE Port Charlotte teen arrested accused of posting threat to school According to the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office, a Port Charlotte middle school student has been arrested following a school shooting threat made on TikTok.
Amendment 6: Repeal of public campaign financing Florida helps to fund the campaigns of all statewide office candidates. That includes governor, attorney general, chief financial officer and agriculture commissioner. If passed, amendment six will take away that funding.
PGD seeks restaurant operator for Air Center, offers incentives After plans fell through to open a Rosati’s Pizza franchise at PGD Air Center at Punta Gorda Airport, Charlotte County Airport Authority is seeking bids for a full-service restaurant and bar that also provides catering.
FORT MYERS BEACH Margaritaville on Fort Myers Beach to reopen after Milton shutdown Just in time for the weekend, we’ve got some exciting news from Margaritaville Beach Resort in Fort Myers Beach.
NAPLES Naples community unites, raises over $360,000 at annual breast cancer walk The annual fundraiser that’s been making strides in Southwest Florida toward fighting breast cancer is happening.
Collier County chase on I-75 ends in arrest after PIT maneuver A high-speed chase on Interstate 75 ended when Florida Highway Patrol troopers arrested a driver following a PIT maneuver near Mile Marker 101 in Collier County.
THE WEATHER AUTHORITY Clouds and sun with seasonal temperatures for your Saturday plans The Weather Authority is tracking clouds and sun on Saturday with only a chance for a few showers.
WINK NEWS SWFL Scoreboard: High School Football Week 9 Check out southwest Florida high school football teams in action with several district titles on the line in week nine.
CLEWISTON Remembering Ja’yhanna Johnson; Loved ones pay final respects to teen killed at party A family is paying their final respects to a teen, gone too soon. Sixteen year old Ja’yhanna Johnson was a cheerleader, and had a strong sense of faith.
Former FBI agent speaks on deadly deputy-involved shooting A former FBI agent said that deputies appeared to take the steps they could before jumping to lethal force.
BONITA SPRINGS Bonita Springs residents petitioning to stop demolition of school Bonita Springs residents have a little more than 200 signatures on their online petition to prevent the demolition of Bonita Springs Elementary School.
Nicotine pouch trend grows amongst teens The number of teens using tobacco products is at a 25-year low, but at the same time, kids are ditching cigarettes, and many are picking up another habit: nicotine pouches.
PUNTA GORDA Punta Gorda funeral home supports community during Milton Two years ago, Hurricane Ian came and turned the Johnson Funeral Home in Punta Gorda into rubble.
FORT MYERS Drive-thru-only Starbucks enters construction phase while traffic concerns grow It looks like a construction zone for the time being, but soon it will be a one-of-a-kind Starbucks in Fort Myers.
Charlotte County releases body-cam footage of fatal deputy-involved shooting Charlotte County has released the body and dashcam video of the deputy-involved shooting incident that occurred on Wednesday afternoon on Sandy Pine Drive.
PORT CHARLOTTE Port Charlotte teen arrested accused of posting threat to school According to the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office, a Port Charlotte middle school student has been arrested following a school shooting threat made on TikTok.
Amendment 6: Repeal of public campaign financing Florida helps to fund the campaigns of all statewide office candidates. That includes governor, attorney general, chief financial officer and agriculture commissioner. If passed, amendment six will take away that funding.
PGD seeks restaurant operator for Air Center, offers incentives After plans fell through to open a Rosati’s Pizza franchise at PGD Air Center at Punta Gorda Airport, Charlotte County Airport Authority is seeking bids for a full-service restaurant and bar that also provides catering.
FORT MYERS BEACH Margaritaville on Fort Myers Beach to reopen after Milton shutdown Just in time for the weekend, we’ve got some exciting news from Margaritaville Beach Resort in Fort Myers Beach.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) – For the first time in their 5-month-old lives, conjoined twins Carter and Conner squirmed in separate cribs. The Jacksonville boys, who shared a liver and small intestine, were successfully separated Thursday after a 12-hour operation by three surgeons, five anesthesiologists and 12 other staffers. Parents Michelle Brantley and Bryan Mirabal, whose lives were upended by the news that their twins were conjoined in the womb and then later struggled with the hope that they could be safely separated after birth, were all smiles following the operation. “It was so awesome, walking up to the bed for the first time, and then it registered that I was just looking at Carter,” Mirabal said. “And then I thought, ‘I have another baby over here too!'” Five months into her pregnancy, Brantley’s doctor delivered the news: Her twins were fused at the belly and lower chest. “It was very overwhelming, upsetting and very sad,” she said. “We prayed a lot and had family and support and we got through it.” On the day of Brantley’s delivery, reality set in. “It was like, there they are. It was very scary,” Mirabal said. Soon, doctors told the couple their boys would have a good chance of surviving separation surgery; Connor and Carter shared organs that can be separated. The boys shared a liver, bile ducts and part of their small intestine. If they shared a heart or brain, fewer options were available, said Dr. Daniel Robie, chief of pediatric general surgery for Nemours Children’s Specialty Care at Wolfson Children’s Hospital in Jacksonville. “We separate them and then reconstruct them so that they each have organs that are going to function normally,” Robie said. Still, there were obstacles. The doctors worried about too much blood loss while separating the liver, Robie said. So the surgeons and their teams spent months preparing. They went through dry runs and created medical illustrations of the conjoined areas for study. The twins were in critical but stable condition Monday, according to the hospital. They’ll be in the hospital for at least another month. Weary but in good spirits, Brantley and Mirabal say they’re starting to think about all the routine things new parents do. They say the ordeal brought them closer together and they are now engaged to be married. “We are starting to change around the house, getting cribs set up,” said Mirabal, 26, who works as a house painter. “We hadn’t started setting anything up because of what we were told could happen (in surgery).” Brantley said they are going to celebrate birthdays and have a party each year to honor the date of the boys’ separation. “I’m keeping some of the conjoined clothes people have made them so I can show it to them when they’re older,” she said.